After our first full month of travel, we shared a detailed budget breakdown of every dollar we spent. We were planning to do this every month, but our May was weird because we had to come back to the U.S. for a few events, which means our airfare was skewed (high) but our lodging was also skewed (low) because we stayed with family or friends for much of the month. So, instead of sharing the entire month, we’ll share one week traveling in Colombia, which is a better snapshot of our spending.
We visited Medellin and Salento during our first week in Colombia. Overall, we found it very affordable. Transportation, lodging and food costs were all reasonable. We also visited Cartagena later in the month (not included in this budget), which was definitely more expensive than central Colombia but still a bit cheaper than the U.S. So if you’re traveling to coastal Colombia, plan for a little more than we spent here.
Colombia: $571.39
Transportation: $82.62
This includes our bus tickets from Medellin to Salento and from Salento to Armenia, as well as our taxi/Uber rides from and to the airports, and a few rides on Jeeps in Salento [pictured above]. We also rode the metro in Medellin, which was so nice and clean (and less than $2 USD per ride!). Average: $11.80/day.
Lodging: $181.98
We stayed in two hostels in Colombia–both private double rooms with shared bathrooms. Our hostel in Medellin was $31.95/night. Our hostel in Salento was $28.71/night, including a full hot breakfast each morning. Average: $30.33/night.
Eating out: $188.47
We ate out three times a day in Colombia (except a few hostel breakfasts and that time we ate an avocado for dinner), and we ate well. With alcohol! Plus copious cups of coffee from local cafes and yummy pastries from bakeries and markets. As you can see from our spending, food and drinks were very affordable. Average: $26.92/day.
Groceries/household items: $33.52
Because we ate out so much, our groceries only consisted of occasional water and chip purchases. And some very expensive ice cream one evening in Salento. We spent more on a small tub of ice cream at the grocery store than we had at dinner for two! Average: $4.79/day.
Entertainment (tours, etc.): $69.03
In Medellin, this included our free walking tour tip and our exotic fruits tour (you get 10 percent off if you do the free walking tour, and they will refund the taxes if you send a photo of your passport stamp, so this already affordable experience was a great deal). In Salento, there were a few small fees to hike in the Valle de Cocora and we took a coffee tour at Don Elias. Average: $9.86/day.
Gifts & souvenirs: $15.77
Postcards and a birthday gift, plus a bag of coffee from the farm we toured. Average: $2.25/day.
Total: $81.62/day = $40.81/person per day
Did you know we have a page on the blog completely dedicated to Money & Budgeting? We also list our country-specific costs on this page, but those numbers might differ a bit from the numbers shown here. The numbers in our detailed budgeting posts (like this one) are a true reflection of what we personally spent on our trip. The numbers on the Money & Budgeting page are meant to reflect what a typical tourist traveling at our comfort level can expect to spend.
Of course, you can always spend far less (or far more) than the numbers listed here or on our Money & Budgeting page. These figures are provided as a loose guide to help you plan travels within your budget range.
Feature image: View from the Mirador de Salento
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