Two of my favourite islands in the south of Thailand are Koh Tao and Koh Lanta. Both boasting beautiful beaches and forest, a solid night-life and a chilled, laid-back vibe, these islands both sit at the top of my recommendations list for must-see destinations in Thailand.
Despite being on opposite sides of the mainland, these two islands have a lot in common - however, my time spent on each differed quite a bit.
My 11 days on Koh Tao were spent over Christmas and New Year, and I enjoyed my time with a big group of travellers who had all recently left Nepal. Because I was travelling in a group, I found I spent more money on food and alcohol. When solo, I might skip a meal here or there or just grab a cheap snack to keep me going, while in a group I was much more prone to sit down and eat a meal with others. I had a scooter for the majority of my time there, and spent most days out and about exploring. It was such a fun 11 days, and probably the highlight of my time in Thailand to date. Some photos below.
In comparison, my 11 days in Koh Lanta were far more relaxed. While I befriended three other lovely solo female travellers, we were all on Koh Lanta for some downtime and to save money, so we didn't get up to too much! I would often work on my laptop for most of the morning (teaching English, working on my blog and other bits and bobs), so would often skip breakfast and just head out for lunch and dinner. I only hired a scooter for one day to go exploring, and while I did go to a bar for some drinks a couple of times, I only ever had one or two - conscious of the fact that I had students to teach the following morning. My time on Koh Lanta was a fantastic 'reset', as travelling around and being social all the time can certainly drain the social battery. Pictures below.
I frequently get asked questions about the cost of my travels, so thought doing this little side-by-side comparison about what the cost of 11 days on an island in Thailand could look like (depending heavily on what you get up to) might be useful. All amounts are rounded to the nearest Australian dollar. So, here it is.
| KOH TAO - SOCIAL | KOH LANTA - SOLO |
|---|---|---|
Accommodation | $114 I stayed in one hostel for 11 nights - Summer Hostel. It was 250 baht (about $10) per night, I booked through HostelWorld. | $96 My 11 nights were split between two different hostels - Lanta Hostel and Blanco. Lanta was 180 baht a night through HostelWorld while Blanco was 230 through booking.com. |
Food/drink | $134 This figure includes any eating out, supermarket food, smoothies, snacks, ice cream etc. It does not include alcohol. When you're hanging out on islands like this, most of your time is spent eating, so it makes sense that this figure builds pretty high! | $125 I was actually surprised that this amount was so similar to that of Koh Tao - I'm clearly consistent in my spending on food! This figure could certainly be a lot less if I were stricter when it came to snacks / treats, however you've got to be lenient in some areas! |
Sightseeing/events | $66 On Koh Tao, I went on a full day snorkel tour, and attended the infamous bar crawl (which was good fun). A lot of the viewpoints, and some beaches, on Koh Tao cost a small fee to access - these fees are also included in this amount. | $0 Having done a couple of snorkel / island tours in Thailand already, I didn't feel the need to do another in and around Koh Lanta, so actually didn't pay to do any tour during my 11 days on the island. |
Alcohol | $50 Pretty cheap for 11 days when it felt like I drank quite often! I would usually buy drinks from 7-11 instead of at bars. | $13 Only had a couple of cheap, happy-hour cocktails over my 11 days on the island. |
Scooter/transport | $45 I hired a scooter for 9 days - this was the cost, including fuel. | $11 Cost for the scooter and fuel for one day of exploring. |
TOTAL | $409 = $37 / day | $245 = $22 / day |
Other | $98 A surprisingly big amount (shows how the little things add up!), this amount is for bits and bobs like sunscreen, toiletries, ATM fees, laundry costs, I bought a beach towel, and even some festive earrings and reindeer antlers to get in the Christmas spirit! Total including 'other' = $506 / $46 per day | $54 Sunscreen and toiletries, laundry, a new sim card, a small backpack and a new cap are what make up this amount! Evidently this figure varies a lot depending on what you need (and / or want!) at the time. Total including 'other' = $299 / $27 per day |
While it's important to let yourself enjoy your holiday, you can always have money at the back of your mind a little bit! Here are a few of my tips when it comes to saving money in Thailand:
Try to find meals that are no more than 100 baht (about $4.20 AUD). It's not difficult to source a restaurant that does delicious Pad Thai for about 60 baht, and yummy curries for 80, so try to avoid the fancier restaurants that have you paying huge amounts for these meals. I have a saying when it comes to restaurants in Asia: "the shitter it looks, the better the food tastes". No fancy looking restaurants for me thank you!
Compare prices before you book. Whether this be for a tour or transport, ask your hostel what their price is, talk to people advertising in the street, look online etc - see where you can source the best deal! If you find a good deal online, chat to your hostel and they might be able to match it.
Stay in hostels. They're social, fun, cheap, and are really well-made in Thailand! I've stayed in my fair share of crappy hostels but the one's in Thailand are yet to disappoint. I always value reviews more than photos or anything else when it comes to booking where to stay, and I always compare the price on HostelWorld and booking.com.
Pre drink or look for happy hour deals. Getting some cheap drinks from 7-11 and drinking on the beach is always a great call (it is legal to drink in public here). You can also find some ripper happy hour deals, especially at beach-front bars. It's also worth me noting that weed has recently been legalised in Thailand, so you can also find that everywhere.
I definitely recommend tracking your spending as it gives you a good idea of your daily costs, which helps you calculate how long you can travel for. I use the Trabee Pocket app - it's great and easy to use, but you need to get into the habit of writing down your spending as you go - it's easy to lose track with cash!
Travel can be costly, but it doesn't have to be! I hope this little price breakdown gave you a better idea of how cheaply you can do it. However it's worth noting that the costs above do not include the cost of getting to and from each island... nor getting to Thailand itself, so these figures are just to give you an idea. Like I already mentioned, it's so difficult to give an accurate 'this is how much you'll spend in Thailand', but it's nice to have a rough number in mind. It's so beautiful and affordable here - come see for yourself.
As always, thanks for reading my Insights,
N xxo
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