Travel on a budget – 10 cheap countries to visit with less than $30 per day

There are lots of cheap countries to visit these years if you want to travel on a budget. It’s very nice that traveling has become so accessible and the travel community keeps growing all the time. I chose 10 of the cheapest countries to visit on a budget. There are more countries than this, obviously. For example, the Czech Republic, Hungary,  Serbia, Mexico, Colombia, etc.. Traveling cheap is not very hard to do, I’ve also written 20 tips for traveling cheap on this article.

1. Philippines

Travel on a budget to some of the best beaches in the world

This incredible country is one of my favorites and a great destination to travel on a budget. With some of the best beaches in the world, it’s cheaper than you could think. I wrote an article about one of my favorite places in the Philippines, Bohol, on this link. 🙂

Food

When you eat in restaurants for locals, it’s unbelievably cheap. In Bohol, we found a place next to our accommodation with burgers. When we saw the prices, we were amazed. A burger (that was pretty big) costs just $0.5, two were enough for us to get full. That’s because it was a place where only locals were going (I also noticed there were no tourists around). For example, in Cebu, when we went to a fancy touristy restaurant, it was pretty expensive. The next day we went to a place with locals and the prices were 10% cheaper than the other restaurant. Therefore, always choose places to eat where locals would go if you want to travel on a budget.

Accommodation

Having a huge house with a pool for yourself for $30? Ticked.

Yes, that’s right. In Bohol, the prices can be so crazy cheap, but not only there. In Cebu, we had a private apartment with an infinity pool on the 45th floor for $30. If those incredibly beautiful places are so cheap, a hostel or a private room can cost less than $10 a day.

2. Thailand

One of the most touristic destinations and easy to travel on a budget

I explored Thailand from one side to the other and I couldn’t choose my favorite city. It has it all: nice people, beautiful beaches, incredible nature. It’s also very easy to travel on a budget to Thailand as it’s one of the cheapest countries to visit. Check this link to find my top 5 places to visit in Thailand. 🙂

Food

Would you believe me if I said you can eat meat and be full with less than $2? I hope yes because that’s when you choose to try street food. In Chiang Mai, where I saw lots of food markets, we got full with $1 of street food. You need to make sure the food is properly cooked and also that lots of people buy from there. I always thought food may be old if there aren’t many people buying it, better safe than sorry. Restaurants aren’t expensive either if you choose to eat with locals. I had a full meal with $2.5 or $3.5. Then, of course, the incredible Thai smoothies. In Phuket and Koh Samui, it may be a bit more expensive. Still, you can easily find meals for less than $5.

Accommodation

The most expensive city where I went to Thailand is Phuket. Still, a room in a hotel with an infinity pool on the 30th floor costs $40. The location was also central, very close to Patong Beach and Bangla Road. In Bangkok, an apartment on the 35th floor cost us $20 per night and also the transportation was very cheap. For the bus, we had to pay less than $0.3 and Grab was also very cheap. In Chiang Mai, we paid $15 per night for an apartment with 2 rooms right next to the airport. In the middle of nature, the small city of Pai was also very cheap. We had a bungalow in the middle of nature for only $15 a day.

3. Indonesia

One of the cheapest countries to visit

There is so much to explore in Indonesia while traveling on a budget. It’s another country where you can see everything, from beaches to mountains, lots of culture and history. It’s also one of the cheapest countries to visit for sure, including the famous island, Bali.

Food

It’s well known that one of the most touristic places in the world, Bali, is crazy cheap. We had 3 meals a day with dessert sometimes with less than $15 together. Obviously, if that’s the price for Bali, in other parts of Indonesia where it’s not so touristy it’s way cheaper.

Accommodation

How much do you think a private house with a pool in the middle of the jungle would cost? Anyone may think it’s $50+, but we actually paid just $15 per night. There were also cheaper accommodations too, for just $8-9 per night. This is Bali, but if we think about other parts of Indonesia that are not touristic, it’s way cheaper than this.

4. Montenegro

Travel on a budget to a European country?

I’ve explored this country by car and I will never forget its beauty. Full of canyons, the views are unforgettable. Let’s not forget about the beaches! If you’re a mountain person, you’ll have plenty of it. But if you’re a beach person, that’s not missing either. I’ve stayed for one week at the beach and everything was great. It’s one of the cheapest countries to visit in Europe and a great destination where to travel on a budget.

Food

Food was not as cheap as in other Asian countries. Still, it was very easy to eat with $4-5 in restaurants that are not fancy. It also strongly depends on the city you’re staying in. We stayed in Bar, which seemed cheaper than other places like Budva.

Accommodation

Prices for stays in Bar are so crazy cheap! You can have an apartment close to the beach for $20 per night easily. There are even luxurious rooms with pool close to the beach for less than $100 per night. It again depends on which zone you’re staying in. But it costs less than

5. Romania

One of the cheapest countries in Europe – as most of Eastern European countries

One of the most underrated countries I’ve ever explored, Romania is one of the best choices for vacation. For example, the mountains are incredibly beautiful. I wrote in this article (link) about the best cities to visit in Romania.

Food

It depends on the region where you go, but Brasov, Sibiu, Bucharest, Cluj are the most touristic places. For example, a pizza costs on average around $5-6, a dinner meal can cost even $4-5 in some places that are not too fancy. If you choose to cook your meal at home and buy food at the supermarket, you can eat an entire week with $21, which means $3 per day. It’s very easy to travel on a budget to Eastern European countries.

