Backpacking Central America on a Budget: How much did we spend per day?

Travelling is expensive. You need to save up for a year to afford to take a few weeks off. It’s impossible to travel long-term without being either filthy rich or a dirty hippie in rags who sleeps in a car and eats from a trash can. Filthy or dirty, that’s the choice.

But what if I tell you that all these preconceptions about long-term travel are wrong?

If you keep an eye on your expenses and your budget, you can travel for months on end without breaking the bank. That’s what we did- we travelled around Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Mexico for nine months in a row. All of that despite being journalists/writers who hardly rake in the big bucks. Let’s take a closer look at how we managed.

For starters, the big question:

How much did we spend in nine months of travelling around Central America?

I admit it, I’m a bit of a personal finance nerd. Shortly after returning from the year of living dangerously in Indonesia, the weekly magazine I freelanced for went bankrupt, which left me with a financial hangover.

To get back on the right track, I kept a record of my income and expenses. I wrote it all down in a neat spreadsheet. I can recommend this method to every spendthrift, as it really shows you where the money goes – 90 EUR on cappuccinos, really? – and it gives you the tools to tackle financial problems.

By meticulously recording my financial movements, I got the discipline to also keep track of our expenses during this trip, although not in the same detail as before. It now allows me to break down the cost of travelling by country.

Non-country-related expenses

• A return flight to Belize City cost us 407,79 EUR per person (Delta Air Lines), which amounts to 815,58 EUR for both of us. It was a lot cheaper to buy a return flight rather than a one-way ticket, even though we didn’t know if we would actually catch the flight. In the end, we decided not to (we felt like we hadn’t travelled enough). Since re-booking the flight was ridiculously expensive (a figure around $1500), we simply bought new tickets home:
• Two one-way tickets on a direct flight from Cancún to Brussels set us back another 437,98 EUR (TUI).
• Before our trip, I closed minimal medical insurance for a couple with Globelink for 332,48 GBP or 377,19 EUR. We wouldn’t recommend this insurance company, but that’s another blog post.
• I also insured our two computers (a Macbook and an HP Envy) and one camera for 124,90 EUR for one year.
• Our subscription to Workaway cost us 35,43 EUR (39 USD) the first year, 38 EUR the second. The difference is in the conversion rate: I paid with PayPal in dollars the first year, in euros the second. Total cost: 73,43 EUR.

That amounts to 1829,08 EUR, non-country-related expenses. Or 914,54 EUR per person.

Country-related expenses

Now that we’ve got the general expenses out of the way, we’ll look go into detail and notice that certain of our destinations were more expensive than others. Keep in mind, however, that in some countries we’ve done more Workaway than in others, which generally kept the cost of living lower. I’ve tried to clarify as much as possible.

USA

We made two layovers in the USA. First in Detroit, where we had two cups of coffee in the airport (6,75 EUR). Later, in Atlanta, we had to spend the night. By the time we reached Atlanta, we were completely knackered. Despite our resolution to sleep on an airport bench, we finally opted for an airport motel. With a voucher from Delta Air Lines, this cost us 81,65 EUR. By far the most expensive night of our trip, but worth the money for the shuttle service to and fro the airport and the luscious breakfast buffet.

We needed to renew our ESTA travel permit: 14 USD or 12,54 EUR each, 25,08 EUR in total.

USA in a nutshell

• Total cost: 113,48 EUR or 56,74 EUR per person.
• Length of stay: 1 night.
• Cost/day: 113,48 EUR or 56,74 EUR per person.

BELIZE

Scared by reports of general expensiveness, most backpackers race through Belize. Many make only stops in San Ignacio and Caye Caulker. While it’s true that tours and accommodation in Belize can add up compared to most of its neighbouring countries, it’s still possible to travel here on a budget. Local street food and transportation are cheap, and so are the splendid and plentiful national parks. With a bit of improvisation, you can organise many things by yourself.

