Bali was the place we settled down in for the longest time during our family gap year; in total we spent just under two months in Ubud while the boys attended international school. So how much was our travel budget for a family of four in Bali for a month?
Slowing down and stopping in one place for a stretch of time was so good for all of us!. It felt like a welcome break from the constant moving around and packing/repacking that we’d experienced in the first few months of our trip.
Staying still can also end up being much cheaper than non-stop travel, depending on where you opt to stay for a while.
For us, Bali definitely wasn’t the cheapest destination we’ve travelled in but it was an amazing, amazing time for us all.
We made a conscious choice to spend money on fitness and health while we had the opportunity to join clubs and classes. This was a focus for both me and Steve during our time away. This meant that we spent more on this than at any other point in the trip. But for us it was a choice we had budgeted for and really wanted to focus on.
How much did we spend in one month in Bali as a family of four?
So, without further ado, here are all our costs for a month’s stay in Ubud, Bali.
| Item | Total spend | Notes |
| Accommodation | £1,600 | 30 nights in our Ubud villa, plus 2 nights in Sanur and 2 nights in Lovina |
| Food | £317 | All food shops, plus boys’ school lunches |
| Eating Out | £241 | Meals out plus takeaways, snacks and drinks while out and about |
| Transport | £115 | All Grab cars/bikes plus a driver to/from Sanur and Lovina |
| Shopping | £27.50 | Few new bits of clothes for Steve, sarongs for the boys for Nyepi |
| SIM Cards | £25 | Two data packages for the month |
| Health-related | £310 | Membership of Muay Thai gym and classes, membership of Titi Batu Health Club, Padel Board games, dance classes, yoga classes and physio sessions |
| Laundry | £18 | All washed, dried and ironed! |
| Activities | £99.50 | Swimming with dolphins in Lovina, hiring sunloungers at the beach, entry to a waterfall and a temple visit |
| Massages | £28 | Total cost for 5x 60min massages |
| TOTAL | £2,781 |
Where did we stay in Bali?
Our accommodation costs were pretty high for a stay in Bali. We could definitely have done this more cheaply! However we wanted to have this sorted before we arrived so the boys were settled in when they started their new school. Plus, both my parents were coming for a stay during this time so we wanted to make sure we had somewhere good for all of us!
Booking in advance through Airbnb gave us this peace of mind but it is a more expensive way of booking accommodation. It is much cheaper to arrange a villa on the ground here in Bali. Accommodation was clearly the biggest chunk of our family travel budget for Bali! We also found that accommodation was more expensive in general than elsewhere in South East Asia.
Our villa has it’s own pool and the bedrooms are have aircon. Both of which are real luxuries!
Cost of food for a family of four in Bali
Food CAN be really cheap in Bali if you eat/shop in the local places. We did a bit of a mix – we picked up basics like noodles, rice and fruit at local stalls. However, we also shopped once a week at the big Western supermarkets in Ubud (so we could add pasta, tuna, yoghurts, milk, cereal etc to our diets!). This is is MUCH more costly than shopping locally.
In terms of eating out, we found that most main meals in the places we ate came in at around £2-3 per person. You can spend a LOT more than this in Ubud in many of the restaurants and bars! When we did eat out we tried to go for more local warungs (kitchens) and smaller places. Most meals for four, with a main course and at least one drink each, cost between £15-20 (once you’d included tax and service).
Ice creams on the way home from school cost just 25p each, which the boys definitely enjoyed (and was within our daily family travel budget!)
More detail on the fitness costs
We spent a lot more than in a ‘usual’ travel month on health and fitness activities. This included Steve’s Muay Thai gym membership – which provided access to all the classes, seven days a week (and most days he did 2-3 classes). This was £90 for the month.
One adult membership to Titi Batu Health Club was £56. This gave me access to classes, a fabulous lap swimming pool, sauna and cold plunge pool and a gym.
I have had issues with my shoulder for years and it was very painful on arrival in Bali. I ended up spending £43 a session on physio treatment to try and get this resolved.
Yoga classes in Ubud typically came in at around £7.50-10 per hour. Compared to the UK this is actually quite expensive, but the tuition is excellent and yoga in Bali is a real experience!
What about school costs for the boys?
I haven’t included the school fees for the boys in the table above (apart from the cost of school lunches). School fees don’t always feature in travel plans!
Instead, I’ve added a whole post here on our experience enrolling the boys in international school (including exact costs).
Enrolling the kids in international school during a family gap year
Planning a family gap year or world family travel?
If you want to read more about budgeting and planning for an extended family trip (plus inspiration on destinations!), then check out some of our other posts below:
