Monthly Budget ? From A Complete Newby

[Vaquero]

I am planning on an extended stay in Thailand within in the next few months. I am currently planning on staying for 1 month at a minimum, 3 months if I like it a lot, maybe even a bit longer if I really really like it a lot.

My question is basically can I live and play in Bangkok at a reasonable degree of comfort and fun with a budget of no more than $1100.00 US per month?

I realize that "reasonable degree of comfort and fun" is very subjective but I think I am mostly a pretty regular guy with modest expectations of both. I have grown up in and lived in the city all my life so I am more comfortable in an urban area than a suburban or rural area. Doesn't need to be the richest block in the richest section of town by any means at all. Even if I could afford that I would not likely choose that option anyway. Id just like a reasonably safe area in a clean well maintained building that is reasonably close to the fun parts of town (I dont mind having to take a train for a few stops).

By fun I mean cool pubs to hang out in and get to meet people. Im not talking about the BarGirl scene, pretty sure I can find that on my own should I choose to check it out, I mean regular sit down bars that you can carry on a conversation at, make new friends, that kind of stuff. Im in my late 30's so the club scene just isnt my thing anymore.

Not sure if that give any of you guys enough info or not, but if you need anymore please just ask and Ill do my best to answer.

Thanks!

[mahtin]

Yeah, you could pretty much stay drunk on a thousand Baht a day.

Or do you have any interests outside of bars?

[Vaquero]

Yeah, you could pretty much stay drunk on a thousand Baht a day.

Or do you have any interests outside of bars?

Thanks. Not planning on a multi month bender. Im planning to just take my sweet time taking in all the sites and soaking up the culture. If I do end up liking things then I will likely move around a bit so as to be able to see more things as I become more knowledgeable.

So you are saying that a thousand baht a day should be plenty for a good place to stay and still be able to get out and about, see the sites, and enjoy a frosty beverage or three?

[sassienie]

Yeah, you could pretty much stay drunk on a thousand Baht a day.

Or do you have any interests outside of bars?

Thanks. Not planning on a multi month bender. Im planning to just take my sweet time taking in all the sites and soaking up the culture. If I do end up liking things then I will likely move around a bit so as to be able to see more things as I become more knowledgeable.

So you are saying that a thousand baht a day should be plenty for a good place to stay and still be able to get out and about, see the sites, and enjoy a frosty beverage or three?

On a 1000 per day, that will pay the bills, feed you, take care of the rent and the odd couple of drinks.

But if you`re seeking wine, women and song, you can easily add another 3000 baht per day on that total.

[smokie36]

Yeah, you could pretty much stay drunk on a thousand Baht a day.

Or do you have any interests outside of bars?

Thanks. Not planning on a multi month bender. Im planning to just take my sweet time taking in all the sites and soaking up the culture. If I do end up liking things then I will likely move around a bit so as to be able to see more things as I become more knowledgeable.

So you are saying that a thousand baht a day should be plenty for a good place to stay and still be able to get out and about, see the sites, and enjoy a frosty beverage or three?

You could live on that just barely. Double would be more realistic. But what else are you planning to do?

It seems to me you could get fairly bored walking the streets for months at a time. Visiting other places will cost extra too.

Forget about bar girls unless you want to blow your budget apart inside a week.

[nam-thip]

1000 baht a day will give you nothing other than half decent accommodation.

Add to that at least another 1.500 baht per day for sightseeing, food, socializing, and a few home comforts and the minimum to have a good time I suggest is 2.500 baht ‘all-in’

My minimum monthly expenses to live in Thailand work out at around 85.000 baht a month but sometimes its up at around 100.000 baht per month.

And that figure doesn’t include mini-trips/holidays out of Jomtien where I live.

I have a neighbor who scrapes by on less than 40.000 baht a month so if you want to be a recluse, drink beer at the local mini-mart and sit at home watching TV like this guy does then you can live here very cheaply.

As the Thai saying goes....................."Up to you"

[Jimjim]

Everyone will have different opinions so topics like this are mostly useless, and people ask it all the time here. My suggestion, live here for a month, spend the amount you would like to live happily, and see if $1100 made for a good month for you or a stingy, miserable month. Only you can can decide. For that money, though, you should really just get a cheap studio apartment worth 5000 baht or so per month and then work the rest out from there.

[Tim207]

What you need to do is get a travel guide like Lonely Planet or Lets Go and get an idea of the costs of the kind of things you are interested in. Then you can come here and ask any specifics of things not covered. Be sure to check the publication date before you buy, Lonely Planet only updates every few years for instance and I have no idea how old the current eddition is. Ten years ago I traveled around Thailand in comfortable hotels (for me) on $1000 per month and had a great time. Some here would think $1100 is pretty extravagant and others would burn through that in a week and feel they were just scraping by on necessities.

If you are looking to hang out, relax, sight see, eat local food, and just soak up the atmosphere $1100 is fine. If you drink a lot and like to be told you are "hansom man" you will be needing more.

[IanForbes]

There has already been several long threads on the same topic. A simple search will find them. As others have said it all depends on what you expect to do and what kind of a life style you want. Your age bracket can also make a difference. It is easy to spend a lovely 3 months in Thailand and not see it all. If you stay in one location and rent a low budget hotel room the cost will vary from 5500 baht to 12,000 baht per month. If you eat a mix of western and Thai food you can eat for less than $5 a day. Beer costs about 30 to 80 baht per bottle depending on whether you buy it at the 7-11 store or go to a pub. The going rate for women is somewhere around 2000 baht. Bus fairs are cheap and you can spend very little to travel a long way.

[Vaquero]

My minimum monthly expenses to live in Thailand work out at around 85.000 baht a month but sometimes its up at around 100.000 baht per month.

Wow! I live in Boston's Back Bay neighborhood. One of the most expensive areas in the North East US to live. Go out two to three nights a week, and even then I dont spend that much.

Everyone will have different opinions so topics like this are mostly useless.....

Admittedly it is a bit of a selfish attitude on my part, but I've found each and every one of the replies so far to be useful. Including yours good sir.

If you are looking to hang out, relax, sight see, eat local food, and just soak up the atmosphere $1100 is fine. If you drink a lot and like to be told you are "hansom man" you will be needing more.

Thank you for the tip on the Lonely Planet guide, I will check that out. As far as drinking a lot goes, my heavy drinking days are behind me, though I still enjoy a pint or two. And my Mom tells me Im handsome all the time, no need to hear it anymore

There has already been several long threads on the same topic. A simple search will find them.

I did indeed try this route first. Problem being I appear to be lacking in proper search terms skills, and my curiosity pretty much always gets the better of me so I have spent the last several days reading through pages and pages of fun posts that were kind of close to what I was looking for but not quite. They were just too interesting for me to stop reading though...hahaha. So in the interest of finding some answers before I read through the entire back history of the board I figured I'd quit lurking and ask.

Thank you to each of you that have posted your views. Each of them has helped me with some great information.

Vaquero