day to day money requirements???

[nrvana]

I am going to Barranquilla in September.  How much money will I need on a day to day basis.  Lets say I buy breakfast for me and a young lady, then lunch and then a night out with a lady.  How much dinero am I looking at?  Any information for you guys will help.  

Thanks,  Jon

[Tai]

... in response to day to day money requirements???, posted by nrvana on Jul 23, 2001

Since you will be staying at the Puerta del Sol, I would recommend that you introduce yourself to Nelly. Nelly is a sweetheart. She is one of the hotel managers there. She speaks excellent english, is a good person, and a good person to know.

She has been working at the hotel for a while and has seen LOTS of tours and ladies coming through there. After you meet someone interesting, introduce her to Nelly...she knows the ones that are regulars and circuit girls(players, party girls, etc), and is a good judge of character besides.

Regardless of whatever else I have planned when I am in Barranquilla, I ALWAYS stop by the Puerta del Sol and say hi to Nelly.

Have a good time man, and enjoy yourself.

Tai

ps - When a lady says: "do you want to come out to the disco with US afterwards?"....translation: "Do you want to pay for me and my friends to go to a disco and then buy us drinks?" -Don't fall for it.

[Tai]

... in response to Re: Nrvana....one more thing., posted by Tai on Jul 24, 2001

I realized after I hit the "post" button that I said "have a good time, AND enjoy yourself"...a redundancy but you get the idea.

-And there's nothing wrong with going out in or with a group if that's what you WANT to do...just don't fall for the party girl "Okie-doke".

-Let 'em know that Jon is runnin' the show.(hey, that rhymed huh?)

Tai

[El Diablo]

... in response to day to day money requirements???, posted by nrvana on Jul 23, 2001


It really depends on what kind of restaurants you go to and what entertainment you do in the evening.  It's just like the United States in this regard.  Don't forget the cost for taxi's either.

I think a guy could get by pretty easily on $50 to $75 bucks a day if he were reasonably careful. That would include meals and some entertainment in the evening. However a few miscues and you could be in big big trouble.  For instance, I recall a Saturday night last year a bunch of my Colombian friends and I decided to go out dancing.  We went to Baile which is a disco about 5 kilometers North of Cali.  It was myself, two Colombian guys and our dates.  With taxi's, cover charges, drinks etc. the night cost "us" well over 200,000 pesos (US$100.)  Us really means "gringo" by the way and since I was the only one, I got hit with the whole bill. I'm not complaining necessarily however I learned an important lesson that night -- gringo frequently gets stuck with the entire bill.  Keep that in mind when you go out with larger groups. (-:

El Diablo

[El Diablo]

... in response to Re: day to day money requirements???, posted by El Diablo on Jul 24, 2001


My $50 to $75 did not include lodging.  Figure an extra $30 to $70 depending upon your choice in a hotel.  I don't know anything about Baranquilla but I wouldn't amagine that it would be much different than Cali.

[Pete E]

... in response to day to day money requirements???, posted by nrvana on Jul 23, 2001

Jon,
It really depends on the type of place you want to eat at,but I think the one thing to keep in mind is these girls(unless we are talking about a spoiled player)think its treat to eat in the type of restaurant they would normally go to,which will be very inexpensive by our standards.Actually its a good test of a woman to let her choose the restaurant and see what she comes up with.For me,I was thinking hey I am on vacation,I want to go first class,so I would be the one wanting to go to the better restaurant.This is not necessary and if you are short on money or are going to be there a long time it can really add up.Thats the beauty of Colombia,you don't need to spend that much money,and the really good girls will not want to let you.After I established my prefferences my wife quit trying to get me to go cheaper.
As far as actual costs I am the wrong person to ask because I went the other way and spent way too much.Lots of $40-$60 dinners(for 2).That is an absurd amount of money for Colombia.You could probably spend 40% what I did without missing anything really important.Then hotels,I always stayed in the best place for $80-110 a night.If you just step down about one notch it can be $30-$50,and there are decent places less than that.
I guess in a way my opinion was I am going to go first class because I can do it cheaper here than anywhere else I know.You won't find me in any of those $400-$500 rooms in the Caribean.That to me is absurd unless you are worth millions,then I would rent a whole villa for that price.
You should get some good opinions here from guys who were smarter about it than me.

Pete

[JunFan]

... in response to day to day money requirements???, posted by nrvana on Jul 23, 2001

When I was down there in late May, we only ate dinner out twice.  On the Friday night, we ate at an open air burger stand in one of the squares.  One of the items on the menu was a double burger (one hamburger patty and one chicken breast)for about 12k...first time I had ever seen or ate that before.  I can't remember where it was, I was just following the group. To be honest, one thing I didn't bring back from BQ was a sense of orientation of where things were relative to my hotel.  The reason, I think, is because we were always with 3 women from BQ...soo, we just followed them while we talked and walked.

