Here we go. My budget diaries saga continues as I attempt to travel on a very limited budget. As I expressed in my last budgeting post that covered the south of Thailand and Bangkok, I am piss poor at managing my finances, but I am making a concerted effort to be better with money and so I’m writing down everything that I spend as I go
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Across this four weeks, I was in the north of Thailand and Isaan (as well as two days in Vientiane, which I’m including for the sake of keeping this to a round four weeks), and these regions are supposed to be cheaper than the south of Thailand, so I was hopeful about my spending throughout February.
I’ve broken my spending into the following categories: accommodation, transport, food and drink (including alcohol in restaurants), bars and clubs, other entertainment (museums, massages, temples etc…), essentials (haircuts, shampoo, laundry etc…) and miscellaneous (things like mobile phone top-up and computer repairs). So let’s see how I did, eh?
Week 1: Chiang Mai
Accommodation: 1000 Baht; £21.44; $33.65
Transport: 999 Baht; £21.41; $33.62
Food and Drink: 1638 Baht; £35.11; $55.13
Bars and Clubs: 699 Baht; £14.98; $23.52
Other Entertainment: 1710 Baht; £36.66; $57.55
Essentials: 67 Baht; £1.44; $2.25
Miscellaneous: 620 Baht; £13.29; $20.87
Total: 6733 Baht; £144.33; $226.60
Week 2: Chiang Mai, Pai, and Lampang
Accommodation: 1500 Baht; £31.92; $50.44
Transport: 533 Baht; £11.94; $17.92
Food and Drink: 1539 Baht; £32.75; $51.75
Bars and Clubs:0 Baht; £0; $0
Other Entertainment: 205 Baht; £4.36; $6.89
Essentials: 148 Baht; £3.15; $4.98
Miscellaneous: 210 Baht; £4.47; $7.06
Total: 4135 Baht; £88.00; $139.04
Week 3: Sukhothai and Khon Kaen
Accommodation: 2002 Baht; £43.19; $66.95
Transport: 988 Baht; £21.32; $33.04
Food and Drink: 1727 Baht; £37.26; $57.75
Bars and Clubs: 0 Baht; £0; $0
Other Entertainment: 250 Baht; £5.39; $8.36
Essentials: 60 Baht; £1.29; $2.01
Miscellaneous: 1355 Baht; £29.23; $45.31
Total: 5539 Baht; £137.69; $213.42
Week 4: Nong Khai and Vientiane
Accommodation: 2045 Baht; £45.33; $68.91
Transport: 440 Baht; £9.75; $14.83
Food and Drink: 2003 Baht; £44.40; $67.49
Bars and Clubs: 257 Baht; £5.70; $8.66
Other Entertainment: 0 Baht; £0; $0
Essentials: 53 Baht; £1.17; $1.79
Miscellaneous: 1242 Baht; £27.53; $41.85
Total: 6552 Baht; £138.84; $203.52
My complete 4 week total is: 23,290 Baht; £503.91; $782.58
Which means that I spent £72.91 less than I did in my previous four weeks – hooray! Here are some of the things that my £503.91 paid for while I was travelling in the north of Thailand and Isaan.
Staying with a Karen hill tribe outside of Chiang Mai.
Chatting with monks in Chiang Mai (although this was actually free).
Getting massaged by a prisoner in Chiang Mai.
Running away from hippies in Pai.
Cycling around a bunch of old temples in Sukhothai.
Relaxing by the river in Lampang.
Another great month. Next time we’ll see how far my budget can stretch in Laos. Stay tuned and all that.
4 comments
Owen says:
Mar 3, 2013
Thank you so much for that, it is always interesting to see what others spend and to be honest I’ve never kept such a detailed account of my Thai trips. Maybe next time I’ll have to cut down on the entertainment and massages??? The last time in April last year, I came back grossly overweight, mainly from having too much tailor made in Chiang Mai – lolol!!!!
Sam says:
Mar 4, 2013
I probably won’t be the first to say that you’ll probably spend even less in Laos than Thailand, but it’s true. Laos is really cheap!
Right now, I’m in Argentina with my partner, and we’re looking at your £500 for one month of travel and we just can’t believe how much we’re spending here in comparison: almost 3 times as much (though for 2 people). You had the right idea starting your travels in South East Asia, methinks!
That Gay Backpacker says:
Mar 5, 2013
So far I am actually finding that I am spending more in Laos. The transport is more expensive, and the food is a bit more expensive too :/ But yes, I’ve heard South America is not the cheapest of travel places, which makes me scared that I might never get there. Booooo.
Micamyx|Senyorita says:
Mar 9, 2013
Love the photos. Early last year, I started my detailed budget too but discontinued it after my Thailand trip lol. Maybe I should try doing it again. I have overspending tendencies and majority of it goes to food and coffee.
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