There are places to travel to in 2022 that will allow you to go for longer, enjoy a higher standard, and save more money.
Laos
Back in budget backpacking days around Southeast Asia, Laos was one of the two destinations where travellers are able to keep their budget at $30/day, even though accommodation is slightly more expensive than most places in Southeast Asia. There are many amazing activities tourists can do in Laos that are cheap.
Vietnam
The healthiest and cheapest street food appears to be found in Vietnam. Think a soup with rice noodles, cilantro, amazing broth, and a whole shank of pork for $1.50, or a cup of strong, aromatic coffee for $1. As far as transportation goes, if tourists rent a motorbike, they are all set for the day.
Cambodia
Research shows that a tourist can easily spend a month in Cambodia with just $1000. Dorms are very basic but can be dirt cheap, the same goes for food and alcohol. There are some one-off expenses such as the 3-day pass to Angkor Wat, which is currently set at $62, and diving trips that add up, but there will also be days of riding bicycle in a small village and eating cheap and delicious meat skewers, when just a dollar or two could stretch very far.
Northern Thailand
The north of Thailand is easy on a tight budget. As one moves south, costs for accommodation start to double, triple, and even quadruple. If you are short on time and budget for your Thailand trip, stay up north! Even in popular places like Chiang Mai and Pai, tourists can easily find basic dorms for less than $5. If you stick with eating street food, not only will you save yourself some money, the experience will be much more authentic and delicious, too.
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Indonesia
The thing about Indonesia is that it can be really cheap, or it can be quite expensive, depending on one big thing – transportation. Intercity traveling can be very time-consuming and costly, so is traveling from one island to another with a private boat. To save costs, stick with a region or two! There’s a lot to do and see, and spending more time in one place will only allow you to travel deeper and have a more meaningful experience anyway. If you want to travel far and wide on a budget, my biggest tip is to take the local transportation!
Philippines
The Philippines’s archipelago can cost quite a lot of both money and time to get around, and the hostel options aren’t nearly as abundant as other Southeast Asia countries. While these two factors seem like a big turn off for travellers trying to stretch their budget as far as possible, there are ways to keep your travel cost in the Philippines low. If you choose to travel during shoulder seasons, book your flights and plan your journey way in advance (it is not the country to always wing it!), and try to stick within 1-2 regions, the Philippines can still be affordable. On top of that, the country has some of the most gorgeous islands, beautiful dive sites, and hidden gems that you’d have had to pay so much more to experience in other parts of the world. In that sense, the Philippines is worth every peso you spend.
Malaysia
Being one of the most economically developed Southeast Asian countries, Malaysia is often perceived as expensive. On top of that, travellers can explore Cameron Highlands, the jungles of Borneo, and the gorgeous islands. The cherry on top? They are all affordable. An overnight bus from Kuala Lumpur to the Perhentian Islands costs as little as $8, there are so many interesting local neighborhoods and markets that are free to explore, and finally, the Malaysian cuisine is like no other – you can find food from just about any culture and it’s so cheap and delicious – but not necessarily healthy. Malaysia is also one of the cheapest places in the world to get a PADI scuba diving certificate.
Sri Lanka
Like many countries, Sri Lanka can be seen on a backpacker budget, or one can spend a small fortune there. The biggest kicker was the price of activities, such as safaris, and admission into the UNESCO World Heritage sites. With each running about $40-$50 per ticket, this made Sri Lanka more expensive to fully explore. That said, Sri Lanka can be done on closer to $30 per day on the days that you don’t pay for expensive activities. Food, transport, accommodation, and Internet are relatively cheap. One thing to note about transportation is that in some cases, taking a taxi / uber (in major cities) can be cheaper than renting a bike. If you can find people in your hostel to split the cost, hiring a driver for the day can be as low as $5 per person. The cheapest transportation is the train, which is delightful and IMO, the best way to travel through Sri Lanka.
