How we totally blew our Laos budget
The unexpected cost of travelling Laos led us to spend way more Kip than we thought we would.
Be prepared before you travel to this beautiful, yet slightly more expensive South East Asian nation.
"Laos will be cheap," we said, "we'll save heaps of money!"
We’ll be upfront and honest here; we’ve budgeted $70USD a day for our travels.
This includes everything, including flights, transport, accommodation, food, other expenses etc. So you could say we are travelling tight, but this is the price you pay (pardon the pun) for 10 months travel around the world.
Being travelling tight-asses, when we were planning for our trip we purposely chose a route that would encompass cheap regions, including Southeast Asia, the Subcontinent and Central and Southern Africa.
The first country we visited in South East Asia after Singapore was Laos.
We had this idea in our minds that Laos would be South East Asian style cheap.
Street food, guesthouse accommodation and transport would be, you know, cheap cheap! From our research we assumed $50USD a day would be more than enough for our travels, similar to Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam.
It turns out we were wrong. The unexpected cost of travelling Laos led us to spend exactly $70USD a day for our three weeks. After a week we were shocked and Mark (our fund manager) was going early grey.
How were we spending so much?
We tried to make a few revisions to our spending, including eating at street vendors, drinking only Beerlao (much to Miranda’s chagrin) and staying in cheaper accommodation.
While this improved things slightly, we were still pretty much hitting right on $70USD per day
So what made Laos so expensive?
Nothing in particular, it's just that everything was slightly more expensive then we had anticipated and gradually the little costs here and then began to add up.
To give you an idea, indicative prices include:
Accommodation
Private guesthouses - 100,000 Kip or $12.50 USD or Dorm - 50,000 - 70,000 Kip or $6 - $8 USD
Transport
100,000 - 200,000 Kip (depending on your destination) or $12.50 - $25 USD
Meals
15,000 - 30,000 Kip or $2 - $4 USD
Beer
10,000 Kip or $1.20 USD
Tours/activities
120,000Kip - 200,000+ Kip or $15 - $25 USD
Overall, in the grand scheme of things, Laos is not an expensive country to travel. It's just that in comparison with surrounding South East Asian countries, it is.
Be aware, and add a little more Kip to that Laos budget of yours.
Our best tip to save money in Laos is to shop around for the cheapest version of the big items, whether it be accommodation, transport or tours.
Generally, all guesthouses are the same in term of amenities, so look for the cheapest one before committing.
Organising transport through your hostel can also sometimes be more expensive, so head into town and visit an agent.
Finally, if you’re looking at doing a tour, team up with other travellers to lessen the costs.
A side note, Laos is one country we were happy to spend a little more of our hard earned in. The people are humble and hard-working and the scenery was breathtaking.
Check out our Temples and Chill: Laos Photo Diary to see what we’re talking about!
Have you been to Laos?
Did you find it expensive like us or were we doing it wrong? Tell us in the comments below!
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TRAVEL INSURANCE
Whatever you do, don’t travel through Laos without travel insurance. Whether it be a sprained ankle hiking in the jungles (or worse), stomach issues (we had many in Laos!), theft, or lost baggage, things can go wrong in Laos, and insurance is your only way of mitigating the issues!
BUY | Click here to get the best travel insurance deals with World Nomads
READ | Our ultimate guide to travel insurance
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LAOS BACKPACKING ESSENTIALS
Travelling through Laos comes with a unique set of needs.
To help you have a comfortable, happy journey, we recommend bringing the following items with you:
Reusable water bottle | THE BEST INVESTMENT WE’VE EVER MADE! We use the Grayl water purification bottles, which allows us to fill up from any water source, anywhere in the world (including train taps!).
Biodegradable Wet Wipes | Keep clean without destroying the planet!
Hand sanitiser | not something we’d actually recommend normally, but in Sri Lanka it can be a bloody great investment.
A spork | to cut down on unnecessary plastic usage at meal times
Power bank | power does drop out… often! Don’t get caught out without power for your devices buy purchasing this power bank
READ | check out our eco-friendly packing guide to travel through Nepal consciously and comfortably
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EXPERIENCE MORE OF LAOS WITH THESE ESSENTIAL POSTS
LUANG PRABANG | Discover the best things to do in Luang Prabang
KUANG SI WATERFALL | Our complete guide to Laos’ best attraction
VIENTIANE | City guide and best things to do in Vientiane
DON DET + 4000 ISLANDS | Our complete guide to the 4000 islands of Laos (the best place to visit in Laos!)
TRAVEL INSURANCE | Don’t leave home without travel insurance (seriously, don’t!). Click here to get the best deals with World Nomads, our trusted travel insurance provider
PHOTOGRAPHY | Love our photography? Wondering what gear we use to get all of our photos around the world?
Click here to view our detailed photography gear guide, as well as our top travel photography tips!
RESPONSIBLE TRAVEL | Responsible travel is important. REALLY IMPORTANT.
Learn our top responsible travel tips to help you, your family and friends travel more consciously around the globe
ECO FRIENDLY PACKING ESSENTIALS | Don’t leave home without our favourite eco-friendly travel essentials
