Stop booking hostels just because they are cheap, you are missing the real savings

I keep seeing people brag about $12 dorm beds in Bangkok, but then they spend $8 a day on coffee because the hostel has no kitchen. Last month I stayed at a $9 hostel in Chiang Mai and ate out for every meal, that added up to $210 over two weeks. A $16 place with a stove and a market across the street would have cut my food bill to $70. I know because I did the math after I got home and felt stupid. The real hack is not the lowest bed price, it is the lowest total daily cost. How many of you actually add up your full expenses before picking a place?

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anna_craig29d ago

Guilty as charged, I once paid $8 a night in Vietnam and then dropped $40 on a single night of street food and beer because I was too wiped to walk the extra mile to the cheap stalls. My math skills are so bad that I literally traveled with a tiny notebook to track spending, and I still ended up staring at my totals like a confused golden retriever. The kitchen thing is huge too, I would buy groceries with big plans and then just eat instant noodles because the stove was a hot plate with a mood. Now I purposely look for hostels with at least a kettle and a fridge, even if it costs double, because I know I'll blow the difference on the first proper meal I see. My brain just doesn't work in "total cost" mode, it works in "ooh cheap bed" mode, and that's how I end up eating overpriced toast for a week.