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Cheapest Countries to Visit in 2027: 15 Countries Ranked by What a Day Really Costs

Most "cheapest countries" lists give you a vague budget band. This one ranks fifteen countries by what one day actually costs at an underrated place in each, with the bed, the food, local transport and entry fees counted, and the cheapest countries in Europe compared the same way.

Photo: Ekrem Canli, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Text added by Trip Under.

Cheap travel is not only about the country. The same country can cost far more in its famous places than in its quiet ones. So each country here is priced at an underrated place we cover in full, the kind of place this site is built around, rather than its busiest city.

How we worked it out. Each figure is one person, one day, mid-range, on the ground: a bed, three meals, local transport and entry fees, from the cost model on our place pages (sources are listed on each page). Flights to the country are not included, because they depend entirely on where you start. The ranking uses the cheapest place we price in each country, so it says "this is possible", not "this is the national average". Prices on this page show in your own currency.

All 15 cheapest countries at a glance

The 15 cheapest countries, ranked

Cheapest first. Each pick names the famous place it replaces, so you can see what you are trading the crowds for.

Photo: Shubham Gupta, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

1. India: Rameswaram & Madurai

₹1,300 a day, mid-range₹800 on a shoestringJan–Feb, Oct–Dec

Instead of Varanasi. One of the cheapest days on our whole site. A temple island joined to the mainland by a sea bridge, with the ghost town of Dhanushkodi at its tip. Hampi, Gokarna and Badami are close behind at a similar price.

A week on the ground, mid-range: about ₹9,100. Nearest big airport: IXM. Flights are extra.

Plan Rameswaram & MaduraiFull place page →

Photo: Ekrem Canli, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

2. Laos: Nong Khiaw

₹1,600 a day, mid-range₹1,100 on a shoestringOct–Dec

Instead of Luang Prabang. Karst towers over the Nam Ou river and a viewpoint hike above town. The slow boat from Luang Prabang is part of the trip.

A week on the ground, mid-range: about ₹11,200. Nearest big airport: LPQ. Flights are extra.

Plan Nong KhiawFull place page →

Photo: NKSTTSSHNVN, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

3. Vietnam: Ha Giang

₹1,750 a day, mid-range₹1,200 on a shoestringMar–Apr, Sep–Oct

Instead of Ha Long Bay. A three-day motorbike loop through limestone canyons on the Chinese border, sleeping in village homestays. Hire a local rider if you have never ridden in mountains.

A week on the ground, mid-range: about ₹12,300. Nearest big airport: HAN. Flights are extra.

Plan Ha GiangFull place page →

Photo: Michael Hermann, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

4. Egypt: Siwa Oasis

₹1,800 a day, mid-range₹1,200 on a shoestringMar, Oct–Nov

Instead of the Merzouga Sahara camps. A mud-brick fortress town between salt lakes in the Western Desert, ten hours by bus from Cairo. The Great Sand Sea starts at the edge of the palm groves.

A week on the ground, mid-range: about ₹12,600. Nearest big airport: CAI. Flights are extra.

Plan Siwa OasisFull place page →

Photo: Kondephy, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

5. Kyrgyzstan: Arslanbob

₹1,900 a day, mid-range₹1,300 on a shoestringJun–Aug

Instead of Issyk-Kul. The world's largest walnut forest and yurt camps at 3,000 m, booked through a village community tourism office. Summer only: the high camps close by October.

A week on the ground, mid-range: about ₹13,300. Nearest big airport: FRU. Flights are extra.

Plan ArslanbobFull place page →

Photo: Aleksey Chalabyan a.k.a. Xelgen, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

6. Armenia: Dilijan

₹1,950 a day, mid-range₹1,400 on a shoestringMay–Jun, Sep–Oct

Instead of Yerevan only. Forest monasteries in the north and cave villages in the south, with a long cable car to Tatev. Easy to add to a Georgia trip by bus.

A week on the ground, mid-range: about ₹13,700. Nearest big airport: EVN. Flights are extra.

Plan DilijanFull place page →

Photo: EnolaXolms, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

7. Uzbekistan: Nurata

₹2,050 a day, mid-range₹1,300 on a shoestringApr–May, Oct

Instead of Samarkand only. A desert lake, yurt camps under the Kyzylkum stars and a fortress said to be Alexander's. Pair it with Samarkand and Bukhara.

A week on the ground, mid-range: about ₹14,400. Nearest big airport: TAS. Flights are extra.

Plan NurataFull place page →

Photo: Image by <a href=" https://pixabay.com/users/peterw1950-631321/?utm_source=li, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

8. Georgia: Svaneti

₹2,100 a day, mid-range₹1,500 on a shoestringJun–Sep

Instead of Kazbegi. Stone defence towers under a 5,000 m wall, reached by minibus and shared 4WD. The road to Ushguli closes with the first heavy snow.

A week on the ground, mid-range: about ₹14,700. Nearest big airport: TBS. Flights are extra.

