The cost was $2,878 for a daily cost of $50 in my 57 days of travel. Food costs were $1,315 for a daily cost of $23 per day. Lodging costs for 56 hotel nights were $1,329 for a cost of $24 per night. I redeemed 32,600 of my Barclay MC points to reduce the hotel costs by $326.
The revised out-of-pocket cost for lodging is now $1,003 which yields a cost of $18 per night, and the revised travel cost is $2,552 for a daily cost of $45 per day.
When I am at home, my daily food cost for groceries and dining out is $20 per day. For the 57 days of my travel, I only spent about $170 more on food.
By subtracting my daily food cost, my net travel cost for this trip would be $1,733 or a cost of $30 per day--the revised cost with the Barclay MC points would be $1,407 or $25 per day.
Koh Rong, Cambodia--Long Beach
Travel Insurance
My Travelguard Insurance for this 58-day trip was just $8.35 since my reservation and upfront costs were just $77–-for the 4-night reservations at the Heaven@4 Hotel. I used to get annual trip insurance for about $256, but this is much better.
Lodging Costs
Lodging costs at $24 per night remained about the same as last year's trip to Thailand although the availability of higher-end lodgings was much less. I mostly booked through https://www.agoda.com/ a few days before I arrived at my next place. It is good to read the customer reviews before booking and checking the map for the location.
Accommodations at Koh Kood (Kut) were too pricy at over $100 per night so I booked the BB Dorms for $10 per night--fan-cooled and cold water showers--not my favorite island experience.
With the high temperatures and humidity, I almost always get A/C rooms. Other features I usually get include hot water showers, hot pot, security safe, and location near attractions or city centers. Most rooms have TVs but with no English language channels.
Here are some lodging views:
Heaven@4, Bangkok--Included all my desired features including a few English language TV channels at a cost of
$19 per night.
Star Beach Bungalows, Ko Chang--It was a fan cooled, but it had a Gulf of Thailand beachfront bungalow with a view and deck at
$18 per night.
Travel/Tour Costs
Travel/tour costs were $400. Most of these costs were for metro, moto-taxi, and boat expenses for travel from city to city and islands, and within the cities. I spent $50 on admission fees and beach loungers.
Seattle Light Rail to SEA Airport
My Motorbike Rent for the day around Ko Samet--400 Baht.
I used 71,644 Chase Visa points for the round-trip flight with Singapore Airlines from Seattle to Bangkok—the recent price for this flight was $1,757. Also, Singapore Air is one of the top-tier airlines.
Visa Expenses and Changes
Before the COVID-19 restrictions in Thailand, I would get a 30-day on-arrival visa when I flew in but only be given a 15-day visa if I came to Thailand by land from neighboring countries.
Now whether you enter by air or land, you can get a 30-day on-arrival visa. For this trip, I went online and applied for the 60-day multiple entry which cost me $200, and a 60-day single entry visa would have cost me $60.
With the new changes, it turns out that I did not need to do that. If you want to stay beyond the 30 days without doing a "visa" run to a neighboring country, you can apply for a 30-day visa extension that costs 1,900 Baht--about $52--$60 depending on exchange rates. That is cheaper than a Visa run.
There are several other types of visas that you can learn about by going to their official website: https://www.thaievisa.go.th/
COVID-19 Restrictions Are Gone
This was my 9th international trip during the COVID-19 era. There were no COVID-19 documentation requirements at the border crossings. Mask-wearing was almost non-existent except for riding the Bangkok Sky Train and Metro where it was voluntary and only about 10% of passengers wore masks this year. Even fewer people wore them while on the streets and in the stores.
Some restaurants had hand sanitizers at the entrances and on tables, but they were probably just using them up.
Getting Money
Before leaving the Bangkok Airport I used an ATM machine to get the Thai Baht I need for travel and replenish at one of the many ATMs found everywhere. Many restaurants charge an extra 2-3% when using credit cards. The 7-11 stores only let you charge if you spend more than 200 Baht and add no extra fee.
In Cambodia, the USD is the main currency with the Cambodian Rial given out as small change. Their ATM machines spit out both USD and Cambodia Rials.
Getting Bank Fees Back
When I travel internationally I always take about $300 in USD and then rely on ATMs for replenishing funds. I recently got a Schwab ATM card which reimburses customers for all ATM bank charges and exchange fees.
For this trip, Schwab reimbursed me $67.18 on these charges for the 10 ATM draws of 10,000 Baht which they added for each draw a 220 Baht processing fee.
Daily Walking
For years I have tried to walk at least 3 miles per day for my health and enjoyment. During my 57 days in Thailand and Cambodia, I walked over 300 miles with an average of 5.4 miles per day ranging from 2 miles to 11 miles per day.
It seemed like every time I returned to my room, I took a cooling shower and often changed the sweat-soaked shirts for clean ones. During the day, temperatures averaged from 90 to 98 degrees and it cooled off to 79 degrees by early morning. I washed these shirts while showering as well.
Weather
As usual, the weather in Thailand and Cambodia was very hot and humid with temperatures ranging from 80 degrees early mornings and 93 to 98 degrees by late afternoons with a humidity of 85% which made it feel even hotter. It only rained 2 times and one time it was at night and the other was early morning. When it rains here, it pours and then clears out this time of year.
I much prefer this weather in the wintertime compared to the weather in Seattle where it has been averaging in the low 30 degrees accompanied by rain with continuous gray days where I had to bundle up to stay warm.
Delightful Food Choices
As you can see, my major trip expenses were for food.
When I am home, my average grocery costs are about $11/ day and when combined with dining out, my average daily food cost increases to $20/ day. So, it turns out that my daily food costs while traveling is $23 which is not much different than my food expenses when I am at home.
Here are some of the meals I enjoyed:
Breakfasts
Thai Crab Omelet
Baht Buster Western Breakfast
Light Western Breakfast
Western Omelet
Cambodia Bus Stop $1 Breakfast Bowl and Green Tea
Snacks
Fruit smoothies and fruits
Mango Shake
Watermelon Shake
Beach Food Snack Vendors
To-go meat sticks
Seafood Choices for Dinner
Cambodian Spicy Sea Shell Snacks
Thai Dinners
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