Thailand is considered one of the more inexpensive countries in South East Asia. So far, we have been tracking expenses each day and have broken them down into categories. This, not only helps us track our overall spending, but helps us in planning the next country and ensures that we have enough to get by in the next 10 months.
We’ve taken a sample of our first 7 days in Bangkok, Thailand (including our airfare to the country, which will be spread over 30 days). The figures presented here are for 2 people for a week, living lavishly in Bangkok! On average, we are running (all inclusively) about $50 per day here, inexpensive compared to the $160 in Tokyo, Japan!
Keep in mind, our costs may be higher than some of the traditional, youthful backpackers since:
(1) We’ve been pigging out each and everyday, sometimes eating 5 meals and plenty of snacks. I also have a killer sweet tooth and need an ice cream at all times…
(2) We have to buy lots of water since we’re not drinking the local tap water
(3) In terms of accommodation, we have opted for private rooms with AC rather than the dormitory style and usually get one with a private bathroom with hot water as well (Terry’s snoring wakes up the other people down the hall, so we wouldn’t be popular if we shared a room)
(4) We have also been attending plenty of excursions such as temple tours, swimming in waterfalls, visiting tigers etc. so this may also run up our expenses – but are usually well worth it. When else will you be able to bathe with elephants or feed a baby tiger?!
(5) We prefer to take flights or overnight trains between cities. These are usually more expensive than the buses or minivans that may take double the time and may re-route you a few times before you reach your destination. Terry’s long legs appreciate the shorter train rides!
So what are you waiting for? Pinch a few pennies, stop drinking daily $4 lattes, save some money and get over here!
Gosh your pics and write ups make me wanna quit and start travelling too.. i am glad you are having a good time. Living vicariously thorugh your blog
That's really neat info! I too am an 'expense geek' on the road… I had a VERY detailed spreadsheet until Helene begged me to stop forcing her to write down every penny we spent.
The description of your travel style is very, very close to ours. We too partake of numerous snacks and groceries during the day, and go to guesthouses but get double rooms instead of dorms. Our expenses in Japan were really close to yours: $183 USD/day, partly because we chose an expensive ryokan that we really liked from our last trip here.
Looking forward to Thailand… We're going there after our stint along the west coast of peninsular Malaysia.
Happy trails!
Thanks! Yeh, it can be a little tedious tracking all the expenses, but it’s great when you have a whole spreadsheet to look at a few months into our trip!
Enjoy Thailand, it’s wonderful!
50 dollars per day for two people isn't that bad.. unless that is 50 per person…then yeah, a bit lavish but not awful!
$50 total for two people
Save your pennies for when you get to Germany.
It is not cheap here.
And London.
But with it. Of course, no tigers and elephants, Oh MY!
great job. well plan, good to know you are staying in good places ,eating good food. no need to count, mom and dad is still there for you guys.
love the pie chart – that's so manali