As for us, we were still at the beginning of our trip, and thus financially unworried. Which explains why we splashed on a kayak tour in Caye Caulker and an exploration of the famous ATM Cave in the Cayo district. We stayed in Belize for 62 nights, spread over three visits, which was partly possible because we spend roughly half of that time in the company of a couple of bighearted Americans in San Antonio and a few days around Christmas with equally generous Americans in Sarteneja. We also used Couchsurfing once, in Corozal Town.

Belize uses the Belizean dollar (BZD), which is pegged to the American dollar at a rate of 2:1. One Belizean dollar is roughly 0,44 EUR.

Daily expenses in Belize

• Hotel. Depends hugely on the destination and the season. We paid as little as 25 BZD (11,11 EUR) for a hovel in Benque Viejo del Carmen, which frankly, wasn’t even worth half of that money. But also 30 BZD (13,33 EUR) for a small but very clean room in San Ignacio. And as much as 60 BZD (26,67 EUR) in Caye Caulker, 75 BSD (33,33) in Hopkins and 80 BZD (35,56) in Orange Walk. The latter, however, was because of my own stubbornness, but that, again, is another blog post. On average, expect to pay around 60 BZD (26,67 EUR) for a budget room.
• Food. The sky is the limit in the resorts and tourist restaurants, but we usually stuck to local favourites such as rice and beans (5-10 BZD, 2,22-4,44 EUR), spicy fried Mexican snacks such panadas and salbutes (2 or 3 for 1 to 2 BZD, 0,44-0,88 EUR) or the Belizean take on the regional breakfast (eggs with fried jacks and plantains, sometimes with salsa and avocado, 5-7 BZD or 2,22-3,11 EUR).
• Transport. Generally, chicken buses are very reasonably priced. Ticket prices depend on the line and whether or not it’s an ‘express’ bus. To give you an idea: the bus from San Antonio to San Ignacio (18,5 kilometres over mostly bumpy roads) cost 3 BZD (1,33 EUR), the one from San Ignacio to Belmopan (42 kilometres) around 7 BZD (3,11 EUR).
• National parks. Getting there may require improvisation, but the 10 BZD (4,44 EUR) entrance fee buys you hundreds of kilometres of well-maintained hiking trails.

Biggest expenses in Belize

• As we decided to stay longer in Belize than the permitted 30 days, we needed to arrange a visa extension in Belmopan. This cost us 50 BZD each, around 22,22 EUR per person, or 44,44 EUR for both of us.
• We exited Belize three times. Each time, we coughed up the exit fee of 40 BZD (17,78 EUR). This added up to 106,67 EUR for the two of us.
• We splashed the cash for a kayak tour around the northern half of Caye Caulker (around 70 EUR for two) and a trip to ATM Cave (around 160 EUR for two).

Money-saving tips for Belize

The national parks offer great value for money. For a pittance, you can explore vast areas of tropical rainforest, hike to swimming holes or waterfalls. Pack your own picnic and enough water and you can easily spend the whole day (or even multiple days) in places like Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary or Mayflower Bocawina National Park.

Unfortunately, no public buses run into the parks. But if you’re adventurous and don’t mind to hitchhike, getting a ride shouldn’t cause a problem. We usually started hiking in and tried to flag down any car that passed. In our experience, park workers will always stop and many American tourists will too.

When it comes to eating out, touristy restaurants routinely charge 20 BZD (8,88 EUR) and upwards. Many of these aren’t even the cosiest places to eat, as they are often mass-catering. We ate mostly in local eateries, which are very affordable. For those who like to cook, be aware that supermarket prices in Belize are vastly higher than the ones in neighbouring countries.

The most common 1-litre bottle of water costs 2 BZD (0,89 EUR). William, our kayak guide in Caye Caulker, explained to us that he always buys small water bags. They come at a quarter apiece (0,11 EUR) and three of them easily fill a bottle. Even better is to use every opportunity to fill your own bottle from the big jugs you often find in hotels and restaurants. Remember that the price of your shop-bought Belikin beer contains a deposit of a quarter, which you can claim back afterwards.