Wish I could be more help.

But I do remember a great dance club, La Quinta.  You should take your woman there one night, Fri or Sat.  I don't think you will be disappointed.

Enjoy,
Mike

[nrvana]

... in response to day to day money requirements???, posted by nrvana on Jul 23, 2001

Tai, thanks for taking the time to give the some information.  I am staying at the Puerta Del Sol.  Everything is paid for (hotel, tour (I LOVE LATINS)and plane tickets).  I am just waiting to go.  I am budgeting 500.00 American to do whatever I want with...eat, party, spend on the ladies.  I have never been to Colombia and am sincere in looking for a good latin woman.  If not for the guys on this board that make good informational posts, i know I would not be going to Colombia.  Thanks to guys like tai, houndog, hoda, buzzy and the rest of you guys for getting me off the fence.

thanks,

jon

[Tai]

... in response to day to day money requirements???, posted by nrvana on Jul 23, 2001

Nrvana,

Your question is a little vague,...however...

Will you be staying in a economy hotel or a luxury hotel? Is it a hotel that has a restaurant? Will you be having your breakfasts there? What level of restaurants are you talking about for lunch and dinner?

If you are staying at Puerta del Sol for example, breakfast is included(for you). -For her also if she is staying at the hotel with you. Otherwise one breakfast there will probably run you around 12000 pesos.

If you are staying at a economy Hotel such as the Genova, again your breakfast is free with the room, and you can pre-purchase breakfast for an additional person for 8000 per day.

Lunches and dinners for two can range from 10000 pesos to 60-70000....depending on what level of..ahem..luxury you require.

Chinese restaurants in Barranquilla...low quality(IMHO) and quite expensive.(20-30000 pesos per person)

American Broasted...lunch specials daily.(10000 pesos for 2)

La Parrillada Argentina...EXCELLENT food good prices...friendly waiters.(14-20000 for 2)

Mi Vieja Barranquilla...EXCELLENT food, good prices, quiet intimate setting...friendly waiters.(25-30000 for 2) -I highly reccomend the Pollo a la plancha(chicken breast; marinated & grilled to succulent perfection)...slices like butter...mmmm good.

There are also lots of local restaurants that have cheap-but-tasty food. If your lady is from BAQ, she should also be able to help you there.

If you offer more specifics, I may be of more help.

If your daily budget is 25000 pesos, breakfast, lunch, and dinner for two ain't gonna work. 45000/day is workable depending on how much you two eat.

There MAY be restaurants that SEEM to enable you to meet a 25000/day budget...but you'd be sorry at about 3am when Montezuma comes a callin'.

Tai

[Houndog]

... in response to Re: day to day money requirements???, posted by Tai on Jul 23, 2001

Hey Tai, Do they have "Must See" things in B/Q like they do in Cartagena ? I know my first 2 trips to Cartagena I was so busy going, seeing and doing, that I was beat by the time I got back to the states. Just wondering if B/Q is like that.

HD
ps: one of our guys from PL just got back from Cartagena..hope he posts..all the good reports aced it for him.

[Tai]

... in response to Re: Re: things to see & do, posted by Houndog on Jul 23, 2001

HD,

There is no comparison. Cartagena has Barranquilla beat HANDS DOWN as far as must see goes. There really aren't any "major" notables in BAQ. They have a zoo, and I believe an art museum, but unless you luck out and there is some sort of exhibit, festival, or parade going on...there really isn't much to see. -BAQ is QUIET, a place you go to when you want to "unplug" and/or meet women.

They just have the usual stuff; discos, restaurants, movie theaters, shopping malls, etc.

As a matter of fact, most of the locals even drive pretty far out when going to the beach. The BAQ beaches are pretty crummy, lots of debris, and water that you REALLY don't want to wade into without a HAZ-MAT testing kit.

Now I've been told that carnival in Barranquilla is something to see....second only to Rio(or so they keep saying)...actually alot of the people I met in Cartagena said that they go up to Barranquilla for Carnival.

BAQ is a town that is workable once you KNOW it or have contacts, definitely not visitor-user friendly.

In Cartagena, there is so much history, so much happening and PLENTY to see. I can definitely appreciate why one would be tired after a trip there.

.....not to mention the BEAUTIFUL ladies.

Tai

[Cali vet]

... in response to Re: Re: Re: things to see & do, posted by Tai on Jul 24, 2001

The Museo Romantico is chock full of B/quilla history including displays on early carnaval celebrations. Amazingly some barranquilleras have never even seen it. Also the Parque Cocodrillo is nice if you want to get just a little ways out of town.