We left Singapore in September 2024 at the age of 26/25. Part of the reason was because we were bored with our autopilot corporate lifestyle in Singapore. It was comfortable… but dreadful! 

The other part was us wanting to explore what “end” we had in mind so that we knew exactly why and what we were working for.

We had little idea of what we wanted out of life. But all we knew for ourselves was that… the corporate life in Singapore was not it. Was it the 9-5 that we dreaded? Was it the scripted routine? Or was it the people? We weren’t sure. But we needed an out.

The best way we knew how to gain clarity was to begin travelling full-time as a means to figure out the type of lifestyle, country and place we eventually wanted to commit to. As a side quest, checking off all of our bucket list destinations was what we wanted to do now - lest future responsibilities “robs” us from the freedom we enjoy today.

So, after counting our costs (from a literal and figurative sense), we quit our jobs, bidded our hard goodbyes and set off for our first destination - Bali!

*This cost of living guide covers our main expenses like flights, lodging, food, visas and activities. It does not include insurance expense which is a major cost that should be factored in based on individual circumstances.

**Everything stated is a combined spend for 2 pax in Singaporean Dollars (SGD).

Let’s get into it!

53 Days in Bali (Canggu, Ubud and Nusa Dua) 

We spent almost 2 months living in Bali from early September to early November.

Flights to Bali were $400 total. We flew from Singapore to Denpasar via Scoot. 

1. Lodging

Since we were staying long-term, we opted for “guesthouses” which costed us around $25-$66/night. Our accommodations in Ubud was the cheapest $25 as we extended offline after our online booking for 3 days. We found that to be the best in value because it included breakfast too! Our most expensive accommodation was a co-living accomodation and was a pretty big space as it had a living room (which doubled as an additional bed when our friend visited), full sized kitchen, dining table, ensuite toilet and king bed with a balcony. You can check it out here.

2. Food

We had a mix of restaurants, cafes and warungs (aka local eateries) everyday. Warungs were the cheapest option (around $5/pax) and restaurants could go up to ($20/pax). The areas we stayed in Bali had many Western and Indonesian food options but didn’t really have great authentic Chinese food options, sadly! 

Activities included a mix of shopping, surf lessons, snorkelling day trips to Nusa Lembongan and Amed, trips to pharmacy/guardian. 

3. Cost Breakdown

Check out our Cost of Living video in Bali here:

Bali offered us an extremely high standard of living for just $3,459/ month as a couple. Our favourite part? No need for laundry nor housework as everything is done for you.

However, air pollution, bad traffic and contaminated tap water (hello bottled water!) was a huge pain point for us.

So on to the next destination and we’ll see you in the next video!

Greetings from Bangkok,
Darien & Joanna