Extreme Backpacking Food Budget Challenge

Previously, I made this extra challenge wherein I tried to test if surviving 4 days in Siem Reap on a $6 food budget was doable. I was running low on my backpacking funds and I need to make a drastic move in order to make sure I don’t spend too much on my backpacking food budget. I also needed to avoid spending my 100-dollar bill. I prepared cheap backpacking food to last me 4 days. When I calculated the money I spent for my food budget for 12 meals, it turned out I needed to last 4 days by living off less than $0.50 per meal ($5.20 divide by 12 budget meals). I also mentioned how I started Day 1 of this extreme challenge. The 4 days have passed and I’m still alive! 😆 But did I survive the cheap backpacking food challenge? That’s a big YES!

You might wonder how I managed to successfully pass this challenge. Well, I’ve mentioned the food I ate on Day 1. For Day 2-4, here are the following meals I ate:

Day 2

Breakfast: Oatmeal and Pineapple
Lunch and Dinner: Pork n’ potatoes with rice

Day 3

Breakfast: Oatmeal and Pineapple
Lunch and Dinner: Adobo and rice

Day 4

Breakfast: Pineapple
Lunch and Dinner: Fried Pork and rice

I basically cooked those dishes thanks to the availability of a shared kitchen that our guesthouse offered. The dishes I cooked each day were more than enough to feed me for 2 meals and I didn’t mind eating the same food for lunch and dinner. I had no choice. But even though I ate only 4 dishes in 4 days, I believed they were not unhealthy at all. I was able to prepare my version of a balanced meal by adding fruits.

As for the 100-dollar bill, I failed to save it for Bangkok. I miscalculated the budget I allotted for my guesthouse. I got used to setting aside $2 for the rent per day when I was still sharing the room with my travel buddy. I only realized this mistake when I paid my house rent the morning I left for Bangkok. Instead of my $10 budget for 4 days, I ended up paying $20 but am not complaining. That budget was already a steal.

Backpacking in Southeast Asia is not difficult. But when you travel on a budget, you have to be prepared for the worse. You can read information about backpacking tips to help you prepare your backpacking food budget. One great budget-saver to keep up with your food budget is to buy food at the town’s market and cook your own meals.

As I continue my journey within Southeast Asia and the rest of the world, I have listed down a couple of things that I wanted to see, visit and do. Staying in a luxury ski chalet is on top of my list. However, I will still look for a place to stay that allows me to use their kitchen so that I can prepare my own budget meals. Otherwise, I’ll have to find cheap backpacking meals to help me manage my food budget. Being able to control my budget for food would allow me to maximize my whole backpacking budget. This will allow me to reach more destinations or extend my trip for a longer period of time 😉