London is revealed as the most expensive destination in the world for a city break, according to a TripAdvisor annual cost comparison study –TripIndex Cities – conducted ahead of the summer travel period by independent research firm, Ipsos Mori.

An evening out and overnight stay in a four star hotel for two in the capital will set you back an average of £311.80, over three times the price of a break in the world’s best value destination, Hanoi, Vietnam which comes in at an average of £91.70.

TripIndex Cities compares the cost of an evening out in 48 key tourist cities around the world, taking into account typical costs for two people to enjoy a pre-meal cocktail at a five star hotel, a meal out, taxis, and an overnight stay for two in a four star hotel during the summer travel months of June to August.

Hanoi, the second best value destination last year, knocks off Sofia, Bulgaria to take the top spot this year. While London hikes up six places to take the title from Oslo as the most expensive.

Europe, home to seven of the top 10, continues to dominate the most expensive list, although three Eastern European destinations feature among the 10 best value. Asian destinations top the best value list with five in the top 10.

“As consumers start to think about where to travel this summer, the TripIndex Cities list helps travellers to see where their pound goes the furthest.  This year’s results show that Asian destinations are still the most affordable, while European destinations continue to top the most expensive list. However, Eastern European countries such as Bulgaria and Czech Republic seem to be bucking this trend so may serve as the best places for UK travellers looking for a city break that’s closer to home,” commented TripAdvisor spokesperson, James Kay.

“Travellers who still want to experience the most expensive cities don’t need to forgo their trips.  They can find ways to reduce the cost of their trip by visiting the cities respective TripAdvisor destination pages (TripAdvisor London) where they can search for hotels and restaurants more in-line with their budget,” continued James.

When you consider each of the components for a typical city break, what does the cost look like?

Pre-dinner drinks: Cancun cheapest for cocktails

A pre-dinner vodka martini for two is cheapest in Cancun, Mexico, coming in at an average of £2.02. For the same amount of money you could get one and a half cocktails in Cape Town, half a cocktail in Hanoi and just the olives in Paris where two cocktails are over fifteen times more expensive than in Cancun costing an eye-watering average of £30.98.

Evening meal: Stockholm most expensive for dinner

This year’s TripIndex results show that you’ll find Stockholm, Sweden the most expensive destination to get a bite to eat. For the average cost of an evening meal for two with wine in Stockholm (£107.57), you can have dinner for two with wine plus cocktails, cab fare, a night in a four star hotel in Hanoi and still have change left over. Dinner in Hanoi will set you back an average of just £20.49, five times less than Stockholm.

Getting around: Travel further for less in Jakarta

Grabbing a cab to take a short 2-mile there and back journey in Oslo will hit your wallet hard at £33.77 – nearly 20 times more than in Jakarta where the same trip costs just £1.74. For the same price as a two mile return taxi ride in Oslo, you could actually travel eight miles in Tokyo, 17 miles in Cape Town and a whopping 76 miles in Jakarta.

Hotel room: New York still the most expensive

When it comes to hitting the hay for the night, for the second year running New York tops the most expensive list with one night in a four star hotel costing an average of £218.16. At four times less than New York, an overnight stay in a four-star Bangkok hotel comes in at an average cost of £51.41. For the price of just one night in New York, you could sleep for three nights in Buenos Aires and two in Barcelona.

Top 10 cities where you can save:

*Change indicates the increase or decrease in TripIndex ranking when comparing the position of the destination in 2014 with the results in 2013

Top 10 cities to splurge:

*Change indicates the increase or decrease in TripIndex ranking when comparing the position of the destination in 2014 with the results in 2013