Do you want to know how high the Thailand trip cost is? How much budget do you need for Thailand? We can tell you this: it depends. Thailand attracts all kinds of travelers, from real budget travelers to people who want to celebrate their honeymoon. Each also with its own price tag. Thailand is without a doubt very affordable! Asia is one of the most popular areas to travel to, one of the reasons is because it is very cheap. Thailand is no exception. In this article, you can read how much budget you need for Thailand and approximately how much money you spend per category. Finally, you will know how much budget for Thailand you need per day, very useful when you are going to put some money aside.
Important: We have traveled through Thailand for 3 weeks, the amounts we mention in this article are based on our travel route through Thailand. Be aware that the north and central parts of Thailand are cheaper than the south.
Thailand trip cost: How much budget do you need for Thailand per day?
Budget traveler: if you have a tight budget and you pay close attention to what you spend, $25 – $30 per person per day may be sufficient.
Mid-range traveler: if you want a bit more luxurious, such as doing a few more expensive activities or staying at better accommodations, a budget of $35 – $55 per person per day is sufficient.
The amounts don’t include airline tickets. Flight costs are very diverse. We ourselves always use Skyscanner and really recommend it!
| Sleep | Food | Transport | Activities | Miscellaneous |
| Dorm: $6 – $9 | Street food: +$1 | Tuktuk: +$3 | Cooking lesson: $29 | Travel guide: $24 |
| Budget room: $12 – $24 | Mid-range: $2 – $5 | Regional bus: $7 – $11 | Bike tour Bangkok: $48 | Travel insurance 3 weeks: $120 |
| Mid-range: $36 – $60 | Fancy food: $7 – $14 | Bus Kho Sok-Bangkok: $30 | Elephant rescue center: $76 | Water bottle: $78 |
| Luxury hotel:$70+ | Local beer: $1 – $2 | Domestic flight: +$36 | Sleeping bag: $29 |
Below you can read each part in more detail.
How much does sleeping in Thailand cost?
A bed in a dormitory costs an average of $6 to $9 per night at more popular hostels. If you are looking for a double room, you can count on an amount between $12 to $24. In this price range, you can find great hostels or hotels. If you want a little more luxury during your trip but still do not make it too crazy, you should take into account $36 to $60 for a double room. It is important to know that the prices for a hostel or hotel vary greatly per destination in Thailand. For example, sleeping costs are generally higher in the south. For example, staying in Koh Samui is a bit more expensive than Chiang Mai.
In Thailand, you can find a lot of great hostels and hotels, each one better than the other. Places such as Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Koh Samui are very popular where you have a lot of choices. To help you select your accommodations, we have written an article about the best accommodations to stay in Thailand. For each destination we have selected two accommodations that we recommend, we have personally visited all our recommended accommodations, each of them has an excellent price-quality ratio. The big advantage is if you book via our links that you can find in the article: accommodations Thailand, that you can change your reservation two days before arrival. Also, it saves you a lot of research work.
How much does the food cost in Thailand?
The time of eating in Thailand is always a party. It was a surprise for us every time we got the bill and realized what we had eaten for the amount. The dishes are really delicious and very cheap. In Thailand, you can eat anywhere without any problems. Our experience is with the tourist spots the simpler the dining area looked from the outside the better the food was. Try to see where the locals eat and order your food there, don’t go where all the tourists are.
If you order Thai food it will be cheaper than if you order western food. You pay an average of $8 for a Western meal. A Thai dish costs on average $4. If you buy something on the street, it will cost you between $1 to #2. Drinks cost +/- $2 depending on how touristy the place is. If you want to eat something cheap quickly, buying something at the supermarket 7-elevens is always a good solution.
Dishes you really should try in Thailand are:
- Tom yum Goong: a spicy soup that usually consists of grains;
- Som Tum: a spicy papaya salad;
- Tom Kha kai: a soup made with coconut oil and chicken;
- Gaeng daeng: a red curry;
- Pad Thai: fried noodles with delicious vegetables and spices.
