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Some places will be cheaper, (Southern Thailand beaches, just getting a tan and staying in beach huts), while others will be more expensive, (Halong Bay tour, guides in Ankor, partying wherever).
This doesn't include internal flights or expensive 'fast boats', you have to work out along the way where you want to splurge, and where you want to stay in a fleapit!
food per person street food and markets 200 no problem
budget 1200 per day some people will spend more on some days and less on others
30 is ok because you are two people and it cuts down the room cost
rent a nice place 8000 12000 per month on a island not a issue
north long term room 4000 split the cost cheap
keep your traveling cost down buy not moving every other day
make a ruff plan and the enjoy
Don't drink in bars either buy big bottles of Chang from 7/11 and drink on the street (can be fun) or even better buy Thai whisky from 7/11, you can get a small bottle of Rock 101 for under 100B and just buy some plastic cups and coke from 7/11 too and drink that. Drunk for less than £2.
Share the cost of rooms, just take twin or single rooms instead of getting your own room each.
Take buses instead of trains.
Don't take organised tours to the sights, see if you can arrange it yourself.
Take public transport instead of taxis and tuk tuks. Tuk tuks are a rip off and there's no good reason to take them over a taxi with the meter on. Public buses are much cheaper but take an age to go anywhere. I don't recommend.
Avoid nightclubs, entrance fee and over priced drink costs can make it add up.
Don't eat at Wester restaurants or places aimed at tourists, stick to the street vendors or places the locals eat.
I would recommend more than 2 weeks in Vnn ,make some cuts elsewhwere ,maybe ,come back next year for Laos .
If you budget for $us 60 per day ,you may have a little surplus to splurge towards the end .
A budget of $30 / night is perfectly adequate for Thailand, Laos & Cambodia (haven't been to Vietnam for some time so I don't know prices there.). I recently spent a month in Laos, 9 days in Thailand & 2 weeks traveling Cambodia & it was only in Bkk & Vientiane that I actually spent $30 because of the high single room costs. Everywhere else $23/ $24 was sufficient.
Budget included single room, not always but most often ensuite.
2 or 3 decent local meals with an occasional splurge on an Indian curry & garlic naan / pizza or the like.
6 large beers of an evening (5 in Thailand - Chang's too strong to manage 6).
All transport & visa fee's (except Cambodian visa where I've already a multi entry business visa).
Had a good time everywhere (well except Khorat which I found a bit boring) & didn't want for anything.
One post mentioned use buses instead of trains. I woudn't always agree eg Pattaya to Bkk by bus approx 120 baht by train it's 34 baht.
Udon Thani to Khorat by train is 50 baht, I'd imagine the bus would be 120 to 150 baht.
Bkk to Aranya Prathet by train is 51 baht & again I'd imagine the bus would be 120 to 150 baht.
For you maybe. I need double that just to live a comfortable existence. To be honest it doesn't exactly sound like you were living the dream with your single rooms sometimes no bathroom, 2 local meals a day and 5 vile Changs. No activities? No trips? No wild nights out? No splurges? No shopping?
well that's just plain sad...
A budget of $30 / night is perfectly adequate for Thailand, Laos & Cambodia
nonsense.
Budget included single room, not always but most often ensuite. 2 or 3 decent local meals with an occasional splurge on an Indian curry & garlic naan / pizza or the like. 6 large beers of an evening (5 in Thailand - Chang's too strong to manage 6). All transport & visa fee's
more nonsense... 6 large beers alone would eat up most of that budget.
These budget threads are always good for a laugh. I just hope no one takes them seriously.
Laos, 6 large Beer Laos - 6 x !0,000 Kip = $7.50
Cambodia, 12 draft beers - 12 x 2,000 Riel = $6.00
Thailand, 5 large Changs - 5 x 50 baht = $8.50
Laos & Cambodia prices reflect drinking in bars & restaurants. Thailand reflect costs in the local night markets.
It's Hardly" eating up most of a $30 budget"
' To be honest it doesn't exactly sound like you were living the dream with your single rooms sometimes no bathroom, 2 local meals a day and 5 vile Changs.'