Belize in a nutshell

• Total cost: 2828,97 EUR or 1414,49 EUR per person.
• Length of stay: 62 nights.
• Cost/day: 45,63 EUR or 22,81 EUR per person.

GUATEMALA

Awe-inspiring temples amid lush jungle, volcanic adventures and lots and lots of Maya culture — Guatemala makes for a great destination. But add the cost of travelling and it becomes a true backpacker’s wet dream. Cheap and plentiful hotels, street food everywhere you turn, and a very tight network of chicken buses mean that your money lasts very long here. Which is not the only reason why we stayed in Guatemala for four months, but it definitely didn’t chase us away either. In fact, despite doing a lot less volunteering (ten days on a boat and two and a half weeks at Finca Ixobel) and no Couchsurfing, we spend less money per day than in Belize.

Tourist magnets like Antigua, Panajachel and Tikal, unsurprisingly, posed the only challenge to our budget. In Antigua, for example, you can do nothing but fine dining for a month and still have new places to choose from. Street food was harder to find, as was an affordable room. We also experienced that shop owners charged more for basic products. Prices are probably still cheap compared to Europe, but by this time we had different standards.

Guatemala uses the Quetzal (GTQ), after the eponymous national bird, which at the time of writing was worth 0,12 EUR.

Daily expenses in Guatemala

• Hotel. We paid anything from 50 GTQ (5,81 EUR) in Playa Grande, to 280 GTQ (33 EUR) in Tikal. Most commonly, a room cost us 100 GTQ (11,63 EUR), which seemed to be the standard for average-looking but clean family-run hotels. It’s important to note that we often tried our luck in places targeting locals rather than gringos. Even the smallest Guatemalan town usually has a plethora of hotels and motels to choose from, which meant that we almost never booked in advance, with the notable exception of Tikal.
• Food. Mostly inexpensive. A typical breakfast (called tipico and containing eggs, refried beans, fried plantains, cheese, cream and tortillas) usually cost 20 or 25 GTQ (2,33 or 2,91 EUR), including a coffee. As a vegetarian, I often asked for a version of the lunch deal without meat. This usually included rice, beans and some vegetables, sometimes with a drink, and cost 12 to 15 GTQ (1,40 to 1,74 EUR). Similar meals with meat would probably cost more. A set of three tacos set us back 10 GTQ (1,16 EUR).
• Transport. We only used one tourist shuttle – to move from Antigua to Lago Atitlán. I felt sick, possibly from the Antiguan street food, and didn’t look forward to three chicken buses in a row. Other than that, chicken buses served us fine in Guatemala. The most expensive one ran from Playa Grande to Santa Cruz Barillas, 100 kilometres over poor roads for 50 GTQ (5,82 EUR). shorter rides cost a fraction of that, sometimes as little as 6 GTQ (0,70 EUR). It is, however, always worthwhile to run a quick internet search about the prices of certain routes. We also hitchhiked once or twice.
• National parks. Small parks often have an entrance fee of 30 GTQ (3,49 EUR). For a day in Tikal, you have to shelve out 150 GTQ (17,45 EUR).

Biggest expenses in Guatemala

• Anete lost her phone in Cobán and bought a new one in Sololá. She paid 400 GTQ (47,50 EUR at the time).
• We climbed Tajumulco, the highest mountain in Central America, with Quetzaltrekkers. This NGO charged 500 GTQ (58,16 EUR) per person for this two-day adventure.
• The entrance fee to Tikal cost 150 GTQ (17,45 EUR), we stayed two nights in the Tikal Jungle Lodge at a rate of 33 EUR per night. You can also camp there.
• We studied Spanish in Xela, in a school called INEPAS. With a focus on social issues, it’s not the cheapest choice but also not the most expensive one. For two people, we paid around 250 EUR for one week of full-time classes with a private teacher, a room in a guest family and three meals a day.

Money-saving tips for Guatemala

We usually try to support local business. In Antigua and other tourist magnets infested with money-grubbers, however, we opted for supermarkets like Despensa Familiar, where prices are fixed. And don’t forget: as most lagers in Guatemala taste like dishwater, you better choose the cheapest one. Ice Dorada cost 5 GTQ for a small can, 6 GTQ for a big one (0,58/0,70 EUR).