Plan SvanetiFull place page →

Photo: JYB Devot, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

9. Peru: Chachapoyas

₹2,200 a day, mid-range₹1,500 on a shoestringMay–Sep

Instead of Machu Picchu only. Kuelap, a cloud-forest fortress bigger in area than Machu Picchu, and Gocta, one of the world's tallest waterfalls, with a fraction of the visitors.

A week on the ground, mid-range: about ₹15,400. Nearest big airport: LIM. Flights are extra.

Plan ChachapoyasFull place page →

Photo: Liridon, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

10. Albania: Theth

₹2,350 a day, mid-range₹1,600 on a shoestringJun–Sep

Instead of Ksamil. Two stone villages either side of a mountain pass, reached by a ferry up a flooded canyon.

A week on the ground, mid-range: about ₹16,500. Nearest big airport: TIA. Flights are extra.

Plan ThethFull place page →

Photo: Hans A. Rosbach, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

11. Cambodia: Kampot & Kep

₹2,400 a day, mid-range₹1,350 on a shoestringJan–Feb, Dec

Instead of Sihanoukville & Koh Rong. A French-era river town under a misty mountain, pepper farms in the hills and a crab market on the coast at Kep.

A week on the ground, mid-range: about ₹16,800. Nearest big airport: KTI. Flights are extra.

Plan Kampot & KepFull place page →

Photo: Johnwxh30 at English Wikipedia, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

12. Malaysia: Taiping

₹2,400 a day, mid-range₹1,500 on a shoestringJun–Jul

Instead of Cameron Highlands. Rain trees bending over a lake below a cloud-forest hill, in Malaysia's old tin town.

A week on the ground, mid-range: about ₹16,800. Nearest big airport: PEN. Flights are extra.

Plan TaipingFull place page →

Photo: Marenbel, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

13. Türkiye: Kaçkar Mountains

₹2,550 a day, mid-range₹1,700 on a shoestringJun–Aug

Instead of Cappadocia. Green alpine pastures above the Black Sea and wooden villages on stilts. Our pick instead of Cappadocia for people who want Türkiye without the balloon crowds.

A week on the ground, mid-range: about ₹17,900. Nearest big airport: TZX. Flights are extra.

Plan Kaçkar MountainsFull place page →

Photo: Khunkay, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

14. Thailand: Nan

₹2,600 a day, mid-range₹1,700 on a shoestringJan, Nov–Dec

Instead of Pai. A quiet riverside town of Lanna temples and famous murals, with salt wells and a national park in the hills behind it.

A week on the ground, mid-range: about ₹18,200. Nearest big airport: DMK. Flights are extra.

Plan NanFull place page →

Photo: Adam Jones from Kelowna, BC, Canada, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

15. Nepal: Bandipur, Nepal

₹2,600 a day, mid-range₹1,300 on a shoestringFeb–Mar, Oct–Nov

Instead of Nagarkot. An 18th-century Newar trading street on a ridge above the highway, with the Annapurna range lined up behind the rooftops. A short climb off the Kathmandu–Pokhara highway.

A week on the ground, mid-range: about ₹18,200. Nearest big airport: KTM. Flights are extra.

Plan Bandipur, NepalFull place page →

The cheapest countries in Europe

Europe compared the same way, by one mid-range day at an underrated place. Armenia, Georgia and Türkiye straddle Europe and Asia; they are marked, because some lists count them and some do not. Without them, Albania is the cheapest country in Europe on our pages, and Poland and Bulgaria the cheapest of the EU.

Cheapest countries in Asia

South and Southeast Asia dominate the list. Outside India, the cheapest days we price in Asia are in Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia, all under ₹2,500 a day mid-range. Central Asia (Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan) is just as cheap but has a short season: go between late spring and early autumn.

How to keep any of these trips cheap

• Go to the quiet place, not the famous one. That is the whole idea of this list: rooms and meals cost less where the tour buses do not stop.
• Travel overland inside the country. Buses, minibuses and trains are a fraction of domestic flights, and they double as a night's accommodation when they run overnight.
• Eat where locals eat. Food is usually about a third of the daily cost on our pages; local canteens cut it hard.
• Check visa rules for your own passport. Visa costs and rules depend entirely on where you are from, so we do not list them here. Use the official government site of the country you are visiting.
• Watch the season. Several of these (Kyrgyzstan, Svaneti, Theth, Kaçkar) are summer-only in the mountains. The best months are on each card.

Frequently asked questions

Sources and how we priced this

• Daily costs, best months, gateways and what each place replaces: Trip Under place pages and our cost model; each place page lists its own dated sources.
• Currency: prices are stored in Indian rupees and shown in your currency at fixed ECB reference rates (16 October 2026).
• Search demand: Google Keyword Planner (all locations) and Google Trends (worldwide), checked 5 November 2026.

Keep reading

Costs come from Trip Under's place data and our cost model (see methodology). They are indicative ballparks for budget travel and move with season and demand. Check live bus, train and room prices before you book. Trip Under is reader-planned, not an agency, and takes no commission on any booking.