London is a cheaper venue for events than New York

12/03/2009

If you want to throw an event, throw it in London. This is the message coming from economists who carried out the latest Worldwide Cost of Living survey.

The survey, by the Economist Intelligence Unit, found that London is less expensive than New York for people visiting and people living in the city. London is the 27th most expensive place to live, while New York was ranked the 23rd most expensive.

The results are based on factors as simple as the price of a loaf of bread, but also took into account aspects such as hotel prices, the price of eating and dinking and rental costs.
These results are likely to attract more individuals and organisations that are planning to hold international events. If multi-national companies have offices in both the US and in the UK, it will make more financial sense to hold their office parties in London than it would to hold them in New York, as prices are lower here and the exchange rate is favourable.

Visit London’s chief executive officer, Sally Chatterhee, says London venues understand the need to remain competitive, "Venues and hotels are also looking to support our lead in this area by providing extremely competitive rates to go even further than the exchange rate benefits."