Hey, if you’re new here we’re Kate and Mike and we’re driving the famous Pan American Highway. A route across the Americas that will allow us to see a variety of landscapes, cultures and countries.
This dream was born in Mike’s bedroom staring at the world map and dreaming of driving an epic road trip somewhere in the world. The Pan American seemed to be the best route for us and somehow here we’re are!
To make this adventure a reality we saved up and quit our jobs. This meant we now have a pot of money that’s getting smaller and smaller and we’re on a strict budget! To keep us accountable and to show you how much it costs to do a crazy trip like this each month we publish our outgoings.
Although we have side projects such as this blog and the Pan Am Explorer App, they currently don’t cover our expense, but perhaps one day they will!
Enough rambling, here’s our first travel expense report for September. We arrived in Chile on the 15th so this is only half a month.
September 2025: Budget Email
It’s time for our Pan American Highway Budget round up!
This monthās travel costs? š $3,000,000ā¦
Donāt panic, thatās in Chilean peso! But yes, we are millionaires here!
This first month (September) has been a complete whirlwind and we already have lots of what we like to call ‘rocking chair stories’.
Arriving over the Andes felt like a pivotal moment in our lives, not just because the flight cost a fortune but because the internal feeling of something big was about to happen settled in.
Our Journey So Far:
| 1 Country | 0 kms | 0% PanAm | CL Location |
Click here to follow our journey on the PanAm Explorer App!
September Total: $783
Let’s break it down…
September (Chile, Santiago):
š Public Transport (We had to buy a BIP card and top it up to use the Metro and bus system, plus a few Ubers): $117
šļø Accommodation (We booked 2 weeks in a hostel): $430
š Food & Drink: $217
š§ ATM Fees (RIP OFF!): $13.74
š± SIM: $4
Car & Paperwork
š RUT (The RUT is cheap but we paid Suzi Santiago as well to help process the paperwork): $102
BIG UPDATE: Weāve finally bought our car! A 2007 Toyota 4Runner 4×4!
Next time, weāll share how the buying process in Chile really went, what it cost, and whether we actually managed to stick to our budget!
Thanks for following along! If you’re planning your own Pan Am adventure or just curious about budget travel in South America, drop a comment below, we’d love to hear from you. And don’t forget to check out our journey on the PanAm Explorer App to see where we are now!
Until next time, from somewhere along the Pan American Highway,
K & M x
P.S. Missed a month? View our archived cost breakdowns here! and sign up to our monthly emails to never miss an update.
