How Much Does a Scouting Trip Abroad Cost? Our Real 30-Day Family Budget
Wondering what a scouting trip really costs? 💰 We break down every expense from our month-long family stay in Lisbon, from housing and transit to food, healthcare, and even surprises. Use our real-world budget to plan your own move abroad with Scoutly Plans.
Introduction
This was our real-world scouting trip budget, and it’s the kind of experience we encourage families to plan for. You need to create a budget, but it’s just as important to leave space for the unexpected.
We didn’t plan on getting Covid and losing 10 days of our trip to quarantine. We also hadn’t originally budgeted for a full week of road-tripping to explore cities outside of Lisbon, but once we were there, we realized it’s what we needed to make the most of our time.
In our normal life back in the U.S., we rarely eat out maybe 2 to 4 times a month because the cost of dining out has gotten so high. In Portugal, we decided to eat out nearly every day during our scouting trip. That gave us a clear, lived-in sense of what daily life and budgeting might actually feel like if we made the move.
Cost Breakdown: What We Really Spent on a Month‑Long Scouting Trip
If you’re asking, “how much does a scouting trip cost?”, here’s our real-world breakdown based on a 30-day family trip to Lisbon, including meals, transit, lodging, and surprises. Costs in both USD and Euros.
Accommodation – Graça Airbnb
- USD 1,300 (~€1,200)
Monthly stay in Lisbon’s Graça neighborhood.
Public Transit – Navegante Passes
- €125 (~$135)
Monthly transit cards allowing unlimited access to metro/tram/bus/trains for two adults and one child over 4.
Food: Groceries, Uber Eats & Dining Out
Using Numbeo as a guide (grocery costs €300–400/month), here’s our spending:
- Groceries: €360 (~$390)
- Cafés & pastel de nata (~€4/day × 30): €120 (~$130)
- Uber Eats during 10-day quarantine (~€22/day): €220 (~$240)
- Moderate restaurants 2 weeks (~€30/day): €420 (~$455)
(We ordered two adult meals; toddlers shared from our plates.)
Total food cost: €1,120 (~$1,215)
Healthcare & Travel Insurance
- Private doctor home visit co-pay (€40/person): €80 (~$87)
Typical private visit fee in Lisbon is €40 per appointment . - Travel health insurance (family of 4 for a month): €245 (~$270)
(~5% of our trip expenses) () - COVID/OTC meds: €25 (~$27)
Baby Essentials
- Diapers, wipes, pull-ups: €90 (~$98)
Birthday Splurge
- Unicorn toys: €27 (~$30)
Attractions & Entertainment
- Oceanarium + Pena Palace: €113 (~$130)
- Carousel rides in Cascais (4 rides total): €24 (~$26)
Road Trip (6 Nights Outside Lisbon)
- Car rental (€20/day): €120 (~$130)
- Hotels (6 nights × €150): €900 (~$980)
- Dining out (~€400 total): €400 (~$435)
Road-trip subtotal: €1,420 (~$1,545)
Tech & Streaming
- Prepaid SIMs (10–20 GB each): €40 (~$44)
- Netflix subscription (one month): €6 (~$7)
Grand Total – 30 Days
Final Thoughts: Budget for the Expected and the Unexpected
Every scouting trip will look a little different, but the purpose remains the same: test-drive your future life and learn what really works for your family. That’s what we built Scoutly Plans to do so your trip can be guided, flexible, and full of discovery, even if things don’t go according to plan.
