Tight Travellers

Thailand were our first stop after leaving Yorkshire behind on a one-way ticket, and honestly – it set the bar impossibly high for everything that came after. Chaotic in the best possible way, absurdly beautiful, and genuinely kind to the wallet if tha knows where to look. We’ve spent months here across multiple visits now and we’re still not done with it.

Ask anyone you know about Thailand. We guarantee they’ll say it’s cheap, it’s beautiful, and the food is incredible. They aren’t wrong. But there’s a version of Thailand that most tourists never find – and that’s the one worth going for.

How much does Thailand actually cost?

Less than tha thinks. We averaged around £30–40 a day for two of us across our time in Thailand, covering accommodation, food, transport and activities. Some days much less. The main costs that catch folk off guard are organised tours (worth shopping around), transport between cities (overnight buses and trains are brilliant value), and the tourist price vs local price gap – which is real, but avoidable if tha eats where the locals eat.

Street food is thy best friend here. A proper pad Thai from a street cart costs about 60p. A bowl of noodle soup – less than a quid. Save thy restaurant money for the occasional sit down that’s genuinely worth it, and eat street food the rest of the time. Thy stomach will thank thee and thy wallet definitely will.

For accommodation, we used Booking.com throughout, consistently the best rates we found across Bangkok, Chiang Mai and everywhere in between. Budget guesthouses and hostels start from around £8–15 per room per night outside peak season, and decent mid-range options can be found for £20–35.

Where we went and what we thought

Bangkok Mental, brilliant, overwhelming in equal measure. We’ve been twice now and it rewards folk who get off the tourist trail. The temples are genuinely stunning, the street food is some of the best on earth, and the Skytrain makes getting around far easier than the chaos on the roads would suggest. Read our full Bangkok guides below.

Chiang Mai and Northern Thailand This is where Thailand properly got us. Slower, cooler, greener, and full of things that don’t make it onto the average Instagram travel feed. We did a slow travel route through the north that took in Buddhist festivals, artsy workshops and viewpoints completely free of crowds. One of the best things we’ve done anywhere in the world, and it cost next to nowt.

Yi Peng Festival If tha can time a visit to Chiang Mai in November for the lantern festival, do it. We managed to see both Yi Peng and Loy Krathong without spending a fortune, which folk will tell thee is impossible. It isn’t. Read how we did it below.

Southern Thailand We spent three weeks in the south too – Bangkok, the islands, the coast. It’s more touristy than the north but there’s a reason everyone goes: the beaches genuinely are that good. Knowing which islands to go to and which to swerve makes all the difference. Our Southern Thailand route post covers this in full.

Getting around Thailand on a budget

Overnight trains and buses between cities are both cheap and practical – tha saves on a night’s accommodation while covering the distance. We used 12go Asia to book transport throughout and it made the whole thing significantly less faff. Within cities, tuk tuks are fun but always negotiate before getting in. Grab (the Asian equivalent of Uber) is usually cheaper and more reliable for longer journeys.

For flights into Thailand, Skyscanner is thy starting point. Bangkok to Chiang Mai can be done for under £20 if tha books a few weeks ahead on one of the budget domestic carriers.

When to go

November to February is the sweet spot, cool and dry, especially in the north. March to May gets proper hot. June to October is monsoon season in most of the country, which means cheaper prices and fewer tourists, but also a fair bit of rain. We were there in November and it were absolutely perfect.

Our Thailand posts — start here