Check out this post — Expense Report: Pre-Trip Costs — for a better understanding of other costs associated with a RTW trip, as well as a definition of my travel style and how it impacts my budget.
Here’s what I spent in U.S. dollars over 7 nights in Palau:
- Accommodation = $357 … $51 per night
- Food = $114.85 … $16.40 per day
- Groceries = $26.35 … $3.76 per day
- Coffee = $8.50 … $1.21 per day
- Activities = $531 … $75.85 per day
- Cell & Wifi = $22.50 … $3.21 per day
- Transportation = none
- Miscellaneous = $66.20 … $9.45 per day
And the grand total for 7 nights in Palau is…:
$1,126.40 USD, which works out to $160.91 per day.
Here’s how that number compares with other countries I’ve traveled to:
- My daily average in Cook Islands: $157.05
- My daily average in New Zealand: $88.56
- My daily average in Australia: $83.37
- My daily average in Singapore: $78.86
- My daily average in Indonesia: $51.34
- My daily average in Malaysia: $117.09
- My daily average in Palau: $160.91
Do I wish my daily average for Palau was lower? Of course, but I’m still glad I prioritized Palau as a destination on my RTW trip. While the diving is great, Jellyfish Lake is a once-in-a-lifetime experience not found anywhere else on earth. In the long run (i.e. the rest of my life), it was worth the splurge to visit Palau.
A few notes…
- Palau’s currency is conveniently the U.S. Dollar. It was odd to see those familiar bills in my wallet after six months abroad!
- I received one blog discount in Palau: 20% off my dive bill at Fish ‘N Fins. For three days of diving plus equipment rental and visits to Jellyfish Lake & Chandelier Cave, my final dive bill was $531. Without the 20% off it would have been $665, so this saved me $134 USD. Major thanks to Fish ‘N Fins!
- I did not include my flights into or out of Palau, since I will note international flights on a separate RTW airfare budget at the end of my trip. For the record, flights to this country are expensive and infrequent. I paid $633 for a round-trip ticket from the Philippines (I tracked flight prices for months and they didn’t budge). Since that’s such a high amount compared to most of my other point-to-point airline tickets, I was curious what my daily average for Palau would be if I included the R/T flight and it comes to $251.34 per day… a staggering number for a week-long backpacking trip. Who am I, Donald Trump?!
- I did not purchase a local SIM card for this country. In fact, I did not find any options for a prepaid SIM card. And the internet is the slowest I have encountered since dial-up circa 1999 in the United States. Wifi is terrible all over the island. I frequented an internet cafe but it was still slow. I continue to use the Viber app to communicate for free with my friends and family back home.
- I continue to use my Charles Schwab debit card to avoid international ATM fees.
- I still have not purchased any souvenirs on this RTW trip.
- The largest item under the Miscellaneous category of my budget includes a $50 departure tax… yikes. While common years ago, many countries have eliminated the departure tax by incorporating it into airfare prices. But some countries still require passengers to pay this fee when you check into the airport. It can be a nuisance if you’ve already used up your local currency in anticipation of your departure and suddenly need to run to an ATM for more cash to pay this fee. Since Palau uses the U.S. dollar that’s not a concern here. I usually ask around or Google a particular country’s departure tax so there are no surprises at the airport. Usually the tax isn’t very much (in Indonesia I paid $10), but Palau charges tourists $50!
Hi erica. I read your blog and amazed by it.
You did an amazing adventure. Glad you made it all the way.
Btw, fyi, indonesia has a lake with non-sting jelly fish, located in kakaban island near kalimantan/borneo. The lake has 4 kinds of jellyfish which you could swim without any worry. Hope one day you would visit them.
Thank you Mita! And thanks for the information about other jellyfish lakes in Indonesia — I do hope to swim in them someday!