Hello! I’ve written a few posts breaking down the costs of full-time travel as well as the costs of my 47 days in Japan this year. This time I am back with what I think is the most underrated country in Asia!
My girlfriend and I are from the USA and have been traveling for 12 months. Our first 8 months were spent in Eastern Europe and at the end of December we came to Japan. We flew from Japan to Taipei on February 15 and left Taiwan the night of March 15.
Both of us have kept track of every $ spent! I hope to share this info to show you can travel to unique places on a tight budget!
In Europe, we used a daily budget of $37.50 or $75 combined. This was not possible in Japan, we did not set a $ amount that we had to be under but we did try to be frugal and the budget was in mind all the time. In Taiwan, we tried to go back to our budget from Europe of $37.50 a day per person.
This is just one person's spend and we split accommodation and some food costs. I'd love to answer any questions about the budget or destinations. If you have any questions you may feel free to ask or DM me.
All numbers are in USD$.
IN TOTAL I SPENT $1421.41 or $49.01 per day. THIS INCLUDES ACCOMMODATION, FLIGHTS, FOOD, AND ACTIVITIES, THIS IS EVERY SINGLE PENNY SPENT.
Some detail about the categories:
Accommodation $406.46 - Hostels and one week in a hotel. It was usually a mixed dorm and 2 nights in a private room. One week was spent in a cheap and dirty hotel room.
Alcohol $65.97 - After drinking what felt like every single night in Japan I tried to cut back in here. Didn’t go to any bars in Taiwan (couldn’t find many tbh) most of this was spent drinking and playing cards at the hostels.
Coffee $66.80 - This is more Bubble tea than it is coffee. I started using this category for beverages that are not water or alcohol. Taiwan invented bubble tea and I drank one almost every day.
Food & Restaurants $282.13 - In my previous posts Food usually referred to groceries that I then cooked but we did not do any cooking in Taiwan. Food is cheap, plentiful, and DELICIOUS. I was always full and Taiwan is a foodie's dream! The night markets are packed full of amazing dumplings, soups, and other specialties such as stinky tofu (a smell I will never forget). Also went to the Costco food court a few times, Taiwan Costco food court is 10/10.
Health $66.46 - Toothpaste, Mouthwash, Soap, Shampoo, Haircut, and a few massages.
Souvenir $1.98 - I try to buy a magnet in each country
Transportation(local) $40.48 - This is using trains/buses to get around a city. Taiwan has the EasyCard that you can reload with money and use on buses and trains.
Travel $472.13 - Anything that takes us from one city or country to another. We did not use points to get from Japan to Taiwan, that flight ended up costing $343.45. We took two additional flights within Taiwan from Taichung to the Penghu Islands and from Penghu to Kaohsiung.
Water $4.67 - I wanted to see how much I spend on bottled water so this is a new category.
Cities Visited:
- Taipei - My new favorite city. I could live here. I loved it, I miss it, I dream about it, I’ll be back.
- Taichung - Nothing sticks out from here, it was ok.
- Magong (Penghu Islands) - Read below, this man made the entire visit to Penghu worth it.
- Kaohsiung - Cool city, laid-back vibe, not a lot going on at night.
- Tainan - Original Capital, lots of temples, spent too much time here.
Things that went right: The Taiwanese people are so friendly and welcoming. After waiting for a bus that never showed up on Penghu we hitchhiked and a local man picked us up. He took us to where we wanted to go. The same guy ended up picking us up and driving us back. He drove us around for over an hour, took us to 4 restaurants, bought us food from every place, and then took us home after. He wanted me to drive his car, and offered us his motorbikes to use while we were on the island. When we tried to pay him for the food he insisted that we were guests and he was happy to share some of his cuisine with us. He spoke zero English and we communicated entirely through a translator app on his phone. Amazing.
Amazing food in this country. The best I have ever eaten. Everything is fresh, delicious and so cheap.
It felt like we were the only tourists in some cities. We stayed in hostels where we were the only guests and a lot of the “touristy” sights were usually empty.
What went Wrong: Realistically, nothing went wrong. Poor planning caused us to spend much more money on flights and is the reason we ended up on the Penghu Islands. No regrets but when you learn there is a “big holiday” approaching, do not hesitate to book your accommodation, or everything will be sold out.
Taiwan is criminally underrated. It is extremely affordable and has a very unique and interesting history. It is one of the few countries I have visited where I could see myself living. THE FOOD IS INCREDIBLE JUST GO AND EAT EVERYTHING!
Submitted April 04, 2023 at 06:17AM by HaleyandZach https://ift.tt/Pox7CJv
Comments
Post a Comment