Why would I want other than a single room - as a single male traveler why would I pay for anything more ?? There are places I prefer a rustic bungalow with shared facilities to a sanitized hotel room - Don Det & Vang Vieng Vieng being 2 examples - It's hardly roughing it especially if I'm spending some time on the road.
I actually said 2 to 3 local meals per day. Taking Thailand as an example;-
Kai Yat sai (stuffed omellette) or Kaaw Thom Muu Sai Kay (rice soup with pork & egg) for breakfast.
Rice with krapaw muu & penang muu for lunch
Laab gai or naam tok ngeu with sticky rice for dinner
would be a typical days fare for me that's eating really well for about 120 baht / day. Certainly in Thailand I don't have any desire for falang food.
"5 vile Chang's" - Agreed but then tell me decent beer in Thailand ??? Love the food when I'm in Thailand but can't wait to get back to Cambodia for a decent beer (Anchor, Angkor to name a few).
Similarly really miss the Beer Laos when I leave Laos.
Off course we all have different desires & comfort levels when we travel but for me $30 / day is more than adequate. I don't do any shopping except for necessities because shopping bore the hell out of me & always has. Not interested in nightclubs or buckets of local gutrot - I'd much rather be chatting to locals or expats in the nightmarkets or by the riverside beer stalls.
The guy can't afford to drink in bars it seems, so I'm giving suggestions. Why's it sad though? Sitting on the street, chatting to people and people watching is perfectly good fun often better than sitting in a bar (where people are more reluctant to speak to each other), drinking over priced beer and listening to dodgy thai bands play terrible Western cover songs or soppy thai love songs.
Some times I'll want to drink a beer or two but not necessarily go in a bar so sitting on the street or walking around drinking one is better than drinking one in my room.
These budget threads are always good for a laugh. I just hope no one takes them seriously
Like yourself I always read about how little people spend and wonder how the hell they manage it, like in the other thread I just commented on a link to a farang claiming to live like a VIP in Thailand for $285 a month, yeah right. But people do obviously, people I met are often shocked when I tell them how much I spend on accommodation (only around 500-700B) because they stay in 200B a night dumps.
Thailand, 5 large Changs - 5 x 50 baht = $8.50
From the 7/11 you'll get 5 Changs at that price, not in any bar.
Why would I want other than a single room - as a single male traveler why would I pay for anything more ?? There are places I prefer a rustic bungalow with shared facilities to a sanitized hotel room - Don Det & Vang Vieng Vieng being 2 examples - It's hardly roughing it especially if I'm spending some time on the road
Hmmm don't know why anyone would PREFER shared bathrooms etc over their own private one, strange.
would be a typical days fare for me that's eating really well for about 120 baht / day. Certainly in Thailand I don't have any desire for falang food
You must have a really small, child like, appetite though? 3 thai meals a day isn't very filling,
Agreed but then tell me decent beer in Thailand ???
I'd spend the few extra baht on Leo, it's only 2-3B difference on the smaller bottles. Can't remember about the bigger ones. Not incredible but better than Chang.
From the 7/11 you'll get 5 Changs at that price, not in any bar."
Correct! That's why I said "Thailand reflect costs in the local night markets."" Which I find " is perfectly good fun often better than sitting in a bar (where people are more reluctant to speak to each other), drinking over priced beer and listening to dodgy thai bands play terrible Western cover songs or soppy thai love songs." Couldn't have said it better myself.
I used to drink the Leo whenever I was in Thailand but went off it years ago. Nowadays it's Chang which I'd in no way call a good beer but then I don't know any good beer in Thailand. To my mind it was a sad day when Carlsberg pulled out of the country.
"You must have a really small, child like, appetite though? 3 thai meals a day isn't very filling,""
Yeh! I'm not a big eater, certainly compared to some of my mates. Perhaps it's to do with being a heavy smoker. I love the Thai street food & it's one of the main reasons I still visit the country. If I could manage 4 or 5 meals a day I would but generally the 3 / day is all I can manage especially if one includes stick rice.
