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Traveling to Vietnam and South Korea was not as cheap as I would have liked. In the stats below, you will see what caused my spending to go higher than I had originally planned.
Can you travel on a budget in Vietnam? Of course! However, Korea is a different story, because they share the same price levels as Canada and USA.
30 days Vietnam Spending Breakdown
Air India and Singapore Flight from New Delhi to Singapore Changi to Ho Chi Minh - 620,000 VND ($37.20 CAD)
VISA Fee in the airport - 570,000 VND ($34.16 CAD or $25 USD)
SIM Card - 180,000 VND ($10 CAD)
Jetstar Pacific flight from Ho Chi Minh to Da Nang - 1,560,000 VND ($93.83 CAD or $69.98 USD)
Jetstar Pacific flight from Da Nang to Hanoi - 1,395,000 VND ($83.51 CAD or $62.28 USD)
Vietnam 3-Month Single Entry E-VISA - 502,000 VND ($30 CAD or $22 USD)
Erato Boutique Hotel - 434,000 VND ($26 CAD or $18.26 USD)
Air Bnb 26 nights rental in Da Nang My Khe Beach - 8,021,500 VND ($480 CAD or $350 USD)
24 days scooter rental in Da Nang - 1,150,000 VND ($68 CAD)
Tailored suit from Hoi An, Vietnam - 5,600,000 VND ($335 CAD or $245 USD)
Shipping the tailored three piece suit from Hoi An, Vietnam to Vancouver, Canada -1,115,000 VND ($68 CAD)
Disposable Razor - 10,000 VND ($0.70 CAD)
Tripod rental in Da Nang, Vietnam - 280,000 VND ($17 CAD)
Watching a movie for two with my friend in Hanoi - 176,000 VND ($11 CAD)
Bus from Hanoi to Hanoi airport -8,000 VND ($0.55 CAD)
Bus from Da Nang to Hoi An (2 round trip rides) - 130,000 VND ($8 CAD)
ATM withdrawal fee - 90,000 VND ($6 CAD)
Halong Bay tour - 660,000 VND ($45 CAD)
Food - 3,934,100 VND ($240 CAD)
Water and beverages - 70,000 VND ($4.50 CAD)
Taxi (took 7 times) - 669,000 VND ($41 CAD)
Total Vietnam spending: 26,805,600 VND ($1,639.45 CAD)
Total Vietnam spending without flight: 23,634,600 VND ($1,424.91 CAD)
Average daily Vietnam spending: 893,520 VND ($54.65 CAD)
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Average daily Vietnam spending without flight: 787,820 VND ($47.50 CAD)
Total points and miles spent: 27,500 Aeroplan Miles
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Traveling to Vietnam was more expensive than anticipated. A large chunk of my spendings came from my tailored suit, and also from my Jetstar Pacific flight to Da Nang, and Hanoi.
In hindsight, I shouldn't have stayed in Vietnam as long as I did, because not only was it not as cheap as Thailand, it was also quite boring!
Or perhaps I should have stayed in Ho Chi Minh or Nha Trang, two cities I missed exploring while I was in Vietnam.
Complete 3 days Jeju Island, South Korea Spending Breakdown
Bus - 4000 WON ($5 CAD)
Heritage Site Day Tour - 75,000 WON ($92 CAD)
Bus transfer to Seoul Incheon Airport - 6,500 WON ($8 CAD)
Flight from Hong Kong to Jeju Island - 31,766.83 WON ($38.55 CAD)
Food and water - 12,400 WON ($15.50 CAD)
Goodstay at Lyndon Hostel - 30,000 WON ($36.33 CAD or $26.50 USD)
Total Jeju Island, South Korea spending: 161,064 WON ($195.38 CAD)
Total Jeju Island, South Korea spending without flight: 129,297 WON ($156.83 CAD)
Average daily Jeju Island, South Korea spending: 53,688 WON ($65.13 CAD)
Average daily Jeju Island, South Korea spending without flight: 43,099 WON ($52.28 CAD)
Total points and miles spent: 7,500 British Avios Miles
I loved my time in Jeju Island. It was a peaceful city with lots of beautiful places to see and explore. I wished I had stayed at least a week to fully explore the area. Then again, that would have possibly hurt my budget because South Korea is not a cheap destination! Their prices are similar to that of Canada or USA.
In the future, once I have more money saved up, I would like to return here and fully explore the city.
Kendrick is the Canadian Travel Hacking expert of Living the Dream. His mission is to travel hack his way to all his dream destinations, while cracking the code to earning sustainable location independent income. He leaves for his one year journey around the world on September 2016.
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