Tag: Cheap Travel

Cost of Budget Accommodation in Laos

Accommodation is usually one of the biggest tickets budget traveller has to pick up day after day so its cost vastly determines daily budget one needs to work with when visiting that particular country. Compared to much of South East Asia, true budget accommodation options are not only limited in Laos, they also end up being more expensive which increases your daily spendings yet you end up staying in rooms of significantly lower standards than in neighboring countries.

On an overall scale, traveling through Laos is far more expensive than traveling through Cambodia, Vietnam or Thailand. Not taking into account small, but pricey SE Asian countries of Singapore and Brunei, Malaysia is the only country in the region that’s comparably costly for a traveler on a budget. While budget accommodation in Malaysia is on average 10% to 20% more expensive than in Laos, Malaysia offers additional money savers for money tight travelers with its plentiful camp sites and dormitories.

If prior to visiting Laos you had already gone through Cambodia, Indonesia or Thailand, then you have probably tasted the pleasures of having a decent, clean, bed bugs free room with its own ensuite bathroom with hot shower for up to $5 a night. You may have also enjoyed a spacious room with a king sized bed, air conditioning, fridge, safe, large screen TV and a nice view for up to $10 a night – which would also include daily room service. But after coming to Laos, your $10 will buy you a measly, uncomfortable bed in a tight room without a window that doesn’t even have enough space for you to turn, nevermind to store your backpack, with questionably clean, shared bathroom containing an overused squatting toilet bowl, a broken shower outlet and a slew of mosquitoes all over its mouldy walls.

It’s hard to get used to paying so much more money than you had paid before but get so incomparably less, but that’s the way it is in Laos. I don’t suppose it had always been like that but as the number of tourists visiting the country kept growing, so did the prices for tourism related goods and services but the delivery of quality seems to have gotten stuck.

If you’re like me and started traveling around the world in circa 2009, then you have missed out on the golden age of tourism. Nowadays, no matter how remote and unmentioned a place you get to is, there will be thousands of blog posts about it all over the internet from the travelers who had visited it long before you. And… nowadays, even seemingly poor countries like Laos, after experiencing tourism boom, had adjusted their prices so cost of travelling is out of proportion to the country’s gross domestic product. Too bad this increase did not go hand in hand with increase of quality.

The only place in Laos where reasonably cheap accommodation can still be had is Don Det of Four Thousand Islands, in south Laos, near the border with Cambodia. Bamboo room costs as little as 25,000 Kip (about $3 US – based on 2010 conversion rates) per night and represents the cheapest accommodation in the country.

Once you have left 4,000 Islands, the mainland will welcome you with room prices typically starting at 60,000 Kip (roughly $7.50 US) for which you will get a pretty run down room with small, hard bed, no windows hence strong smell of mould, shared bathroom with cold shower somewhere within the complex and a rattling fan with grate so dirty, you’ll think it’s been used in a car shop since the 60’s.

To get a room $7,50 US equivalent would get you in Cambodia, you would have to shell out 80,000 to 100,000 Kip per night (roughly $10 to $12). I went through many less traveled areas of Laos yet Don Det was the only place where I was able to find a private room (aka not dorm) for an equivalent of $5 or less per night. And that was in off season when guesthouses and hotels were struggling to get bookings. What it would have been like in high season when rooms sell out quickly I dare not imagine. By South East Asian standards, accommodation in Laos is very expensive but lack quality you would get in other countries where rooms usually cost less.

Is Laos Expensive?

Traveling in and exploring Laos was an uplifting and rewarding experience. However, being a backpacker and a traveler on a budget, I was shocked by how expensive Laos is compared to the neighboring countries. I expected exact opposite – Laos is generally deemed to be one of the poorer countries in South East Asia which usually means that traveling through there should be comparably cheaper. It doesn’t happen to be the case. Visiting Laos ends up being far more expensive than visiting Cambodia, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia or many other countries of the region.

On my travels so far, I have stuck with cheap, backpacker accommodation options, traveled using local bus or train transport and explored destinations reached on foot instead of using taxis (or tuk tuks) but after arriving in Laos, I had to significantly lower my standards of living yet it still ended up costing more. Gone were the days of having a room with attached bathroom. Gone were the days of having a room with a window facing outside so the air in the room doesn’t make me gag. Yet even though I significantly lowered my standards of living, gone were the days when my total expenses, including accommodation, food, water and transportation stayed at a level not exceeding $10 per day. While still cheap by western standards, compared to similar countries of the South East Asian region, Laos was shockingly expensive.