"Hmmm don't know why anyone would PREFER shared bathrooms etc over their own private one, strange. ""
Don Det I had the choice of a concrete monstrosity right in the heart of the nightlife area hence busy, noisy & impersonal, with ensuite rooms for $10/ night. The view was of a white washed wall of an adjoining hotel.
The alternative was to walk 600 to 800 meters down river & get a private bungalow set right on the riverfront with a balcony hammock & writing desk overlooking the water. The shared showers & toilets were set in a nice garden area were regularly cleaned by the family who were really friendly in that laid back Lao manner. No music, no noise except the occasional insect choir or frog croaking. The cost was $5/ night.
I have to admit I was one of those "strange" people who opted for the shared facilities.
We had an ensuite in KK just a couple of weeks back and the plumbing leaked all night, the tap wouldn't shut off etc. They wouldn't fix the problem so we moved hostels to a place with shared bathrooms and it was brilliant - cheaper too.
Sure - sometimes an ensuite is good but not a necessity (unless you have a bladder or bowel problem!)
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Budget
Been wanting to go to Asia for years now- So finally gathered a pal who wants to join and were planning the journey. Our only issue is funds (Student lifestyle has hit us hard). Our plans are far from set in stone but we would like to have 2-3 months in South East Asia; Our preferred route would be 20-30 days in Thailand, then to Cambodia for 15 days and 15 days again in both Vietnam and Laos before heading back to Bangkok for our flight home. But before we start planning anything it would be good to have an estimation of our budget? Any ideas, I know I've been vague but I don't want to have any boundaries preventing us from going.1
A good estimate would be between $40 and $50 a day, averaged out over different areas and different diversions.Some places will be cheaper, (Southern Thailand beaches, just getting a tan and staying in beach huts), while others will be more expensive, (Halong Bay tour, guides in Ankor, partying wherever).
This doesn't include internal flights or expensive 'fast boats', you have to work out along the way where you want to splurge, and where you want to stay in a fleapit!
2
shared room 250 to 400 2 people lets say 200 average per personfood per person street food and markets 200 no problem
budget 1200 per day some people will spend more on some days and less on others
30 is ok because you are two people and it cuts down the room cost
rent a nice place 8000 12000 per month on a island not a issue
north long term room 4000 split the cost cheap
keep your traveling cost down buy not moving every other day
make a ruff plan and the enjoy
5
Budget at least £1,000 a month. Many will tell you that you can do it for half of that but I think too much Chang must have affected their brain cells because there's not much chance of traveling around Thailand for that unless you literally do NO activities, no drinking, no nights out, no fun....just walking around, not spending money on anything, eating the cheapest of cheap street food every day, staying in really run down and dirty guest houses. It wouldn't be much fun.6
Some tips to save money....Don't drink in bars either buy big bottles of Chang from 7/11 and drink on the street (can be fun) or even better buy Thai whisky from 7/11, you can get a small bottle of Rock 101 for under 100B and just buy some plastic cups and coke from 7/11 too and drink that. Drunk for less than £2.
Share the cost of rooms, just take twin or single rooms instead of getting your own room each.
Take buses instead of trains.
Don't take organised tours to the sights, see if you can arrange it yourself.
Take public transport instead of taxis and tuk tuks. Tuk tuks are a rip off and there's no good reason to take them over a taxi with the meter on. Public buses are much cheaper but take an age to go anywhere. I don't recommend.
Avoid nightclubs, entrance fee and over priced drink costs can make it add up.
Don't eat at Wester restaurants or places aimed at tourists, stick to the street vendors or places the locals eat.
7
Beware of posters saying you can do it for less than $ 50 pp per day . You will need more to cover visa for Vnn , Cambodia and entrance fees for Angkor temples ,possibly an air flight and inter country transport and maybe souveniers .I would recommend more than 2 weeks in Vnn ,make some cuts elsewhwere ,maybe ,come back next year for Laos .
If you budget for $us 60 per day ,you may have a little surplus to splurge towards the end .
