In this report, we cover our world travel expenses for 2020.
We woke up on January 1st, 2020, in Bangkok, Thailand. We had flown to Thailand from Cambodia in 2019 but this report starts with expenses in 2020. The following expenses are the approximate costs for two cheap people to travel the world to these four countries for one year.
World Travel Expenses 2020
| Country | Thailand | Malaysia | Philippines | Mexico |
| Days |
20 |
18 |
231 |
102 |
| Rent |
$439 |
$16 |
$3,674 |
$1,821 |
| Grocery |
$231 |
$144 |
$2,957 |
$1,173 |
| Restaurants |
$81 |
$39 |
$557 |
$774 |
| Snacks |
$13 |
$0 |
$24 |
$39 |
| Transp |
$80 |
$18 |
$662 |
$552 |
| Alcohol |
$59 |
$108 |
$884 |
$829 |
| Sim |
$25 |
$20 |
$83 |
$50 |
| Tours |
$0 |
$0 |
$325 |
$501 |
| Visa |
$0 |
$0 |
$715 |
$0 |
|
|
||||
| Cost Living |
$948 |
$344 |
$9,881 |
$5,739 |
|
|
||||
| Rent/Day |
$22 |
$1 |
$16 |
$18 |
| Food/Day |
$16 |
$10 |
$15 |
$19 |
| Total/Day |
$47 |
$19 |
$43 |
$56 |
|
|
||||
| Flights |
$123 |
$446 |
$2,964 |
319 |
| Personal |
$347 |
$131 |
$1,162 |
109 |
| Total with Cost of Living, Flights, and Personal | ||||
| Thailand | Malaysia | Philippines | Mexico | |
|
$1,418 |
$921 |
$14,007 |
$6,167 |
|
| Annual Stationery Costs By Country | ||||
| Thailand | Philippines | Mexico | ||
| Year |
$17,298 |
$15,614 |
$20,535 |
|
| Month |
$1,442 |
$1,301 |
$1,711 |
|
| 2020 Total Slow Travel Costs |
Year |
Month |
||
|
$22,513 |
$1,876 |
Personal items: Protein powder, clothes, shoes, new computer, new cell phone, back-up hard-drive, medicine, gifts, house-hold, hair/nails, masks, hand alcohol
Not Included: Business software and services, student loans, accountant, state and federal taxes
Anomalies:
One. We stayed with Qiang’s family in Malaysia so rent was almost zero except for 2 days spent in a hotel in Penang before flying to the Philippines.
Two. The Mexico expenses were computed before the end of the year so we just used the November data for both November and December 2020.
Three. The alcohol was much higher in Mexico because we were drinking in restaurants instead of at home.
Four. We paid almost $3000 to fly us both one way from the Philippines to Mexico during the Coronavirus.
Five: We were stuck in Dumaguete in the Philippines for 8 months during the Coronavirus lockdown.
Six. Don’t assume you can slow travel the world this cheaply. Here are six resources that explain why most people will be unable to live as cheaply as we do. Click to read or watch here: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6.
Countries and Cities Visited in 2020
Thailand: Bangkok
Malaysia: Alor Star, Penang
Philippines: Davao, Cagayan de Oro, Camiguinn Island, Boho, Panglau, Dumaguete, Siquijor, Apo Island
Mexico: Puerto Escondido, Mazunte, Zipolite, Huatulco
To see our retire cheap reports for all of these cities visit VagabondBuddha.com. To have a copy of my free eBook emailed to you, visit this link, How I Fired My Boss and Traveled the World for 13 Years. To learn how I paid our world travel expenses for 2020 read how I pay for things without having soul sucking job.
The world is your home, what time will you be home for dinner?
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Thanks for sharing your numbers Bob. Have a great day. Dan
Thanks.
The expenses I can totally relate to. I have detailed expenses of living in Asia going back eight years. For a single person I spend around USD 16,000 annually. Never varies much. To be honest, I wouldn’t say I lived anywhere near “like a king”, but it’s a decent living standard with a lot of low cost travel.
The YouTube “influencers” claiming USD 500 or USD 700 and showing beachfront cocktails or adventure sports are basically deceptive, trying to attract an audience of wannabees. There is no way that an average day can be spent like that on such a low budget.
Life ain’t cheap anywhere if you want anything above an absolute basic lifestyle, which even the locals in Asia would not really want. The only person it might be OK for is an inactive retiree with no ambition except to sleep, eat, walk on a beach, chat and watch netflix.
A monthly income USD 1,500 as a single person and USD 2,500 for a western couple is the minimum people should really have.
IMO. FWIW.
Thank you Judy. I am happy to hear that some of my mistakes and learning experiences may help others live a smoother life. Let us know how it goes. Best, Dan
Thanks Dan for this very detailed and extremely informative info. Just watching your fantastic videos helping me to decide where and how I would like to retire in about two years. Thank you!