Whats Expensive Whats Not

[NoshowJones]

Baked Beans.

What? Cheaper or more expensive?

Both...

I found Imported Baked Beans such as Heinz & SPC much more expensive however the Ayam which I think is local brand is cheaper, but you do get more sauce than beans in these and slightly different taste.

Yes, the Ayam tin with the blue band has less sugar, but is just as tasty, IMO, Branstons baked beans are the best, I always ate them when I was in the UK.

Over here they are much more expensive.

[little mary sunshine]

I have a beautiful 84 sqm apt for $325

Per month....this same apartment in

My home, Hawaii, would cost $2800

Per month.......enough said...who cares if

You,pay a little more for wine and cheese?

[bazza40]

what is "vegemite"?

Vegemite is a spread made out of Brewers yeast that Aussies proudly claim as their own. But if you look into it, it is just a copy of the English marmite. And is owned by Kraft, who are American owned.

I eat it, on toast, don't really like it on bread though. It is a bit of an acquired taste, not to many other countries people like it.

Aussies have come up with bugger all original food, meat pies are sort of Aussie. Lamingtons are about the only thing I can think of that Aussies have invented food wise. I put it down to the beefy Aussie sheilas being lazy in the kitchen. They seem more interested in big serves more than taste.

Wrong. It's not a copy of Marmite. Marmite is made from vegetable extract. Vegemite is made from spent brewer's yeast, which is an enzyme. The breweries in Melbourne, Australia had a problem with the amount of spent yeast they were generating, and a young chemist, Cyril P. Callister, was tasked to make a commercial product. He succeeded in 1922. Initially, it was outsold by Marmite. In 1939, it was endorsed by the British Medical Association as a rich source of B vitamins. The takeover of the Vegemite brand by a US company is comparatively recent.

You've obviously never heard of roast leg of lamb, kangaroo tail soup, pavlova, marron and yabbies. Tasmanian Salmon and leatherwood honey. King Island Blue Brie. Rabbit was a typical dish during the Great Depression in Australia. Before the introduction of the calcivirus, odds were fairly good if you ordered chicken chow mein at an inland restaurant, you'd be eating rabbit.

Are you British? If so, it's a bit rich for you to be criticizing the food of any other nation. Cold pork pies, warm beer, and boiled to death cabbage? Spare me.

[smotherb]

This is a good price comparison site : http://www.numbeo.com/cost-of-living/compare_cities.jsp?country1=Australia&country2=Thailand&city1=Brisbane&city2=Pattaya

Exactly, you can compare cost of living between cities or countries. You can also look at country GDP based on Purchasing Power Parity (PPP)--the cost of a basket of normal commodities measured from each country. A rule-of-thumb for non-standard goods, of course, is imported goods are more expensive than local substitutes.

[laislica]

I have a beautiful 84 sqm apt for $325

Per month....this same apartment in

My home, Hawaii, would cost $2800

Per month.......enough said...who cares if

You,pay a little more for wine and cheese?

Spot on!

The cost of living in Spain (where I /we live) is less than Thailand.

OK I like wine 555

We live two distinctly different lifestyles.

In Thailand it is family orientated with many visits to Wats.

In Spain, mostly "us time" and friends.

Some family come to stay and that's great - we are allowed to take care of them. Privilege!

We do the half half life and not bad at all - always sunny 555

These are genuine sacrifices that we both make - and we are the better for it.

Thus, we each look forward to "the other life".

We always have something to look forward to.

This year however, we shall take my wife's son with us for a 12 day holiday in Spain.

We get a proper chance to spoil him 555

Only fair really, I/we spoil my lot when they visit for a holiday!

Bloody brilliant!!

Can't wait!!!

[Fairynuff]

I brought a bottle of Mateus rose from Portugal to give my Thai

friends as they like it very much,, i bought the bottle when it was on sale.

After carrying the bottle half way around the world and finally giving it to

them,, we were shopping one day when i see the same exact bottle for

sale in BigC for $3 less than what i paid for it, lesson learnt.

I must try to remember that if ever I have some $ I can spend them at Big C. Does anyone know if I could spend £ or there too?

Edited March 26, 2016 by Fairynuff

[GOLDBUGGY]

Anything in a Can is expensive here. Compared to Quality and Price, all Beef is to. Spices when you can find any or any spice mix. Imported Chocolate Bars are also and yet cookies seem cheap.