As for hotels, it really pays off to look around before you commit, even if it means walking around with your backpack for a while. With so many options in every town, a better deal usually looms around the next corner. We usually aimed for a private room for 100 GTQ (11,63 EUR), but anything under 150 GTQ (17,45 EUR) worked.

Like in Belize, the cheapest water comes in plastic bags. You can buy an individual one for 1 GTQ (0,12 EUR), but even better is to buy a batch of 20 or 25 for anything between 7 and 10 GQT (0,81-1,16 EUR), depending on the region. Glass bottles of Coca-Cola or other sodas have a deposit of 1 GQT. The best lunch deals are to be found in comedores, small, family-owned restaurants.

Guatemala in a nutshell

• Total cost: 4366,37 EUR or 2183,19 EUR per person.
• Length of stay: 124 nights.
• Cost/day: 35,21 EUR or 17,61 EUR per person.

EL SALVADOR

The smallest country in Central America, El Salvador contains everything that the region has to offer on an area the size of an apron. Beaches with world-class waves in El Tunco, dramatic volcanoes and lakes inland, and lush jungle and quaint towns on Ruta de las Flores. Not to mention one of the highest crime and murder rates in the world.

We found that the general cost of backpacking in El Salvador was similar to its neighbours Guatemala and Honduras. Pupusas are cheap, plentiful, and delicious. The country’s compactness makes travelling around hassle-free and cheap. Although be aware that buses don’t run as often as they do in Guatemala.

An average private room in a hotel will set you back a tiny bit more than in Guatemala, maybe because the infrastructure in the latter country is more developed. In San Salvador, we used Couchsurfing for the first time during this trip and stayed for five nights in a flat in Mejicanos. Its owners, brother and sister, took us to a few typical restaurants.

El Salvador uses the US Dollar (USD) as its official currency. At the time of writing, one dollar equals 0,90 EUR.

Daily expenses in El Salvador

• Hotel. Our Guatemalan tactic of simply showing up and looking for a place to sleep worked like a charm in party-crazy El Tunco. In other places, however, things proved to be more complicated. The amount of hotels and motels is much smaller than in Guatemala. Hence, we started doing a bit of research beforehand, so we’d know where to go when we arrived in a new city. We usually paid around 15 USD (13,44 EUR) for a private room in a hotel. Sometimes, like in the friendly Casa Blanca Tu Casa in Santa Ana, this included breakfast.
• Food. Pupusas, pupusas, pupusas. Salvadorans love their most famous street food, corn dough stuffed with all kinds of ingredients and subsequently fried. Tasty as hell and, best of all for budget-conscious backpackers, dirt-cheap. Three simple pupusas, filled with beans or cheese, sell everywhere for 1 USD. Yes, that’s 0,30 EUR a pop. In fancier places, the more decadent pupusas, fatter, richer, cheesier, cost around 1 USD (0,90 EUR) for one.
• Transport. Chicken buses come in three varieties: ordinario, especial and super especial. The difference wasn’t so much in the comfort as in the speed, so sometimes it’s worth it to pay a bit more to get somewhere quicker. Buses are cheap. For the ride from Sonsonate to El Tunco (80 kilometres), for example, we paid 1,50 USD (1,34 EUR).

Biggest expenses in El Salvador

We didn’t do anything very extravagant in El Salvador. We rented a surfboard for the day near El Tunco (10 USD, 8,96 EUR), hiked Santa Ana volcano (a variety of permits, amassing to a total of 8 USD per person, 7,17 EUR) and tried a bunch of beers at Cadejo (11,75 EUR). Hardly splashing the cash.

Money-saving tips for El Salvador

Unlike in Guatemala, where you depend on the goodwill of drivers and ticket sellers, you can not get cheated on a bus in El Salvador. For the simple reason, that official prices hang on a paper in the front of the bus. If you have the feeling you’re being charged too much, simply check the paper. This happened to us around El Tunco, where one entrepreneurial bus driver charged gringos four times more. Not today, man.

