Mini-Retirement Update: What It Costs To Travel Southeast Asia
Where in the World is NYPFGuy?!
The last few weeks have completely flown by and this mini-retirement has been completely full on. I left Sydney on June 3rd and as I write this it is currently July 7th. I can’t believe how quickly time has gone by, but it certainly has been an adventure. All of the planning for this 6-month mini-retirement has been completely worth it.
Currently, I’m just outside of Chiang Mai, Thailand, at a small homestay called Rice Barn and Rooms. More to come in a later post how we got here and what we’re doing, but we’ll be here for a little over a week until we head off for the islands in Southern Thailand for 10 days of relaxing on the beach. And I can tell you, I’ll definitely deserve it after the week I’m having in Chiang Mai, but for good reason!
The last update I gave on the blog about this mini-retirement was when we were in Ubud, Bali, about three weeks ago. Since then, there have many new places and adventures, along with a few road bumps as well…
After Ubud, which is the spiritual/jungle/temple hub of Bali, we took a 40-minute ferry to the Nusa islands which are just off the southeast coast of Bali. Here we spent 1 week staying on Nusa Lembongan where we rode bikes around the small island, saw the beautiful natural sights and spent many simple days just relaxing on the beach. It was a great time to just recover and lay low after the fairly hectic 2 weeks we had prior, all while still seeing and experiencing new things!
Enjoying the beach swings on Nusa Ceningan
After that, we took the ferry back to Bali and spent 1 last night in Indonesia by the airport where we splurged on a fancy Italian meal for $20@ It seriously was great Italian food, which I would highly recommend if your are in Sanur, Bali and would like a break from Indonesian cuisine. Check out Massimo Italian Restaurant.
The next day was a full day of travel which took us from Bali on a 3-hour flight to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (a place I visited with my family while living in Sydney), and then after a quick layover a 3-hour flight to Chiang Mai, Thailand.
We’ve now spent the last 10 days in Chiang Mai, and I have to say that I am a big fan of Thailand and Chiang Mai in particular. The last 10 days have been spent doing the following:
- One of my best friends from Chicago invited us to meet up with him and his wife while they are on their honeymoon in Thailand. We splurged and spent $95/night on an awesome hotel that was a welcome slice of luxury.
- Went to an elephant sanctuary which was one of the coolest experiences I’ve ever done (only $65 for the day which was completely worth it)
- Roamed the streets of Chiang Mai soaking in the temples and Thai culture, along with the great street food from the walking night markets
Overall, I really like Thailand a lot more than Indonesia, though each have their own positives and negatives. But Thailand has elephants!!
Feeding elephants in Chiang Mai, but don’t go on the tours that allow you to ride them!
How Have the Finances Worked Out So Far
Since this mini-retirement has started, I’ve been tracking the finances pretty closely for a few different reasons. First, I need to make sure we stay on budget of USD$20,000 for 6 months for two people. Secondly, I want to be able to paint a picture of how it is completely possible to travel the world comfortably for far less money than you’d imagine.
The amount of money spent on a daily or even a weekly basis is pretty hard to calculate because there are some larger items (flights, tours, etc) that can throw off the average because you don’t make those purchases everyday. However, I’m tracking money spent on a monthly basis so I’ll have a more clear picture of how we’re going once a bit more time has passed.
Overall, it’s been very easy to stay on budget if you want to. The budget we are using as a couple is USD$80/day or about USD$2400/month. If all you do is wake up in your basic accommodation, spend the day walking around exploring the city and eat meals at cheap, local restaurants, then it’s likely you’ll be way under budget. It’s the long taxi rides, flights and occasional splurges a on nice place to stay or expensive meal that get you up to your actual budget. So this is something to be aware of, and why it’s important to look at how much you spent on a daily AND monthly schedule.
Here are a few big tickets items we’ve had over the last few weeks:
- $95/night for 3 nights to stay at the hotel in Chiang Mai with my friends on their honeymoon
- $207/person for flights from Bali to Thailand
- $50/each for transportation to/from the Nusa islands off the coast of Bali
Also, when you switch between different countries in Asia some things are more expensive or cheaper than others. In Indonesia, accommodation can be extremely cheap, but food and taxis can be more expensive than Thailand, where accommodation is more but taxis are super cheap.
Making funny faces at Blue Lagoon on Nusa Ceningan off the coast of Bali
A Typical Budget for SE Asia
Here’s the basics for a daily/monthly budget per person that is more basic than luxury travel but an upgrade from a bare bones backpacker budget:
Accommodation: $10-15/night or $300-450/month. This is for places that are private rooms and basic but comfortable, . You could get $5/night dorms in a backpacker hostel if you wanted….
Transportation: $200-300/month which comes out to $6-10/day. Flights, ferries and long taxi/bus rides will make up most of this. Taking tuk-tuks or Grab/Uber doesn’t cost too much.
Food: $10-15/day if you eat 2-3 meals and have a few snacks or drinks. This is for good quality food in restaurants and street markets. Typical meal of fried rice or noodles costs about $2-5 depending on what type of restaurant and which country you are in.
About to dig into a place of chicken and veggie stir fry with a fried egg on top. Thai specialty!
Tours/Entertainment: This one is really up to you. I would say I spend about $200-$300/month or $6-10/day average, but if you really like scuba diving, guided tours or daily yoga classes then you could spend way more.
Miscellaneous: $5/day or $150/month. Buying toiletries, replacing worn out clothing, bribing local officials (just kidding hehe)…
Total: $37-$55/day
Once I’ve been in Asia for over a full financial month that I’ve tracked, I’ll show some screenshots from my personal finance apps to provide more details of how we’ve spent our budget. But as you can see from experiences so far, it’s completely possible to travel comfortably and still stick to a modest budget, which was saved using a simple method that I put together a few years back.
And for anyone who thinks that Southeast Asia is just too chaotic or “rough” for them, I can promise you that it is not as bad as you may think. It’s easy to relax and even enjoy life’s comforts on this side of the world.
It’s been a welcome experience to really let go of the hustle and bustle of life to unwind and focus my energy in different ways and really getting to immerse yourself into a new culture. Something that just hasn’t been possible before while rushing around on 1-2 week vacations away from work. I look forward to enjoying this even more in the coming months!
The nightly routine of watching the sunset on Nusa Lembongan with a Bintang in hand!
Question: Have you traveled or want to travel to Asia? What are you favorite spots or recommendations? I need stuff to do and places to see!
Leave a comment or send me an email!
NYPFGuy