The most expensive item I ever came across was "Canadian Maple Syrup". I could not believe the price here. But if you do fork over the Big Bucks to buy one be very careful. I saw advertised on the shelf as "Real Canadian Maple Syrup", which was still expensive but cheaper. But when I looked on the label it was made in Europe.

If you think Strawberries are expensive here check out the cost of Cherries. Nuts! Certain vegetables like Radish can be very expensive here as well.

[Farmer1956]

what is "vegemite"?

Cheaper here:

• Seat on the beach 10/20 THB/day
• Benzin, gasoil
• tan
• drinks (no alcohol)
• coffee in the coffee bar

Expensive here:

• Bread
• Camembert
• Internet
• Cable TV
• cars (new and second hand)
• building a snowman
• good craft tools
• peers and peachs (if you can find some...)

All that compared to France where I used to live before I moved to here.

The difference with "Farangland" and Thailand is that here you can buy only 3 screws, 2 cigarettes, 2 aspirins, no need to buy the entire pack if you need only 2 bolts and 2 nuts.

Vegemite is poor mans' marmite.

I find that eating Thai produce works for me.

[bangkokjulia]

You can't get a 99 baht breakfast back home

[ChrisKC]

You can't live without cheese and vegemite ?

Of course he/we can but if he is going to a place that sells fantastic cheese why not bring some back? But I wouldn't bother - it could easily spoil/ go soft during the waiting time to board planes and many hours on the plane!

There are plenty of places you can buy quality cheese in Thailand, in Bangkok and Chiang Mai and any Tops shop in the Cities all around Thailand and selling as much selection as most people could want and it comes from Australia anyway!

Baked Beans? Thai ones are not very good for sure - they are adequate but the best ones are from Australia and available in Makro in lots of three for B120 - why would you bother with the weight those things are?!

In recent years many Western-type foods and other things for that matter have become more available countrywide and therefore less need to bring anything back.

But there is one thing I have looked everywhere and I couldn't buy - a Stanley window scraper even in HomePros where they have a large Stanley area that seems to sell everything else that Stanley makes. I got one in the end - from England

[uthaithanirules]

what is "vegemite"?

Vegemite is a spread made out of Brewers yeast that Aussies proudly claim as their own. But if you look into it, it is just a copy of the English marmite. And is owned by Kraft, who are American owned.

I eat it, on toast, don't really like it on bread though. It is a bit of an acquired taste, not to many other countries people like it.

Aussies have come up with bugger all original food, meat pies are sort of Aussie. Lamingtons are about the only thing I can think of that Aussies have invented food wise. I put it down to the beefy Aussie sheilas being lazy in the kitchen. They seem more interested in big serves more than taste.

Think youll find Lamingtons were invented by Kiwis

Dont think Aus has ever come up with something original food wise

[sandyf]

I brought a bottle of Mateus rose from Portugal to give my Thai

friends as they like it very much,, i bought the bottle when it was on sale.

After carrying the bottle half way around the world and finally giving it to

them,, we were shopping one day when i see the same exact bottle for

sale in BigC for $3 less than what i paid for it, lesson learnt.

Wine is a difficult one to classify. Unless people do as you have done,actually compare like for like you do not know if it is more expensive or not.

I know you can buy 5 ltr boxes of red Chilean wine for about the same price as UK.

[uthaithanirules]

As for the question at hand

Cheese is the only thing I notice more expensive, or darn hard to find, decent stuff that is

Or a 3 litre or a gallon bottle of milk, dont think Ive ever seen one in Thailand

[ChrisKC]

You can't get a 99 baht breakfast back home

The price is not as important as the breakfast. Thais, even in quality hotels can't even fry an egg properly! And their toast is just warm (terrible Thai) bread. The best breakfast, either American or English are the best I have had and were prepared and cooked by me!

Edited March 26, 2016 by ChrisKC

[bangkokjulia]

ChrisKC, did you notice my at the end of my comment?

[ChrisKC]

ChrisKC, did you notice my at the end of my comment?

Yes, I noticed it - what does it mean in the context of the comment you made? A joke?

[bangkokjulia]

I was being facetious

[uthaithanirules]

Bangkok is itself expensive compared to most other Thai cities, e.g. rental accommodation. Wouldn't live there for quids - too hot.