In a nutshell, if you’re a backpacker visiting Laos, expect to either have to pay more for what you are used to getting in other countries, or lower your standards if you wish to keep the expenses in line with those you previously had. I’ve covered the cost of traveling in Laos in separate articles, each targeting a particular topic:

Cheap Flights to Dominican Republic

I was on a look out for cheap flights to the Dominican Republic and was hoping to score a reasonably priced deal, similar to that I scored in January. Unfortunately, planning to travel in August is not the same as going in January. It reminded me of December – it’s near impossible to score a cheap plane ticket in December because many people travel during pre Christmas season and for New Year making it one of the worst month for travel deal hunters, but come January, prices drop instantly and significantly. Take Dominican Republic for instance – I wanted to go on a trip during Christmas/New Year season of 2008 but was discouraged by outrageously priced flights so I wasted 8 consecutive days off sitting at home watching TV. But then when January came and I saw the same ticket that sold out planes for $850 + taxes in December now priced at $48 + taxes, I did not hesitate and went right for it. After all, there’s little difference in weather between the end of December and beginning of January and getting the ticket for less than 1/10th of the price it cost two weeks ago was a no brainer.

It was similar with August, though. I started looking for cheap flights to the Dominican Republic in July for the departure at the end of August. But having previously gone to the country for $48 + taxes, I was finding it hard to pay $600 + taxes for the same ticket. I have quickly realized that many people travel in Summer so prices are jacked up so carriers can milk as much as possible out of Summer eager people. This was making my plans to depart at the end of August difficult. I could not bring myself to pay twelve times more than I had paid seven months ago. It just messes with your brain when you realize that.

Having had vast experience scoring the best priced flight tickets from my previous travels, I knew that booking engines of most travel agents use the same backend. Being a computer developer myself, I could see that 80% of all travel agents in Canada use SoftVoyage as their booking engine so no matter which website of which provider you go to, you will get the same results which are priced in the same, or very similar way. That’s a great thing to know as it will save you heaps of time you would otherwise waste browsing through countless websites, yet getting the same results. The websites that use SoftVoyage travel booking engine include:

  • iTravel2000.com
  • RedTag.ca
  • ExitNow.ca
  • SellOffVacations.com
  • FlightCentre.ca
  • etc.

One travel agency that doesn’t use SoftVoyage is Geo.ca which is worth checking out because results will be different, though from what I have noticed, it’s mostly more expensive. Other than the travel agencies, I also kept a close eye on flight carriers themselves. The following were a must:

  • WestJet.ca
  • AirCanada.com
  • United.ca – great, but not for flights to the Caribbean
  • SunWing.com – amazing for Caribbean destinations, often very cheap, but only works well if you live in Toronto or Montreal. Edmonton didn’t have very good departures and prices

No matter where I went, the prices were nowhere close to anything I would consider decent. August simply proved to be a tough time of year to travel on the cheap. Then there was also an issue of timing – I wanted to depart at the end of the month to use up the money I have already spent on rent and to not have to spend more by overstaying for any part of September. That was also complicating things a bit because flights to the Dominican republic departing in the middle of August or middle of September were cheaper than flights departing at the end of August, beginning of September. My initial research did not encourage me at all. Maybe had I not gone to the Dominican Republic for $48 + taxes before, I would probably find $600 + taxes normal, but after flying cheap, I found it really hard accepting the price that was so much more expensive but would give me exactly the same thing. It was discouraging, but I kept working on it.

Best Country to Start the Around-The-World Travel In

I had the best time to start travelling worked out, now I just needed to work out where to go to start my around the world travels and to find the most affordable way to get there from Canada. Because I didn’t have much budget due to rather low positive cash flow at the time, I figured that the best country to start my round the world travel in would be one of those I am familiar with, one I have recently visited. If you go to a whole new country for the first time, you are rather overwhelmed by its culture, its people, its way of life and if that is a third world country, you will be harassed by touts since you first step foot on their soil so falling for overpriced deals is easy. However if you go to a country you have previously visited, you will know where you are going, what you are doing, what’s around the corner, where the best place to get a ride is, whom to talk to to get cheap accommodation, etc. Many of these can be chosen wrongly if you are in an unfamiliar place because you are under time stress and with a backpack on your back – you often have to take what comes your way and touts are very skilled at getting the most out of each tourist.

Based on the above, I basically only had two countries to choose from: Cuba and the Dominican Republic. I have also recently visited Iceland but not only Iceland is not a third world country (far from it), it is also one of the most expensive countries in the world so my budget would not handle it. I’d love to revisit Iceland as it’s by far the best country to travel to, but it wasn’t an option at this time. Plus because of budget issues, I had to keep it within close range because the further you travel, the more expensive the plane ticket and since Caribbean countries are popular tropical locations for many Canadians, flights there are frequent and far less expensive than flights to Europe or Asia. So in order to keep the initial cost low, Caribbean would be the best choice.