How much does transport cost in Thailand?
Thailand is a large country, so you often have to use a train, (night) bus or plane between different destinations. Moving between destinations is very easy. For long distances, we do not recommend traveling by bus during the day, because you will lose a day. Besides, it can sometimes be cheaper to go by plane than by public transport.
A bed on the night train from Bangkok to Chiang Mai will cost you around $36 (2nd class) or $54 (1st class). You can often book a flight ticket for between $36 and $72. Renting a scooter costs an average of $6 per day. If you want to bridge short distances in a city, we recommend using a tuk-tuk, prices are +/- $3. If you want to use a taxi, use the meter, this is cheaper than a verbal price agreement.
Excursion and Activity costs in Thailand
In Thailand, you can do a lot. The excursion and activity costs are not extremely high. In cities such as Bangkok and Chiang Mai, you do great tours to get to know the city better. A fun activity is following a cooking class, the costs are approximately $29. Another recommendation is to participate in a bike tour through Bangkok, for which you pay $48. In Chiang Mai, you volunteer for a day at an elephant rescue center, for which you pay $88. The most expensive excursion in Thailand is to visit Khao Sok National Park, it costs $327 for a 2-day excursion. We can mention that this is also one of the best things to do in Thailand. In general, you can do a lot yourself in Thailand, for example, you can rent a scooter in Koh Samui and drive around to explore the island yourself. So you certainly don’t always need others to do awesome things in Thailand.
How much do you spend on other costs in Thailand?
How much you spend on other costs is of course very different per person. You read a couple of items we always use during our trip and that we definitely recommend.
A travel guide gives you information about the country, the weather and the culture at a very detailed level. We always use Lonely Planet. For Thailand, it is best to order this book.
A water bottle is always handy to have with you. We use a Crazycap, this is a water bottle that kills all bacteria in the water using UV. This allows us to drink tap water anywhere in the world through this bottle. So we never have to buy water and can always drink tap water safely without bothering our stomachs. It is a one-time amount, but in the longer term you have this out.
If you are in Thailand and would like to do a lot around the water, we recommend that you buy a dry bag. We do not want to run the risk of our valuables getting wet and damaged. This bag will often save you, we speak from our own experience.
Finally, you can also buy a sleeping bag, the advantage of this is that you always sleep in “your own bed”. If you find it annoying to sleep in unknown beds and do you like hygiene, sleeping in a sleeping bag is a good solution.
Travel insurance
World Nomads travel insurance policies offer coverage for more than 150 activities. Get a quote, make a claim, or buy or extend your policy while on the road.
Thailand on budget: How much did Thailand cost us per day
- Accommodation: $13
- Transport $10
- Food $13
- Activities $12
Total: $48 per day per person (amounts are rounded). This doesn’t include airline tickets and other costs. The airline tickets were $950 for us. Total costs per person: 21 (days) x $48 + $950 = $1958. Disclaimer: For tours such as the 2-day excursion to Khao Sok National Park, we have divided the costs by category at our own discretion and not put everything on cost category activities.
We stayed in good hostels and hotels, enjoyed the Thai cuisine, and did many fun activities. It’s easy to get below $48. You can save money on transport costs because if you often use night trains and night buses, you also save on accommodation costs. Accommodation costs can also be lower, as you can sleep in dormitories.
Conclusion
Thailand is a beautiful country to travel to and Thailand’s trip cost certainly doesn’t have to be expensive. Hopefully, our article has helped you get a better idea of how much it actually costs to travel through Thailand. If you are looking for a travel itinerary through Thailand you can our guide: Thailand itinerary. We have written an article for each destination that we visited in our guide. In each article, you read in detail everything you need to know to prepare yourself.
If you want to know more about Thailand in general and how to prepare yourself, it is recommended to read this Thailand travel guide. In this travel guide you can read what the best places are to visit in Thailand, what the best period is to travel, which items are essential to take with you and more useful information.
Did you enjoy this article? Then save it to Pinterest for later!
