OUCCCCHHH!!!

[stonepony]

A lot has been discussed on this board on how much we spend on average per day in this lovely place we call paradise. Also, how much is spent on the entire trip to the land of smiles. Well I thought I would put another spin on it.

 

I was putting a budget together to figure out where all my expenses are going. :: Did a little digging and figured I had spent on average 2,700 dollars on my last four visits. Since I have been taking two trips per year that is about 5,400 dollars per year or 450 dollars per month.

 

Now this is not even taking into effect that 3 out of the past 4 trips I have used my points for my airfare and used points for 10 free nights at the Marriott. Using points saved me approx 3500 dollars overall (airfare 3 x $900 = $2,700 plus Marriott 10 x $80 = $800). Which is a saving of $1,750 per year but should still be factored into the yearly total expense. Now add this to the 5,400 and I?m looking at a total cost of $7,150 per year or $595 dollars to budget per month for my Thailand trips. OUCCCCHHH. ::

 

I was really surprised to see the cost per month so high, I guess I?ve never really looked at it that closely before. Now another interesting question would be how long does it take you to make or better yet to save that yearly total ($7,150 dollars) to feed your sexual habits.

 

Now I know I can do things to reduce my expenses, fly economy, stay at Nana hotel, but this is my damn vacation. I work to hard the rest of the year to not enjoy the finer things while on vacation.

 

Artiew was right (The futility of Regret Post), this shit can really add up fast.

[BelgianBoy]

I was putting a budget together to figure out where all my expenses are going. Did a little digging and figured I had spent on average 2,700 dollars on my last four visits. Since I have been taking two trips per year that is about 5,400 dollars per year or 450 dollars per month.

 

Pony,

 

Could you also indicate lenght of stay ?

That would put more light on your calculation.

 

BB

[Zorro]

You got me thinking so ....I go to Thailand 3 times a year usually.

I don't pay for my airfares as they are part of my package.

I spend about 6 weeks in total in Thailand and spend about 50,000 baht a week or 300,000 baht all up.

It takes me 3 weeks to make 300,000 baht but nearly 2 months to save that much.

It gets even scarier if i add up what i spend in Bahrain and Dubai during the year on P4P. I spend on average about 30,000 baht a month over say 10 months which equals 300,000 baht.

So all up with trips to Thailand and here in the ME i spend 600,000 baht a year on P4P which is about 15000 US dollars.

[gobbledonk]

Artiew was right (The futility of Regret Post), this shit can really add up fast

 

SP,

 

Please dont place too much stock in anything I say. Apparently, I'm a fuckwit.

 

Cheers,

 

Artie

[pattaya127]

OUCHHHHHH!!!

--------------------

 

I was talking with my best thai friend yesterday, in Oakland, and we were talking about how much one needs to live decently in Thailand, or visit I guess. he noted it depended a lot on the choice of one's companion, and how some girl can really hike up the costs of it all. I just looked at him with my most world-weary facial expression and said: I know...... I know!

[Guest]

If it is costing you money, you might want to think of ways to reduce your over head.

 

Have you ever thought about taking some items back for sale? Jewelry has an excellent profit margin and is small and light?

 

It is possible to be in Thailand, and instead of costing money, actually be making money.

[pattaya127]

Have you ever thought about taking some items back for sale? Jewelry has an excellent profit margin and is small and light?

-------------------

naaa! been there, done that! Not my cup-o-tea. Added wisdom can/will do the trick.

[Torneyboy]

Hi

 

Do these figures include food ,booze,?

[Guest]

Hi stonepony,

 

Yea...it's really easy to spend a small fortune there. As someone wisely said here a few years back......'that is the great thing about Thailand. You can have a good time spending very little, or a huge amount'.

 

You won't get a hotel, a girl, and food in NYC, for $50 US a day.

 

In the 4 + years I've been going there, I've dropped well over $20,000. Oouch is right! But you only live once. First 3 years I let absolutely *nothing* get in my way of sanuk. Price was no object, whether I could afford it or not. I certainly was not going to let $$ stand in my way of total indulgence. Theory was that if I ran out of cash, I'd worry about the credit card bill when I got home. Barfining 5 girls in the afternoon, just to go play pool, was never even an issue. Flying a stunner to Chiang mai, or barfining 3 girls L/T from Misty's in Pattaya to have fun in Penthouse Hotel.....Who gives a fuck what it cost? The jaccuzzi, sex chair, and hammock over the bed?.....Priceless.

 

I think is pretty much the mind set of most going there, at first. I ended up with a g/f, but even if not, I know I would be much more low keyed, with the 'kid in the candy store' syndrome, having worn off for me, a while ago. Second trip I pulled a girl out of Nana go-go for a romp in Taboo upstairs. She asked for 3,000 baht after, and I actually paid it. . Today I would just laugh.

 

But that is just my experience. I'm sure there are many who look at a yearly trip as a total blow-out, and go crazy year after year. But you do get smarter (learning curve) after a while, and learn how to greatly reduce your expenses, mainly related to learning a little Thai, and knowing when, and where, to hunt.

 

Thailand can be a very cheap holiday. Beer/LD's (which is more expensive there, than in Hawaii :, and girls (especially when pulling 2 to 4 of them a day), is what can really kill you. Dropping a couple of hundred $$$ a day with just that, is very easy and doable.

 

Conversely, two visits ago I got stuck there with no money for an exstended period (C.C. mixup). I lived there with almost no money, and still had a great time. Just gotta improvise. 65 baht for large Klosters at 7/11 (or 100 baht all you can drink Cat House deal :, and knowing the right places to go, at the right time for girls, and you can still have a *great* time for very little baht. I'm sure some there that have this down to a science already.

 

But you are right. It can be amazing how fast it can add up, if you do not put a lid on it. Oh.....I almost forgot. Popping vitamin 'V' like breath mints (at $10 a pop), to keep up with 30+ different girls (with some guaranteed to be insatiable) on a 10 day trip, can add up, as well. Sanuk in Thailand is as expensive as you want to make it out to be.

 

But the fact is, no matter what road you travel down, a similar road traveled most anywhere else, all considered, will cost you a *LOT* more, for the same experience. And for most tourists, that is exactly what it is......an experience of a lifetime, never to be duplicated anywhere else. Can you really put a price tag on that? I can. $20,000+ US +. And worth every penny.

 

HT

[Guest]

Hi MM,

 

<<<Have you ever thought about taking some items back for sale?>>>>

 

I have, and do. But doesn't come close to covering my costs.

 

What hasn't been mentioned here, is those of us who own our own businesses, being sole proprietors, and have no employee's. Every day in Thailand, also means zero dollars coming into our business, because of our absence. That loss of income is what *really* kills me, and not even factored in to my figures. Factor that in, and it really is staggering, at least from where I sit. A lot different situation from those that come on paid holiday there.

 

HT