Before embarking on our trip, we promised to share our expenses with you. On some level, we don’t want to do this because we know any money discussion is fraught with peril. However, we also know that having actual dollar figures is very helpful in determining when/if you can afford similar travel and how much to anticipate spending in each locale.
We’ve decided the benefits outweigh the costs, so to speak. The figures below serve as a reasonable guide for a couple embarking upon long-term travel, and living cost-consciously but comfortably in Kailua Kona, Hawaii. As independent adults in our 30s, our needs are likely greater than 20-something backpackers, so our cost breakdowns will probably be of most value to folks at a similar place in life. We’ve excluded some optional expenses from our estimates, including Brian’s flight training, Kate’s art purchases and classes, and our island-hopping, although it’s worth noting that Go Mokulele Airline will take you from Kona to Honolulu for about $150 round trip. Here we go:
GETTING STARTED
- Medical insurance: $1,250 per year (~$100 per month)
We purchased a travel medical plan through HCC Medical Insurance, to protect us in the event of a major accident or illness. - Climate controlled storage unit: $1,160 per year (~$100 per month)
To store the furniture and other treasures we couldn’t part with while traveling. - Safe deposit box: $65-80 per year
In addition to the storage unit, we rented a safe deposit box to protect valuables and documents. - Skype plan & voicemail: $80 per year
Includes unlimited calling to the US and Canada, and provides us with a California-based phone number for friends and family to keep in touch (not to mention our banks and credit card providers). - Prescriptions: $650 for one-year supply
We each got a year supply of our prescriptions, which includes contact lenses, birth control, etc. - There are also a bunch of immunizations we got before we left, which would have cost thousands of dollars had we paid for them (especially certain ones like the rabies pre-exposure vaccination), but Brian’s fantastic employer-provided health insurance picked up the tab for those.
Total Getting Started Costs: $3,220 (or about $268/month)
HAWAII: TRANSITION (All one-time expenses)
- Car transport: $1,280
After looking at car rental expenses in Hawaii (at least $2,400 for four months), we decided to ship my Rav4 there. - Car rental: $370
We incurred a total of $370 in car rental expense in San Jose and Kona, after dropping my car at the shipyard and waiting for it to arrive in Kona. - Airfare: $380
We got a great deal on one-way airfare to Kona from San Jose, on Alaska Airlines. - Short-term apartment: $400
We rented a studio apartment in downtown Kona for the first week of our trip, while we looked for longer-term accommodations. Weekly rentals are much more expensive than month-to-month rentals.
Total Hawaii Transition Expenses: $2,430
HAWAII: LIVING EXPENSES (Quoted monthly)
- Rent + utilities: $800
We rented a fully furnished one-bedroom, one-bath ohana (apartment attached to a family home), including power, water, laundry facilities and wifi for $800 per month. - Groceries: $560
Grocery expenses include supermarket as well as weekly fruit and produce market visits. Note: We eat a lot of organic and specialty food, so your grocery bill could be less expensive if you’re less picky. - Restaurants & entertainment: $350
If you’re conservative, you could probably spend less here, too. We enjoy going out 2-4 times per week for lunch, dinner or coffee. - Fuel: $200
Gas in Hawaii was generally $3.80+ per gallon. - Cell phones: $150
While in Hawaii, we kept both of our iPhone data plans. Moving forward, we will not. - Yoga & exercise classes: $80
Our twice weekly yoga classes and Kate’s periodic zumba classes totaled about $80 per month. - Auto insurance: $50
Auto insurance in Hawaii was more expensive than expected, and more than we paid in California, probably due to Hawaii’s no-fault attitude toward accidents (e.g., if someone rear-ends you, it’s half your fault).
Hawaii Expenses, per Month: $2,340
Overall, we’re pretty happy with our spending to date. Our Hawaii lifestyle cost less than half of our non-tax expenses in California, and Hawaii is widely considered to be an expensive destination. As our travels continue in Australasia, we expect our monthly expenses to decrease further.
In retrospect — had our foresight been as 20/20 as hindsight often is — we probably would have sold my Rav4 in California and rented a car in Hawaii. The extra money we could reasonably expect from selling the Rav in a more competitive market combined with the savings of not shipping the car to Hawaii would have more than made up for the cost of renting a car, but we made the best choice we could with the information we had at the time, and we don’t regret the decision. Plus, I got to keep a car I loved for an extra four months!
WAYS TO DO IT CHEAPER
If the expenses above sound like too much for you, here are some ways to cut costs further:
- Skip the major medical insurance. We think the benefits of having it outweighs the expense, but your risk assessment may be different.
- Don’t store anything while traveling. Sell it all, baby! (or put it in your parents’ basement
) - Don’t rent or buy a car; instead walk, bike or use public transportation, as we’re doing in New Zealand.
- Look into shared housing or live in a less-expensive area of Hawaii, such as Puna.
- Rarely dine out. Eating in is much more affordable, and often healthier!
If the expenses above sound like a total steal — we know they do to you Californians and New Yorkers — we hope to see you on the road.
Cheers,