A small jar of Vegemite at Rimping in Chiang Mai is about 6 AUD. I always bring about half a dozen large jars in bubblewrap in my hold luggage.

Motor scooters are about half the cost of the same in Australia.

A townhouse outside Melbourne = 300,000 AUD. A condo here 60 - 80 K. You can build a house on land owned by a Thai for 30K. Not that I recommend buying.

Thai wine and cheese is cheaper; however, it's also undrinkable and inedible respectively.

A lot of pharmaceuticals are cheaper here unless you are on the PBS in Australia. I usually bring a year's worth of meds with me.

Dentists and doctors significantly cheaper. I had two dental implants done here for 5000 AUD, Would have cost 20K in Australia.

OP, how long have you been a victim of the delusion Starbucks makes coffee? I can show you holes in the wall shops that are way better. And cheaper.

Yes, basically all the important stuff is a lot cheaper

[bazza40]

You can't get a 99 baht breakfast back home

The price is not as important as the breakfast. Thais, even in quality hotels can't even fry an egg properly! And their toast is just warm (terrible Thai) bread. The best breakfast, either American or English are the best I have had and were prepared and cooked by me!

For 180 baht, you can get a regular breakfast at O'Malley's in the Anusarn Market in Chiang Mai. Orange juice, coffee, two slices of toast (one white, one wholemeal ) with jam and butter. Scrambled eggs, two pork sausages, potato fries. All perfectly cooked.

I admit you have to get lucky. It took me two years to train the staff to serve my coffee after the meal, not before.

[laislica]

I brought a bottle of Mateus rose from Portugal to give my Thai

friends as they like it very much,, i bought the bottle when it was on sale.

After carrying the bottle half way around the world and finally giving it to

them,, we were shopping one day when i see the same exact bottle for

sale in BigC for $3 less than what i paid for it, lesson learnt.

Wine is a difficult one to classify. Unless people do as you have done,actually compare like for like you do not know if it is more expensive or not.

I know you can buy 5 ltr boxes of red Chilean wine for about the same price as UK.

Hmmmmmm,

prices in the UK......

Try a trip to Spain.

Then report......

€10 can buy you a 4 pack of excellent Grand Reserve 2008

Edited March 26, 2016 by laislica

[ChrisKC]

I was being facetious

Now I know!

If you want a really delicious English breakfast, pop round and I will prepare one for you!

You can reach me in Surat Thani!

Regards from Chris

[SoiBiker]

I brought a bottle of Mateus rose from Portugal to give my Thai

friends as they like it very much,, i bought the bottle when it was on sale.

After carrying the bottle half way around the world and finally giving it to

them,, we were shopping one day when i see the same exact bottle for

sale in BigC for $3 less than what i paid for it, lesson learnt.

Wine is a difficult one to classify. Unless people do as you have done,actually compare like for like you do not know if it is more expensive or not.

I know you can buy 5 ltr boxes of red Chilean wine for about the same price as UK.

Hmmmmmm,

prices in the UK......

Try a trip to Spain.

Then report......

€10 can buy you a 4 pack of excellent Grand Reserve 2008

Spain is a paradise for the budget boozer. Go in a branch of Lidl over there, they practically pay you to take the stuff away.

[TheCruncher]

You can basically simplify it to this -

Recreating the lifestyle you had back home = expensive

Living like the locals = cheap.

But then, if you just want to live like you did back home, why move here in the first place?

I'm not looking to live here same as where I come from, but from time to time I fancy a President Camembert cheese.

1.45 Euro at home ( 56 Baht ) while the exact same thing 515 Baht at Big C extra. I'm guess if I buy them per 4 I can get them cheaper sent over by DHL, and you can freeze Camembert.

[rgs2001uk]

Bangkok is itself expensive compared to most other Thai cities, e.g. rental accommodation. Wouldn't live there for quids - too hot.

A small jar of Vegemite at Rimping in Chiang Mai is about 6 AUD. I always bring about half a dozen large jars in bubblewrap in my hold luggage.

Motor scooters are about half the cost of the same in Australia.

A townhouse outside Melbourne = 300,000 AUD. A condo here 60 - 80 K. You can build a house on land owned by a Thai for 30K. Not that I recommend buying.

