I spent $34,563.38 to travel for 18 months: My budget breakdown

This category includes the survival essentials I stocked up on before the trip, such as a suitcase, packing cubes, cargo pants, hiking shoes, and water shoes. 

In retrospect, I should’ve focused on packing items that can’t easily be found elsewhere, like my favorite brand of mosquito repellent, instead of items I could easily buy abroad. I regretted, for example, being burdened by the dead weight of too many clothes I had to lug on cars and planes all over the world. 

Flights: $4,885.14

Ground transport: $3,189.53

I took 40 flights during my trip, in economy class with checked luggage. There were many opportunities to take an overnight bus for one-quarter to half the price. But I hated the idea of sleeping on a bus, using bus restrooms, or driving narrow winding roads in the dark. 

Flights within countries typically cost between $50 to $100, and twice that to fly across very large countries like China or Brazil. Flights between neighboring countries cost me $100 to $200. Flights between non-neighboring countries cost me from $100 to $300. The farthest distance I traveled was from Osaka, Japan, to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and it set me back $140.28. 

I also used about 200,000 credit card miles to cover some of my flights.

When I didn’t fly, I took buses, vans or bullet trains. Three-to-seven-hour bus and van journeys cost me $10 to $20. The bullet train across about 860 miles from Xian to Shanghai in China cost me $94. A two-week unlimited bullet train pass in Japan cost me $224. 

I used a lot of rideshare services, which often cost just $1 or $2 for a two or three-mile ride by motorbike.

Clothes: $1,048.24

Souvenirs: $216.86

Gifts: $661.91

I mostly shopped at hole-in-the-wall boutiques or vendors set up on the street, where there are no price tags and it’s all about bargaining. To avoid overpaying, I held off on buying right away and kept in mind that competition was often on my side. 

I inquired about pricing with multiple vendors. That process helped me figure out the lowest acceptable rate, or the last price I was offered before vendors let me walk away. 

That’s how I knew I was getting a good deal on custom-made Vietnamese silk dresses in Hoi An. After inquiring around, I ended up paying $34 per dress and left Vietnam with 14. 

Sometimes I bought things on the spot when I felt the price seemed very reasonable. I didn’t mind if the vendor earned a few extra dollars, because I still felt it was a great deal and the money would mean more to them than it did to me. 

For the most part, as an American citizen, I didn’t need a visa or paid for visas on arrival. Those typically cost about $30 to $40. 

There were outliers, though. The visa for China cost me $205 in application and printing fees and the visa for Bolivia cost $160. I was surprised to learn of that requirement two hours before we reached the border from Peru and scrambled to gather the necessary documents before arrival. 

I occasionally indulged in luxuries I almost never spend money on in the U.S., where I often feel I can’t justify the cost. I got gel manicures for about $15 and massages for $5 to $10. I took yoga and meditation classes in beautiful facilities in Bali, which cost $10 each. Haircuts cost about $8. I also regularly stocked up on toiletries, sunscreen, and mosquito repellent.

This encompasses fun activities for the sake of escapism that don’t count as sightseeing or cultural experiences. That includes entry fees to the few nightclubs I visited, arcade games, a Spotify music subscription, and hookah with friends.

I’m surprised at how little I actually spent on escapism. You can party hard very affordably with other tourists in Southeast Asia and South America, especially when staying at hostels. In my early to mid-20s, I would have jumped at the opportunity, but in my early 30s, I didn’t feel drawn to it.