Accommodation

Prices for accommodation can be quite expensive at hotels in the most touristic places, but if you book in advance you can stay for even $15 per night. In Bucharest, I paid $20 for a central location (private room) and for a room close to the airport $15 per night. In Iasi, you can find places to stay for $10-15 per night, while in Cluj it costs around $20.

6. Malaysia

It’s very easy to travel on a budget to Southeast Asia

Malaysia surprised me when I had no expectations for it. With friendly people and beautiful nature, Malaysia is one of my favorite places and also one of the cheapest countries. I expected it to be more expensive, especially in Kuala Lumpur. Still, it was very easy to travel on a budget in both KL and Penang.

Food

The food in Malaysia is one of the cheapest I’ve had around Southeast Asia. A restaurant meal cost $4, food street was also really cheap. In 6 days, I paid $67 on food, including beverages and desserts. This is around $11 per day, which is very affordable. This price can also be decreased a lot by cutting drinks and choosing to eat at local places.

Accommodation

You can stay for one night for $10 easily. I chose a private apartment with an infinity pool on the last floor in both Kuala Lumpur and Penang. So how much would this apartment cost in the center of the huge capital? Just $30 per night, split in two would be $15 per night per person, which is just great.

7. India

One of the most interesting cultures

If you are a culture lover and also a burger traveler, this is a perfect place to go to. A trip to India is great for backpackers because you can stay there for a long time without spending too much. There are so many places to explore that you won’t get bored easily.

Food

Food is so diverse and good in India! It’s also very cheap. You can easily eat in local restaurants for less than $3 per person. There are some places that let you eat a full delicious meal for just $1 or less. That’s among the cheapest food I know from all the places I traveled to. Also, even if it wasn’t that cheap, the fact that the food is so diverse is just great! Most travelers love trying different food from all around the world, it’s one of the best things to do when traveling. Be careful with food tasting though, you don’t want to make your stomach upset with too many types of new food. 🙂

Accommodation

In big cities, accommodation can be more expensive, starting from $20 per night for two people. Still, if you go to less touristy cities, it can be quite cheap. Be careful with hotel photos though, they can be tricky and may not show you the reality. If it’s too cheap to be real, then it probably is.

8. Bulgaria

Right next to Romania, you can travel on a budget to lots of Eastern European countries

Did you ever think about visiting this beautiful eastern country from Europe? I hope the answer is yes because there are so many reasons to explore it! From beautiful beaches to caves, mountains, and monasteries, this country has them all. Bulgaria comes with mysterious cities, wonderful beaches, and stunning mountain landscapes and also lots of wonderful people! The prices are also very cheap, as in most Eastern European countries. Honestly, I recommend most of them for cheap travel and beauty, even if I put only two of them in this list.

Food

Food is very yummy in Bulgaria and also very cheap! There are lots of local dishes that are very tasty. If you’re a seafood lover, you should go especially along the Black sea coast. There you’ll find plenty of great seafood that is waiting to be tasted. You can easily eat a meal with less than $6 per person, but it depends on where you’re eating.

Accommodation

When I was looking at accommodations for Sofia, I was so surprised to see how cheap it is for a European country. I had multiple choices for beautiful accommodations in a great location! There were so many choices with less than $35 per night for two people. Another great thing is that for that price we got an entire apartment. I didn’t look at private rooms because I loved the entire apartment offers, but probably they were even cheaper.

9. Vietnam

Travel on a budget to one of the most beautiful countries in Southeast Asia

It’s known that Vietnam is one of the cheapest countries to visit, right? Well, it’s also one of the most interesting countries in the world. I’m still surprised by how fast they are growing and how great cities are becoming.

Food

An average meal cost us $3 in Ha Noi, depending on where we were eating. If we chose a local restaurant, it was even $2 or cheaper! When we chose a more popular restaurant though, it was over $5-6. Still, when we got dessert too, the price was still low. When getting a tour to Halong Bay, we received lots of free food for lunch which was so good! It was more than we even needed and very tasty.

Accommodation

Hotels in Ha Noi were among the cheapest from all my trips, ever. Literally. You could stay for less than $15 per night with no worries. We chose a hotel in the middle of the city, right next to a beautiful big lake. It costs around $40 per night, but it was huge and very beautiful. A smaller room/apartment can be easily found for less.

10. Cambodia

Totally one of the cheapest countries for travel on a budget 

I enjoyed traveling to Cambodia a lot, but not just for the Angkor Wat. I rented a bike for a very cheap price (less than $10 per day). Then, just went outside Siem Reap to see other parts that are not very touristy. Everywhere I saw cute kids that would wave at us with big smiles. I saw some lakes, lots of interesting statues, lots of beautiful and happy people. In the last 10 kilometers, we got hit by very heavy rain so we had to cycle very fast. Now, when thinking about it, it was a very fun experience, even though it was a bit scary. The rain was so heavy that we couldn’t see anything that was more than 2 meters away. Luckily, the drivers were careful and they were keeping lots of distance from us.

Food

Everything in Cambodia was so cheap! One evening I ordered a steak with purée and salad and a cocktail and it cost less than $15. It was very tasty and still very cheap for a steak. Another evening I went to eat some local food. It was less than $7 per person, including the main meal and a cocktail. I loved cocktails in Cambodia, they were so good and cheap. If you want to travel on a budget to Cambodia, you should really try local food.

Accommodation

You can easily find accommodation with less than $15 per night for two people. That’s really incredible, it’s one of the cheapest cities I visited actually. I went offseason and I paid even less than that, but I saw that even when it’s not offseason, it’s still very cheap. I noticed some accommodations that cost less than $20 per night (2 people) and it has breakfast and a pool. So, if you want a cheap and interesting destination, you can easily choose Cambodia.