There are two categories of costs: team and personal. I’ll have an open ledger so you can check my math. I consider myself a frugal traveler and don’t buy frivolous/luxury items. Basically, I’m not going to screw my fellow team members, but I’m also going to make sure we have all the required things needed.
Team Costs:
These are costs shared/split among all team members. The significant parts are:
- boat charter – this is by far the largest cost
- hiring local cutters
- water
- team gear which cannot be brought from the US – fuel, tarps?
- required gear which cannot be contributed by team members – snow pickets, caving ladder, …
- car rental – one or two cars for one or two days. These are “communal” cars for shuttling people – shopping, mayor’s office, boat dock, sub-group sight-seeing.
- random small stuff I can’t think of right off hand
I estimate this at $2200 – $3000 per person depending on the number of team members. The trip sponsors have guaranteed the max/cap is $3000/person – regardless of how much the trip ultimately costs.
Personal Costs:
These are costs you are solely responsible for. The significant parts are:
- flights to Saipan (SPN) – I estimate these at $2000 but you can find low-cost airlines through Asian gateway cities (Hong Kong, Seoul, …) for $1200.
- hotel rooms – the “team” hotel is the Himawari Hotel. It has double and triple rooms which we can share along with kitchenette facilities if desired.
- car/moped rental – if you want to go off on your own, you’ll need to rent you own transportation.
- food – both restaurant food ($15-$20/dinner in Saipan) and all your backpacking food on Agrihan.
- the obvious “personal expense” stuff you do
I estimate this at $2000 (flights) + $500 (stuff) = $2500.
Total Costs:
I’m personally budgeting $5500 ($3000 team costs + $2000 flights + $500 stuff) for this expedition. (Okay, it’s going to be more since I’ll be visiting Guam and possibly Palau and I like scuba diving).
Agrihan 2019 