Thai wine and cheese is cheaper; however, it's also undrinkable and inedible respectively.

A lot of pharmaceuticals are cheaper here unless you are on the PBS in Australia. I usually bring a year's worth of meds with me.

Dentists and doctors significantly cheaper. I had two dental implants done here for 5000 AUD, Would have cost 20K in Australia.

OP, how long have you been a victim of the delusion Starbucks makes coffee? I can show you holes in the wall shops that are way better. And cheaper.

Bangkok is itself expensive compared to most other Thai cities, e.g. rental accommodation.

How much time and in what areas of Bkk did you live in to draw that conclusion?

Up my way Bang Kapi, 2 storey 3 bedromm townhouse rents for 6,000 baht per month.

Single storey 3 bedroom house rents for about 8,000 baht per month.

Two storey 4 bedroom house rents for about 12,000 per month.

If thats too expensive head to Pra Phra Daeng, you can rent a nice scuzzy Thai place for 1,500 baht per month.

Behind HappyLand you can rent a single loom for 1,000 per month.

Water, gas, electricty, health insurance, internet and phone prices are the same.

I wonder at times how many people have ever lived in Bkk to say its expensive.

Probably led back upcountry by their teelak.

[Denim]

Baked Beans.

If you think baked beans are pricey don't even think about long term investment in a can of corned beef !

Those Ayer beans from Malaysia are like rugby balls in tomato ketchup. Get down to Makro and invest in a three pack of McGregors. Works out cheaper and the fatulance factor is definitely not worse.

Edited March 26, 2016 by Denim

[rgs2001uk]

Baked Beans.

If you think baked beans are pricey don't even think about long term investment in a can of corned beef !

Those Ayer beans from Malaysia are like rugby balls in tomato ketchup. Get down to Makro and invest in a three pack of McGregors. Works out cheaper and the fatulance factor is definitely not worse.

Head to Big C Mega Bang Na.

Brookes 38 baht per tin.

Branston 50 baht per tin.

Heinz 60 baht per tin.

Ayers beans, yeah right, too bloody sweet, throw them in the bin.

[TheCruncher]

Baked Beans.

If you think baked beans are pricey don't even think about long term investment in a can of corned beef !

Those Ayer beans from Malaysia are like rugby balls in tomato ketchup. Get down to Makro and invest in a three pack of McGregors. Works out cheaper and the fatulance factor is definitely not worse.

Head to Big C Mega Bang Na.

Brookes 38 baht per tin.

Branston 50 baht per tin.

Heinz 60 baht per tin.

Ayers beans, yeah right, too bloody sweet, throw them in the bin.

Ayam beans, that what they are called, are pretty good if you take the light version.

I prefer them over Brookes and Heinz.

[Naam]

i find Beluga caviar, imported from Iran or Azerbaijan, extremely expensive

[Catoni]

During our recent visit to BKK we did a trial run on how much monthly income we needed to put away for our retirement so for 3 weeks we religiously recorded every baht we spent - it turned out to be a lot more that we were expecting to allocate. Whilst completing this exercise we paid more attention to the cost of things and compared them to the home country, so that when we come back for our 6 month stint we can bring with us those must have items with us.

So here goes - the following are just some of the things we noticed were expensive.

Wine

Cheese

Bleach (liquid)

Vegemite worked out to be Au$15 for a small jar

Cereal

Muesli

Butter

Olive Oil

Electricity

strawberries (probably imported)

Starbucks coffee (maybe the cost of milk makes it expensive)

good quality clothing

tissues in box (though did end up finding some cheaper ones on special)

Whats Cheap....

massage

food hall meals

hairdresser

water

tropical fruits

orange juice

Taxi

Train

It would be great if you could share what you have found to be expensive and those items you always bring back to Thailand from the home country.

You got ripped off on the vegemite... Top has it for way less then $15.. Its not only eaten here but also used for fancy dress events.

Sent from my c64

Please forgive me.... But do you actually use a Commodore 64 computer ? ?

[jamie2009]

I always bring sports shoes back from the UK. Last time I went home I bought a pair of Adidas and Nike trainers and a pair of Karrimor hikers all under the equivalent of 1000 baht each from JD Sports.

Nike and Adidas trainers for less than a 1000 baht, £20 don't think so ?