This is a long-running series where Marilyn shares her weekly spending while travelling. #marilynmoneydiary
In this week’s edition, we’ve travelled to the nearby Malaysia and Thai islands of Langkawi and Koh Lipe. They are just a short hour’s flight away from Singapore and are truly hidden gems to be discovered!
Day 1
8.30 am — Went through my summer travel packing list for a final time. Took a bus to the Airport S$1.99
10.00 am — Met JS at T4. Entered with our digital boarding pass and headed to Blossom Lounge for breakfast. I had two bowls of laksa, a cup of latte and chocolate Udders ice cream. One way flight S$46.05
1.52 pm — Arrived at Langkawi Airport 8 mins earlier. Booked a GrabCar S$2.30 (split) and headed straight to the Resorts World Langkawi Hotel S$25.74, paid hotel tax S$2.30 (split). Had chicken fried rice S$4.60 for lunch.
3.26 pm — Read Atomic Habits before taking a 2-hour nap. In the evening, we took a GrabCar $0.90 (split) to Cenang Beach for dinner at the highly-rated Warung de Cenang. We ordered vegetables, an omelette, chicken soup & soy sauce beef. S$4.30 (split) Recommended!
9.15 pm — GrabCar back to the hotel S$0.90 (split). Showered, and worked before starting on a new Korean drama Mouse on Viu, recommended by my aunt.
DAILY TOTAL: S$89.08
Day 2
12.00 pm — JS ordered GrabFood. I got Thai green curry with rice S$7.23 We worked for an hour before heading to the infinity pool area. Shared a Dusk to Dawn mocktail S$3 (split) with JS.
1.30 pm — Read Atomic Habit while enjoying the breeze and view. Had a quick soak in the infinity pool before taking a shower.
5.17 pm — Headed to the games room for a round of ping pong with JS. We initially wanted to play pool as well, but we needed to get a drink each in order to play so we decided to skip this activity.
7.00 pm — Head to Main Street for dinner. We each had a French crepe S$8.50 at the French Factory. The Iftar set I ordered came with watermelon juice, egg cheese crepe, and waffle.
8.45 pm — Worked for 3 hours. Watched 2 episodes of Mouse. Accommodation at Resorts world hotel S$25.74 (split)
DAILY TOTAL: S$44.47
Day 3
8.30 am — Took a GrabCar to the airport to collect our rental car. We got an Iced latte + egg and ham croissant for breakfast from Starbucks within the Airport S$3.25 (split)
9.00 am — Rental car S$8.60 (split) is ready for collection. We drove to Telaga Waterfall, Temurun Waterfall and Langkawi Eagle Statue. After checking out the 3 attractions, we went to the main town for Bak Kut Teh S$4.50. Got a cookies and cream smoothie from Boost S$1.70 (split) on the way back.
2.50 pm — Back in the hotel to shower and rest. Read Atomic Habits for a couple of hours.
6.00 pm — Initial plan was to have dinner at “Hidden”, a beach club, while watching the sunset but the line was too long. We settled for another seafood restaurant on Main Street. Got satay, fish curry and kang kong to share. S$14.22 (split)
8.35 pm — Back in time for JS to take his Spanish lesson while I continue working. After wrapping up, I watched 2 episodes of Mouse. Accommodation at Resorts world hotel S$25.74 (split)
DAILY TOTAL: S$53.51
Day 4
8.30 am — It’s the Good Friday long weekend! We returned the car at the airport and took a GrabCar to the harbour. We thought our departure was 10.30 am but it was actually 10 am. Got there just in time, luckily!
10.00 am — Took the ferry S$45 to Ko Lipe, Thailand. Napped throughout the ferry ride so I don’t get dizzy, using an eye mask helps too. Took us an hour to clear immigration + get our passport back while we sit along the beach.
12.20 pm — Dropped off our luggage at the Sweed Dreams Hotel S$38.04 (split). Got lunch at Papaya Mom S$5.85, went back, and FaceTime my bro for a while before heading out.