Out of other two countries I have recently visited, Cuba was the least favorable option. Their economy is too dependent on tourism so prices for accommodation are regulated by the government and locals are not allowed to offer foreigners any services for which a foreigner would normally have to pay. For example even if I had a good Cuban friend, I would not be able to crash at his place for if Cuban police found out, he’d get in serious trouble. Same goes for offering foreigners a lift or any other service. If you are a foreigner, you should only be seen riding in taxis or buses. If you are seen in a regular car, the owner/driver of that car could get in a lot of trouble for offering a tourist services for which that tourist should pay. That’s the way it works in Cuba which makes it one of the most expensive countries in the Caribbean (unless you decide to go illegal on everything and risk getting kicked out, but then you can be there on so cheap that even India is more expensive).

I’m not much of an illegal guy. I couldn’t even jump over the fence to join a festival in my home town when all my buddies went that way. I could jump it, I wasn’t lacking there, I just could not bear the thought of doing something that’s not right. That’s just the way I am. Cuba would otherwise be an amazing option as it can be done on the cheap and it’s a safe and beautiful country. But right now it looked like that’s not the best place to start. I didn’t have the budget to retain legal accommodation, even if I stuck with Casas Particulares, which are significantly less expensive than hotels and offer more authentic experience. They are still charged on per day basis so monthly it works out more than you would pay for rent in Canada. I had to ditch Cuba for this very reason.

Whether I liked it or not, I was left with only one option – Dominican Republic. I didn’t mind that as after visiting the country in January, only a few months prior I really enjoyed my stay there and had wonderful time. Unlike in Cuba, unless you have high expectation and desire comfortable lifestyle, you can live in the Dominican Republic on very cheap. I was familiar with the country and the way it operates so ripping me off by offering me overpriced deals would be difficult. I could definitely survive there even though my monthly budget was low and since weather is warm year round and internet connections are decent, I’d be able to both enjoy myself and get some work done on my websites to boost my positive cash flow. Seemed like I have found the best country to start the around the world travel in and even though I did not ditch all other options, I kept all of my senses firmly focused on this nation. Now it was only a question of scoring the plane ticket and making other arrangements for a price I would be comfortable paying.

Longer Vacation is Cheaper – Explained

When I took a trip to Iceland, I was able to balance the total cost of it to a point that even though it’s one of the most expensive countries in the world, I only spent a little over $1,500 for 10 days, which included return plane tickets from Edmonton to Reykjavik and back, car rental for the duration of my stay, entrance fees to attractions which count as some of the most expensive in the world, food, drink, gasoline, lodging and all other associated costs. Yet despite my ability to get the most out of the trip for an unbeatable price, compared to my previous trips to Cuba and the Dominican Republic, the trip ended up being almost twice as expensive. Sure, the distance was significantly longer and country is significantly more expensive. However, after I have returned, I realized that an entire trip would have cost me way less, had I spent 1 month in the country, instead of original 10 days. Yes, what I’m saying is that longer vacation is cheaper. How is that possible? Let me explain.

Looks at it this way – if you take your normal vacation by using the vacation time allocated to you by your employer, you will leave for your destination while keeping arrangements with your current residence in your home country. That means that if you are renting a house, you will have to pay your monthly rent regardless of whether you are at home or gone on vacation. If you are a home owner, your property taxes will apply regardless of whether you are in the house or not. And if you live in Canada, the ridiculously high delivery and administration charges added to your power bill will be applied regardless of whether you have used any electricity, or not. I don’t know what it’s like in other countries, but in Canada the amount of money you are charged for electricity used is often less than delivery and administration charges. In my particular case, the power bill for the apartment where I was staying when I took the trip to Iceland totalled up to about $50 a month. Out of which, only about $5 were actual electricity usage charges. Epcor likes to bump up your power bill with their own charges which are so inadequate, I don’t understand how it’s not illegal and how they get away with ripping people off like this.

On top of your rent and electricity, you also have the internet, cable TV, mobile phone, and whatever other month to month bills apply to you. These you will pay for normally even if you have not been in the country half of the month. So basically – if you cancelled all of it, you would end up with positive four digit figure which would easily be enough to extend your vacation to last a month.

If I made arrangements with my landlord that I would move out of the apartment on the day I was leaving for Iceland, I wouldn’t have to pay my $850 a month which would be more than enough to sustain my stay in the country for extra 2 or three weeks. If I also cancelled the electricity and the internet, and if I temporarily suspended my cell phone number, I’d be looking at a thousand dollars saved.

It really made no sense taking a 10 day vacation in Iceland. While I was there, in one of world’s most expensive countries, the money for amenities in Canada was being paid out of my pocket even though I wasn’t using any of it. Rent for an apartment where I was not staying was paid yet I had to cover for my lodging in Iceland. In other words, I was paying rent for two places at the same time, while I could physically only be in one.

The lesson I have learned, was that one of the keys to frugal travel is to book your vacation and make arrangements in your home country for a month. One week or two week vacation ends up being a costly endeavour which is why so many people either can’t afford it, or can only take one or two a year. It’s simply because you are wasting a lot of your money on things you are not using and end up covering for two simultaneous services while only using one at a time.