8
$50 / night is flashpacking.A budget of $30 / night is perfectly adequate for Thailand, Laos & Cambodia (haven't been to Vietnam for some time so I don't know prices there.). I recently spent a month in Laos, 9 days in Thailand & 2 weeks traveling Cambodia & it was only in Bkk & Vientiane that I actually spent $30 because of the high single room costs. Everywhere else $23/ $24 was sufficient.
Budget included single room, not always but most often ensuite.
2 or 3 decent local meals with an occasional splurge on an Indian curry & garlic naan / pizza or the like.
6 large beers of an evening (5 in Thailand - Chang's too strong to manage 6).
All transport & visa fee's (except Cambodian visa where I've already a multi entry business visa).
Had a good time everywhere (well except Khorat which I found a bit boring) & didn't want for anything.
One post mentioned use buses instead of trains. I woudn't always agree eg Pattaya to Bkk by bus approx 120 baht by train it's 34 baht.
Udon Thani to Khorat by train is 50 baht, I'd imagine the bus would be 120 to 150 baht.
Bkk to Aranya Prathet by train is 51 baht & again I'd imagine the bus would be 120 to 150 baht.
9
A budget of $30 / night is perfectly adequate for ThailandFor you maybe. I need double that just to live a comfortable existence. To be honest it doesn't exactly sound like you were living the dream with your single rooms sometimes no bathroom, 2 local meals a day and 5 vile Changs. No activities? No trips? No wild nights out? No splurges? No shopping?
10
Don't drink in bars either buy big bottles of Chang from 7/11 and drink on the streetwell that's just plain sad...
A budget of $30 / night is perfectly adequate for Thailand, Laos & Cambodia
nonsense.
Budget included single room, not always but most often ensuite. 2 or 3 decent local meals with an occasional splurge on an Indian curry & garlic naan / pizza or the like. 6 large beers of an evening (5 in Thailand - Chang's too strong to manage 6). All transport & visa fee's
more nonsense... 6 large beers alone would eat up most of that budget.
These budget threads are always good for a laugh. I just hope no one takes them seriously.
11
"more nonsense... 6 large beers alone would eat up most of that budget."Laos, 6 large Beer Laos - 6 x !0,000 Kip = $7.50
Cambodia, 12 draft beers - 12 x 2,000 Riel = $6.00
Thailand, 5 large Changs - 5 x 50 baht = $8.50
Laos & Cambodia prices reflect drinking in bars & restaurants. Thailand reflect costs in the local night markets.
It's Hardly" eating up most of a $30 budget"
' To be honest it doesn't exactly sound like you were living the dream with your single rooms sometimes no bathroom, 2 local meals a day and 5 vile Changs.'
Why would I want other than a single room - as a single male traveler why would I pay for anything more ?? There are places I prefer a rustic bungalow with shared facilities to a sanitized hotel room - Don Det & Vang Vieng Vieng being 2 examples - It's hardly roughing it especially if I'm spending some time on the road.
I actually said 2 to 3 local meals per day. Taking Thailand as an example;-
Kai Yat sai (stuffed omellette) or Kaaw Thom Muu Sai Kay (rice soup with pork & egg) for breakfast.
Rice with krapaw muu & penang muu for lunch
Laab gai or naam tok ngeu with sticky rice for dinner
would be a typical days fare for me that's eating really well for about 120 baht / day. Certainly in Thailand I don't have any desire for falang food.
"5 vile Chang's" - Agreed but then tell me decent beer in Thailand ??? Love the food when I'm in Thailand but can't wait to get back to Cambodia for a decent beer (Anchor, Angkor to name a few).
Similarly really miss the Beer Laos when I leave Laos.
Off course we all have different desires & comfort levels when we travel but for me $30 / day is more than adequate. I don't do any shopping except for necessities because shopping bore the hell out of me & always has. Not interested in nightclubs or buckets of local gutrot - I'd much rather be chatting to locals or expats in the nightmarkets or by the riverside beer stalls.
