If Jimmy McMillan thought the rent was too damn high he should visit Brazil during the World Cup. The prices for food and hotels are too damn high.
According to CBS News, visitors will find a $35 pepperoni pizza and a $17 cheeseburger. Rafael Alcadipani said even the souvenirs and everyday items are more expensive, but the quality is not good.
“Anything you buy in Brazil will be more expensive than in the United States or Europe, but the quality is going to be worse,” he said.
The dizzying prices are referred to here as the “Custo Brasil,” or “Brazil Cost”–the mixture of high taxes and steep import tariffs, combined with bad infrastructure, a dose of inefficiency and a thick shot of bureaucracy.
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Hotel rates in many of the World Cup host cities more than doubled ahead of the tournament. Massachusetts-based TripAdvisor reports visitors to Rio will face the highest prices, with hotel rates averaging $445 per night. Add in food, a ticket and other expenses, and a solo traveler to Rio should prepare to spend $682 each day.
An iPhone 5s runs $1,250 in Brazil. A pair of Levi 501 jeans costs $80 and a Big Mac is $6.28!
The tickets cost a lot of money, but supply and demand say they should. FIFA made 25,000 tickets available to the general public for the kickoff game on Thursday between Brazil and Croatia. Over 61,000 tickets were held back for VIPs, broadcasters, and hospitality programs.
But there are tickets sold for less than face value, especially in the northern stadiums in the second-tier cities, such as Natal and Manaus. The Nigeria vs. Bosnia-Herzegovina game goes for $15.99 at Viagogo.com. That’s considerably lower than the $90 face value.
Rio de Janeiro hosts the 2016 Summer Olympics. Will the tourists return because of the prices? Wait and see.
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