Showerthought: My trip to Bangkok showed me fancy dinners are a waste of money

I'm convinced that eating cheap is the only way to truly experience a place. In Bangkok, I ate amazing pad thai from street carts for like a dollar a plate. It tasted way better than the overpriced food in tourist areas. I met people who blew their budget on fancy restaurants and missed out on the real deal. Even in Paris, I found fresh bread and cheese from markets for next to nothing. Saving on food means more cash for sights and fun stuff. If you're not eating budget, you're doing travel wrong.

2 comments

2 Comments

derek_hayes574d ago

Disagree that eating cheap is the ONLY way to travel. Street food is great for local flavor, but fancy meals offer a different kind of experience. Sometimes a special dinner becomes a core memory from your trip. Those tourist area restaurants might be overpriced, but not EVERY expensive meal is a waste. Calling it "wrong" to enjoy nice food just feels too extreme. Your budget and your tastes should guide you, not some strict rule.

quinng854d ago

Exactly! You're hitting on what really bugs me about those "only cheap food" posts. It acts like every traveler has the same wallet and same taste buds. My best memory from Rome was this one fancy dinner that cost way too much, but I still dream about that pasta. Judging how others spend their own trip money just seems pointless.