We spent the entire month of June touring Ireland in our motorhome, other than the five days we were housesitting north of Dublin.
While the budget was ambitious, it actually would have been under that if not for four different unexpected large expenses!
The first, was my eye test. The second was not really unexpected, we just didn't know the timing. Ruth and her siblings got a whole bunch of old photos and Super 8 films digitized. It was an expensive undertaking, so fortunately they shared the cost between the three of them. Then, we received an invitation to a quinceañera... the 15th birthday party of our Mexican friend Nataly. Obviously we can't go, but we sent a gift. And then yesterday, the new tires for Max. Again, not really unexpected, but we didn't expect it to be this month!
So, we spent a total of $2,069 CAD ($1,563 USD). Still, a pretty decent month, all things considered! Here's how it all broke down...
So, we spent a total of $2,069 CAD ($1,563 USD). Still, a pretty decent month, all things considered! Here's how it all broke down...
The following prices are all in Canadian dollars...
Fuel: We spent $239 on fuel for Max.
Toll Roads and Ferries: $11.85 for the ring road around Dublin, and a couple of tunnels.
Propane LPG: We filled one of Max's two tanks for $30.44.
Groceries: While the locals are telling us that prices have risen a lot here, they're still pretty reasonable to us. Actually comparable to what our grocery expenses were in Spain or Morocco. We spent a total of $439 on groceries. Considering we only ate out once during the month, this is really good.
Meals Out: Our one meal out in June was at an Irish pub. Groceries in Ireland might be inexpensive, but restaurant meals are not. While it was good, we didn't feel we got very good value and likely won't eat out again in Ireland. We'll save our eating out for when we're in cheaper countries. We spent $89.83 on our one pub meal out.
Alcohol: Booze is also fairly expensive in Ireland. Almost the same as in Canada! We've used up our supply of cheap wine that we brought from Spain, so have been limiting ourselves to a couple of drinks on weekends. We spent $37.89 in this category in June.
Miscellaneous: Obviously, the typical items like laundry and cellular data. But we also spent $173 on my eyes, $306 on the digitizing of Ruth's family photos and films, and $84 on a gift for Nataly. We spent $634 in total.
Entertainment: A total of $24 for pub night out.
Overnight: Zero. We free camped the entire month, other than our five days housesitting which was of course also free.
Motorhome: $554 which includes $318 for the tires, and $235 for the monthly cost of insurance and registration.
So, $2,069 CAD ($1,563 USD) for the month of July.
Our planned budget for the month of July is $2,045 ($1,545 USD). Hopefully nothing unexpected comes along! We'll be taking the ferry to Wales mid month, and spending a holiday weekend with Ruth's cousin Helen and her husband Tony. Looking forward to that!
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And in Canada...
Considering all you purchased and paid for what a deal. I can't believe how expensive food prices are though. We would be hard pressed to spend $200 U.S.
ReplyDeleteWe think we did pretty good with our expenses, especially with the extras thrown in.
DeleteWe certainly miss the prices of food in Mexico, the markets are great for fresh produce but all things considered we think $439 Cad ($331.50 UDS) is pretty reasonable. The cost of food is definitely a lot higher in Canada than what we just paid for here.