We researched hotels in advance, but never reserved on booking websites. Even during the weekend in El Tunco, when San Salvadorans rush in, or during an international film festival in Suchitoto, booking ahead wasn’t necessary.

After being stuck with Despensa Familiar for four months, Super Selectos is actually a nice supermarket to buy speciality products. As in Guatemala, glass bottles have a deposit of 0,25 USD (0,22 EUR).

But, actually, all you need to know to get by cheaply in El Salvador: pupusas, pupusas, pupusas.

El Salvador in a nutshell

• Total cost: 881,45 EUR or 440,73 EUR per person.
• Length of stay: 23 nights.
• Cost/day: 38,32 EUR or 19,16 EUR per person.

HONDURAS

Paradise islands, the largest American rainforest north of Brazil, long stretches of Caribbean coast dotted with Garifuna villages, dramatic mountains and ruins dubbed the Paris of the Maya, Honduras has it all. If not my favourite, at the very least it’s the most surprising country in Central America. Political unrest and drug-related gang violence in the big cities, however, give Honduras a bad reputation. Which means it’s not firmly on the gringo trail. Good news for backpackers on a budget. As long as you stay clear of the Bay Islands, you can travel in Honduras even with very little money.

You can easily travel on a budget similar to the one you put aside for Guatemala or El Salvador. For a number of reasons, we spend more, despite staying in Copán Ruinas for two weeks, sweeping the floors of a hotel in a slightly run-down colonial building in exchange for a private room. One: we employed a guide in our attempt to finally spot a quetzal. Two: we took the (expensive) ferry to Utila. And three: we forgot some money in a secret pocket in a backpack.

Honduras uses the Lempira (HNL), after the Lenca ruler who resisted the Spaniards, which at the time of writing equalled 0,036 EUR.

Daily expenses in Honduras

• Hotel. Fewer facilities than in Guatemala, but price/quality is mostly similar. For a basic private room, sometimes with a shared bathroom, we paid around 300 HNL (10,86 EUR) almost everywhere, including Utila.
• Food. Whereas El Salvador is collectively addicted to pupusas, Honduras swears by baleadas, flour tortillas folded double, with refried beans, powdery cheese, hot sauce and, sometimes, marinated red onions inside. Depending on the locations, these delicious snacks cost between 10 and 15 HNL (0,36-0,54 EUR). Gringo restaurants might sell a pimped version, for example with avocado, for a multiple of that price. A lunch deal in a small, family-run comedor cost between 30 and 50 HNL (1,09-1,81 EUR).
• Transport. There are a number of bus companies, whose prices depend on the level of comfort they offer. We never took a Hedman Alas bus, the showpiece of the Honduran bus fleet. A ticket from San Pedro Sula to Trujillo (360 km) with Cotraipbal cost us 240 HNL (8,69 EUR).

Biggest expenses in Honduras

• Utila and Roatan, the two most famous Bay Islands, attract tourists like a can of soda attracts a bee in the summer. Consequently, they’re by far the most expensive places we visited in Honduras. We managed to keep the costs on the island quite low (see ‘money-saving tips for Honduras’), but the ferry is an attack on any backpacker’s budget. We paid 1200 HNL (43,96 EUR) for two people from La Ceiba to Utila and 1187,48 HNL (43,30 EUR) for the return journey.
• After a failed attempt in Guatemala, we really wanted to see a quetzal. We employed a  guide and paid 1390 HNL (50,34 EUR), which included a pickup, drop-off and meals. But, alas, no quetzal.
• Anete has a secret pocket in her backpack, where she keeps cash. Unfortunately, she sometimes forgets about it. That’s why we discovered a stacked-away 4000 HNL (144,86 EUR) when we were already in Mexico. No money changers wanted to change the money, and we couldn’t find any Honduras-bound travellers either, so we’re stuck with it. If anyone is going to Honduras from Belgium, we’ll sell our lempiras at a discount.

