I spent 17 months trying to travel the world for $50 a day. It worked well in some countries but failed in others.

06.01.2025 - 13:51 / insider.com

After saving up for years, my partner and I spent 17 months traveling around the world.

We started our trip in Peru and traveled north to Mexico before heading to Asia.

Since my partner is an accountant, we thought it would be useful to track every expense along the way. My initial budget was $1,500 a month or roughly $50 a day. He had the same budget, but we kept our money separate.

Here's what it was like exploring multiple countries while trying to manage my spending.

We spent the first two months in Peru, where I spent $1,370.29 in July and $1,179.96 in August.

Overall, I found Peru had some of the lowest prices for things like food and accommodations out of all the countries we visited.

Our real key to staying under budget the first few months, though, was traveling at a slow pace. We took long bus journeys instead of quick, pricey flights and got deals on accommodations for staying longer. We also frequently cooked for ourselves and didn't book any expensive tours or activities.

I also stayed under budget in September, which we spent in Peru, Ecuador, and Colombia. I spent $1,325.07, with a daily average of $33.35 in Peru and $45.60 in Ecuador.

Colombia was more expensive for me at an average of $57 a day, but we only spent a few days there at the end of the month.

While exploring Central America, I didn't go over my monthly budget of $1,500 by too much. One month, I spent $1,646, and another $1,888.

My daily spend was below $50 in El Salvador ($38.70) and Costa Rica ($33.09).

To be fair, though, my Costa Rica budget is skewed because my parents visited and paid for our accommodation for 10 days as our joint Christmas and birthday presents. Without their gift, I would've spent way more.

I thought El Salvador, on the other hand, felt extremely affordable, but I only spent 12 days there. I wish I'd stayed longer — both for my wallet and because I enjoyed the people, scenery, and food (pupusas forever!).

I also went over my daily budget — but only slightly — while visiting Colombia ($57), Honduras ($58.41), Nicaragua ($53.43), Guatemala ($62.72), and Vietnam ($54.23).

Looking back, I think I could've stayed under budget in those places if I'd tried harder or reorganized my itinerary.

Cutting out pricy experiences like the motorbiking trip in Vietnam or the overnight volcano hike in Guatemala would've lowered my expenses — but those felt like once-in-a-lifetime opportunities I couldn't pass up.

I also could've saved a significant amount by booking cheaper accommodations like hostel dorms, but the longer we traveled, the more we opted for more comfortable (often pricier) stays like Airbnbs or private hostel rooms.

Splitting accomodation costs between the two of us helped — I couldn't have justified