China is home to the best hostels in the world, I’ll be sad to leave them behind. Most places with any tourist attractions will have a plethora of hostels to stay in, generally speaking a dorm bed costs around 25-50 RMB ($4-$8), with private twin/doubles costing around 100 RMB ($15).If there are no hostels (rare), you can always stay in a chain hotel like Super 8 or 7 Days Inn for around 140 RMB ($20) for a twin room.
https://www.honokage.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/1-1.jpg
Average daily spend on accommodation: 40 RMB ($8)
https://www.honokage.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/1.png
Chinese hostels are the best in the world!
Food:
Chinese food isn’t quite what we get fed in the west, and it’s certainly not the same prices! A meal on the street runs around 8RMB ($1.30). A meal in a locals restaurant will cost around 15-30RMB ($2.50-$5). Obviously if you wanna eat western food or high-end dining, you can pay a fortune but that’s not for backpackers, so steer clear!
Average daily spend for 2 or 3 meals: 30 RMB ($5)
https://www.honokage.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/2.png
Chinese street food is so cheap, portion of dumplings? $0.80!
Sights and activities:
This is where things can get a little pricey. The Chinese have a lot of very awesome things to see, and they don’t half know it. An amazing national park or a famous sight can cost around 200RMB ($30) for a ticket, but naturally that’s not an everyday event. If you can squeeze a couple of these a week in, you’ll be doing well.
Smaller temples, activities and sights etc and much more reasonable priced and cost around 10RMB ( $1.60).
Average daily spend for sights*: 70RMB ($11)
Calculated at 2 major sights per week, plus a minor sight per day
https://www.honokage.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/3.png
The Summer Palace, Beijing
Transport:
China is a huge country but the transport links are good, and if you’re willing to rough it, they can be quite cheap. A 10 hour bus will run around 65 RMB ($10), whereas a 10-hour train will run at 50RMB ($8) for a hard seat or 120RMB ($20) for a hard sleeper. So if you’re tightening your budget, use a train and take the seat!
Local transport within a city or area costs 2RMB ($0.30) per subway ride, or 1RMB ($0.15) per bus ride. Once you get your head around the transport system, it can work out very cheap indeed.
Average daily spend on transport*: 25RMB ($4)
Calculated at a 10-hour bus every other day
https://www.honokage.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/4.png
Train from Beijing to Harbin
TOTAL DAILY BUDGET FOR CHINA: $28 per day + $5 wiggle room
So for around $900 per month you can take China by storm. Remember, if you wanna stick to a budget like this you always have to consider what you’re buying, is the extra comfort worth the extra money? Should you eat on the street? Do you wanna hold a panda for an extra $200? China is still a cheap country to travel in, so get here soon before they take over the world. Happy travels!
https://www.honokage.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/5.png