Money-saving tips for Honduras

First of all, don’t store money in a secret pocket.

Secondly, eat baleadas. You can literally find them on every street corner, also in more touristy places like Utila. In order to stick to your budget on the island, you need to be savvy. Wash all your clothes beforehand, because the laundry services are very expensive. According to the owner of our hostel, a black man who had lived in Helsinki and made weekend trips to Tallinn to party, Utila has the most expensive electricity on earth, a title recently stolen from the Cayman Islands. Water costs an arm and a leg, too. We bought a 20-litre jug and filled smaller bottles with it, a solution that saved us hundreds of lempiras.

We stayed in a private room (300 HNL, 10,86 EUR) in the Backpackers Lodge, accommodation connected to Gunter’s Ecomarine Dive Center. The other hostel nearby, The Venue, is remarkably pricier. And no matter what the wild-haired gringo volunteer sitting behind the corner says (“come on, guys, it’s really not that expensive”), you can rent a kayak from a local two houses away for half the price.

Honduras in a nutshell

• Total cost: 1384,70 EUR or 692,35 EUR per person. (without the forgotten money: 1239,84 EUR or 619,92 EUR per person).
• Length of stay: 30 nights.
• Cost/day: 46,17 EUR or 23,08 EUR per person. (without the forgotten money: 41,33 EUR or 20,66 EUR per person).

YUCATÁN, MEXICO

Technically not a part of Central America, but many backpackers combine the Yucatán with forays into Guatemala or Belize. The most touristy part of our journey, ironically, was also the one where we spend the least amount of money per day. True, that’s mainly because we volunteered for almost three weeks, renovating a language school in Mérida. We really liked the capital of the state of Yucatán, its colourful houses and VW Beetles, its Maya culture, delicious food and colonial architecture. It’s a gem of a city where weeks go by in the blink of an eye.

But even without that volunteering experience, it’s possible to travel around the Yucatán on a budget. You can step into any comedor, however local, and be served amazing food for a fraction of the price the tourists pay in gringo restaurants. Cantinas serve small snacks with every beer you order, and some of them don’t take that concept lightly. Which means you can sometimes fill your belly for the price of a beer or two. And drink the beer on top of that.

Mexico uses the Mexican peso (MXN), which at the time of writing equals 0,047 EUR.

Daily expenses in Yucatán, Mexico

• Hotel. We arrived in the Yucatán between Christmas and New Year, the height of the tourist season, which meant that hotels were full and rates inflated. In our first stop, Bacalar, we shambled around town for hours until we found a somewhat affordable, unoccupied room for 500 MXN (23,69 EUR). Changing tactics, we looked at Airbnb for the remainder of the trip. We found cheaper rooms that way. When we paid similar amounts, we stayed in better rooms.
• Food. Mexico is a dream for foodies. Countries like El Salvador and Honduras have one dish that everyone is very proud of, but in Mexico, o boy, you could eat a different meal every day of your life and still you wouldn’t have tried everything. Variety is king. From famous street food, like tacos, vegetarian tortas or burritos, to lesser-known dishes such as papadzules (egg tacos covered in pumpkin seed sauce and tomatoes) and huevos motuleños (Motul-styled eggs, with tomato sauce and peas), it was all finger-licking good. And cheap, because we paid between 10 and 40 MXN (0,47-1,90 EUR) for street food, and never more than 90 MXN (4,26 EUR) for a meal in a fancier restaurant. Beers are cheap as well, in the official beer shops Modelorama (Group Modelo) and SIX (Tecate).
• Transport. Everyone raves about ADO buses, but the one and only trip we made with that company was probably the most uncomfortable one in Mexico. Prices depend on availability and timing of purchase. For the trip from Cancún to Playa del Carmen (70 kilometres), you could pay as little as 49 MXN (2,32 EUR), but you could also pay as much as 208 MXN (9,85 EUR). Try to be as flexible as possible. Chicken bus fees are less prone to price changes, so a bus ride from Mérida to Izamal (70 kilometres) will most likely cost 27 MXN (1,28 EUR).

