Since the basic wage in Thailand is (slowly being raised to) $10/day, Thai transportation costs must be kept to a minimum. You are able to fly anywhere in Thailand for $60 which implies that during hot spells you are able to hop on a plane and, in 2 hours, be at the beach, where it expenses as little as $20/night to rent a beach shack. Such a move would bust the price range of retirees in most other places on earth. If you would like to save your travel dollars for fresh seafood platters and cold beer, why not take the bus and see Thailand along the way, in air-conditioned luxury? Bus fare from Chiang Mai, inside the north central highlands, towards the beach costs even much less. However, it really is in the location of international travel that Thailand comes into its personal. As a result of its central location in Southeast Asia, bus from jb to kl to countries like China, Japan, and Indonesia "think Bali" is handy, quick, and inexpensive. A flight from Bangkok to downtown Tokyo's Haneda Airport requires 5-6 hours and fees $570, for example. And that is on major airlines to a significant city.

Feel like jetting off to more adventurous destination? As I write this (and frequently throughout the year) spending budget airlines like AirAsia are having a sale. They'll whisk you off to Brunei, Singapore, Cambodia, Laos, or Myanmar for $96. And airfares to the great cultural destinations like New Delhi's Taj Mahal, or Beijing's Forbidden City regularly go for pennies on the dollar when airlines need to fill flights. Of course, you have to be flexible and ready to pounce on those opportunities the moment they arise. But, then, you're retired, aren't you? You set your own priorities and your own schedule every day. You're in precisely the right place in the right time to take advantage of opportunities like that. So much for luxury travel. More fun, and less money, is international trains. Taking the train is the safe, comfortable, low-cost way to travel between Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Penang & Bangkok. Unlike flying, you can relax on a train as it snakes along on a 19th. century colonial single-track railway, clickety-clacking past palm plantations and small country stations. The 'International Express' leaves Bangkok daily, en route to Butterworth (Singapore), expenses around $55, and takes less than 24 hours with a comfy sleeper & a restaurant car for dinner & breakfast. Shades of The Orient Express! The 1,200 mile Singapore to Bangkok trip takes just 48 hours and allows for an afternoon in Kuala Lumpur (locals call it "KL") and a morning in Penang. Or hop off for longer spells in Kuala Lumpur or Penang; it won't cost you another penny. Coming back, for variety, and for a few dollars take a romantic ferry via Penang Island, the food capital of Malaysia, back to one of Thailand's southern beaches.