12
well that's just plain sadThe guy can't afford to drink in bars it seems, so I'm giving suggestions. Why's it sad though? Sitting on the street, chatting to people and people watching is perfectly good fun often better than sitting in a bar (where people are more reluctant to speak to each other), drinking over priced beer and listening to dodgy thai bands play terrible Western cover songs or soppy thai love songs.
Some times I'll want to drink a beer or two but not necessarily go in a bar so sitting on the street or walking around drinking one is better than drinking one in my room.
These budget threads are always good for a laugh. I just hope no one takes them seriously
Like yourself I always read about how little people spend and wonder how the hell they manage it, like in the other thread I just commented on a link to a farang claiming to live like a VIP in Thailand for $285 a month, yeah right. But people do obviously, people I met are often shocked when I tell them how much I spend on accommodation (only around 500-700B) because they stay in 200B a night dumps.
Thailand, 5 large Changs - 5 x 50 baht = $8.50
From the 7/11 you'll get 5 Changs at that price, not in any bar.
Why would I want other than a single room - as a single male traveler why would I pay for anything more ?? There are places I prefer a rustic bungalow with shared facilities to a sanitized hotel room - Don Det & Vang Vieng Vieng being 2 examples - It's hardly roughing it especially if I'm spending some time on the road
Hmmm don't know why anyone would PREFER shared bathrooms etc over their own private one, strange.
would be a typical days fare for me that's eating really well for about 120 baht / day. Certainly in Thailand I don't have any desire for falang food
You must have a really small, child like, appetite though? 3 thai meals a day isn't very filling,
Agreed but then tell me decent beer in Thailand ???
I'd spend the few extra baht on Leo, it's only 2-3B difference on the smaller bottles. Can't remember about the bigger ones. Not incredible but better than Chang.
13
"Thailand, 5 large Changs - 5 x 50 baht = $8.50From the 7/11 you'll get 5 Changs at that price, not in any bar."
Correct! That's why I said "Thailand reflect costs in the local night markets."" Which I find " is perfectly good fun often better than sitting in a bar (where people are more reluctant to speak to each other), drinking over priced beer and listening to dodgy thai bands play terrible Western cover songs or soppy thai love songs." Couldn't have said it better myself.
I used to drink the Leo whenever I was in Thailand but went off it years ago. Nowadays it's Chang which I'd in no way call a good beer but then I don't know any good beer in Thailand. To my mind it was a sad day when Carlsberg pulled out of the country.
"You must have a really small, child like, appetite though? 3 thai meals a day isn't very filling,""
Yeh! I'm not a big eater, certainly compared to some of my mates. Perhaps it's to do with being a heavy smoker. I love the Thai street food & it's one of the main reasons I still visit the country. If I could manage 4 or 5 meals a day I would but generally the 3 / day is all I can manage especially if one includes stick rice.
"Hmmm don't know why anyone would PREFER shared bathrooms etc over their own private one, strange. ""
Don Det I had the choice of a concrete monstrosity right in the heart of the nightlife area hence busy, noisy & impersonal, with ensuite rooms for $10/ night. The view was of a white washed wall of an adjoining hotel.
The alternative was to walk 600 to 800 meters down river & get a private bungalow set right on the riverfront with a balcony hammock & writing desk overlooking the water. The shared showers & toilets were set in a nice garden area were regularly cleaned by the family who were really friendly in that laid back Lao manner. No music, no noise except the occasional insect choir or frog croaking. The cost was $5/ night.
I have to admit I was one of those "strange" people who opted for the shared facilities.
14
Not sure about anyone else, but I certainly don't go on holiday to spend most of my time in my hotel room - similarly, if we can get a room without bathroom for a fraction of the price than one with, then why would we want to fork out the extra?We had an ensuite in KK just a couple of weeks back and the plumbing leaked all night, the tap wouldn't shut off etc. They wouldn't fix the problem so we moved hostels to a place with shared bathrooms and it was brilliant - cheaper too.
Sure - sometimes an ensuite is good but not a necessity (unless you have a bladder or bowel problem!)
