Travelling to a developing country is totally worth it. Everyone asks, “How much does it cost?” Truth be told, outside of your flight you are living cheaper in a tropical paradise than you are at home. For the future travellers, I wanted to break down my cost in nice, easy to understand, whole numbers.
Note – It’s definitely possible to do this trip cheaper than I did, and if so I would suggest more hostels, and eating less food.
1. Flight – $980
Flying out on Tuesday’s are often cheaper. I flew from Vancouver to Bangkok with a short layover in Guangzhou, China.
2. Accommodations – $520
$15-20 per night depending where you stay. I usually opted for a guest room which is a hotel room and usually included breakfast. I mixed a few hostels in there. If you think about it, $525 is a month’s rent back home.
3. Food – $450
$15 per day is pretty normal if you like to eat. This on the generous side. Breakfast was generally included with accommodation. Honestly $4 can get you a decent meal in Thailand. Also tasty local beer (Leo, Singha, Chang) is $1-1.50 depending where you are. Spring rolls, pad thai chicken, pineapple rice are all necessary. Thai food is honestly delicious.
4. Adventures / Tours – $450
I budged about $15 per day for day tours. This included island tours, shooting hand guns, visiting an elephant farm, going to see tigers, snorkelling, boat tours, the list goes on. You want to have some fun while you’re on your trip.
5. Transportation – $200
If you’re not going to hitch hike everywhere, $7 per day will get you by, although some days you don’t need to spend anything. Thailand is a series of islands that require ferry rides if you’re going to fully experience the country. In addition to ferries, tuk-tuk’s, hiring scooters and taxi’s all require a few bucks.
6. Shots – $200
It’s worth getting your shots/vaccines before your trip so you don’t come back with dengue fever or something worse
D Moerman Blog 