4.00 pm — Went to the beach, got a coconut S$1.65 (split) & read Atomics Habit. When the sun was setting we went in for a soak and took some pics.
8.15 pm — Showered, had Mookata S$12.09 (split) at Wanwan restaurant. After JS completed his Spanish class we watched the latest Taxi Driver 2 episode together before sleeping. Having an early night as we have diving tomorrow.
DAILY TOTAL: S$102.63
Day 5
7.45 am — Since we slept early, it was easier to get up. Met our instructor at the dive shop for a refresher.
8.30 am — Board the 12m boat before transferring to the 28m boat. Went for a refresher and our first dive. Had a simple lunch before the 2nd dive where we saw sea urchins, dancing shrimp, stingrays & more. S$139.11
1.50 pm — Back at our hotel located right on Main Street. Took a shower before having pad Thai at Elephant S$5.42 Wrote this money diary before reading the final 1/3 of Atomic Habits.
6.00 pm — Got a pizza to share S$1.94 (split), walked along the beach. After the sunset, we went back to the hotel. I tuned into Ben Yeo’s IG live to show our support for the upcoming Star Awards.
8.45 pm — Since it was the weekend, I decided to skip working tonight. Continue reading Atomic Habits while waiting for JS to wrap up his Spanish class. Watched Taxi Driver’s latest episode together. Accommodation at Sweed Dreams S$38.04 (split)
DAILY TOTAL: S$184.51
Day 6
12.05 pm — Late start to our Sunday. Walked to the other end of the island at Sunrise Beach). Decided to get lunch at Wapi Resort after reading the Google reviews of shops nearby. I had Thai basil pork with rice and fresh juice S$9.30
1.13 pm — Took a taxi boat over to a nearby island Koh Adang S$3.87. It was a pretty remote island, enjoyed the breeze, went snorkelling, read my book & voted for Ben Yeo for Star Awards as there’s unlimited voting today.
3.00 pm — We walked to another section of the island for a different view. Went snorkelling, and took some underwater Gopro footage before taking the taxi boat back.
5.20 pm — Got a coconut for S$3.10 at Salina Resort, enjoyed the sunset and went snorkelling for a final time, saw some clown fish & beautiful coral.
6.50 pm — VPN did not work on mewatch but luckily it did on YouTube, watched Star Awards while discussing with my family who will win each category. Ate grilled seabass crab fried rice and an omelette at Papaya Mom for S$14.35.
10.30 pm — Ending the night early as I was exhausted after being under the sun the entire day. Accommodation at Sweed Dreams S$38.04 (split)
DAILY TOTAL: S$68.66
Day 7
9.30 am — Woke up & started packing as we’re checking out later. Went for breakfast, and had a corn and egg prata for S$3. Discussed work goals for the week with my sister, who is also my business partner.
11 30 am — Went to the harbour to wait for our 12 pm ferry. We did not notice that we have to be there 1.5 hours ahead of time to settle paperwork at immigration. Luckily the officer cleared us & we were the last to board the ferry S$45. Opps~
3.19 pm — Finished reading Atomic Habits. Arrived back in Langkawi. Took a GrabCar to our hotel S$1.65 (split), paid hotel tax S$1.90 (split) Went to a nearby laundromat to wash all our clothes S$1.80 (split) before our flight back to Singapore tomorrow. Late lunch at KFC S$3.01 (split)
4.32 pm — Cleared the work backlog that accumulated over the long weekend. Lost track of time from working, decided to order Sushi King from GrabFood S$8.40
9.02 pm — Showered, and wrote this money diary while waiting for our dinner to arrive. Planning to watch Ali Wong’s BEEF before calling it a night. Accommodation at Smith Hotel S$35 (split). We chose it because it is 5 minutes from the airport and we have an early flight the next day.
DAILY TOTAL: S$99.76
Summary
Country: Malaysia and Thailand
Flight/ Ferry — S$139.05
Accommodation — S$228.64
Food — S$119.41
Activities — S$139.11
Transport — S$21.21
Others (Laundry) — S$1.80
WEEKLY TOTAL SPEND: S$649.22