Biggest expenses in Yucatán, Mexico

Nothing very decadent. We made a boat trip from the beach in Celestun to see the flamingos (300 MXN or 14,21 EUR) and visited Uxmal (182 MXN or 8,62 EUR). Both prices are per person.

Money-saving tips for Yucatán, Mexico

The agencies in Mérida advertise a bunch of tours, but you can organise most of them by yourself. Public transport is efficient and easy to use, even if you’re not willing to take any chicken buses. The closer you can get to attractions, the cheaper they will get. This is a rule of thumb which is true for the whole of Central America (or anywhere else, for that matter).

Be counter-intuitive. When the herds are running to Chichen Itza and Tulum, why not try Uxmal, or even less known temples like Kabah? When everyone wants a spot on the beach of the Maya Rivera, why not aim for the beaches in the north of the Yucatán? Why pay for Las Coloradas when you can see similar pink lakes for free in San Crisanto? The cenotes in Homún are as pretty as the ones near Tulum, but the entrance fee is only a fraction. Even in a tourist hell hole, you can find cheap food. Leave 5 Avenida, walk a few blocks towards 30 Avenida and you’ll no longer see white faces. Prices are a fifth of what they are on, err, Fifth.

Have a beer in one of Méridas many cantinas, like La Negrita, and you’ll get free snacks with every drink. Places like Eladio’s take it one step further and serve you a complete meal. Beers are more expensive in Eladio’s (50 MXN, 2,37 EUR) than in other cantinas, but the food compensates royally. Wednesdays are two beers for the price of one.

Yucatán, Mexico in a nutshell

• Total cost: 1106,19 EUR or 553,10 EUR per person.
• Length of stay: 38 nights.
• Cost/day: 29,11 EUR or 14,56 EUR per person.

Conclusion: How much did we spend in nine months backpacking around Central America?

Non-country related costs not included

• Total cost: 10681,16 EUR or 5340,58 EUR per person.
• Length of stay: 278 nights.
• Cost/day: 38,42 EUR or 19,21 EUR per person.

Non-country related costs included

• Total cost: 12510,24 EUR or 6255,12 EUR per person.
• Length of stay: 278 nights.
• Cost/day: 45,00 EUR or 22,50 EUR per person.

Isn’t that nice, that we travelled for nine months, thousands of kilometres, and in the end, we’ve spent exactly 45 EUR per day?

Is that a lot? Maybe for some backpackers, it is. You can definitely travel around Central America on a smaller budget than ours if you volunteer more, camp or sleep in hostels, skip all tours and make your own meals.

But many travellers will probably spend more, taking shuttle buses, eating in restaurants instead of food shacks and comedores, and staying in gringo hotels.

We like that balance, that place somewhere in the middle. We like to travel slow, which by definition is cheaper than speeding. When we pay an entrance fee to a national park or a temple, we prefer to have a proper look instead of rushing through and running to the next ticket office. Some of these places have tens or hundreds of kilometres of hiking trails, but most people will only see the highlights.

And yes, we can be frugal, taking a chicken bus to save a few bucks. We also didn’t travel to Central America to eat European food, so we were more than happy to hop into local places for breakfast, lunch and dinner. And we’re not going to pay double for a hotel room that looks more Instagrammable than the concrete blocks we often slept in. After all, who travels to stay indoors?

But despite that stinginess, we also love experiences, living to the fullest. We splashed the cash whenever we felt it was worth it, when we thought it was impossible to get the same experience without parting with a pile of money. After all, we’d travelled so far, sometimes it’s silly not to cough up the cash.

Conclusion: you can certainly travel cheaper or more expensive than us, but this should give you an indication of how cheap or expensive backpacking Central America on a budget is.

Another time, I’ll explain how we could afford to make this trip.

We travelled in the region from May 2018 until February 2019, and these prices were accurate back then. If you’ve travelled in any or all of these countries more recently and have noticed changes in prices, let us know in the comments.