Millennial Discovered Bangkok Sluggish-Paced; so She Moved There on Her Personal

When Antoinette Yvonne arrived in Bangkok in 2023, it was presupposed to be only a two-week journey.

It was her second go to to Thailand’s capital metropolis, however this time, one thing clicked. These two weeks stretched into three months, and by the top of that prolonged keep, the full-time YouTuber and boutique journey company proprietor knew she’d discovered her new residence.

“The skyline actually is what bought me on Bangkok. I knew that I needed to stay within the metropolis, the place it is simply so lovely. And the price of residing right here, I imply, it did not damage. So I used to be like, ‘OK, let me do it,'” Yvonne, 37, informed Enterprise Insider.

She returned to the US for the summer time and bought able to make the large transfer. By November 2023, she was again in Bangkok — for good.

The attract of residing overseas

Yvonne is not any stranger to residing overseas.

Initially from Indiana, she moved to Spain in 2013 and lived there for about three years. A part of the rationale she made that transfer was as a result of she was burned out and looking out for an escape from her company funding banking job.

“I noticed the film ‘Eat, Pray, Love,’ and I used to be like, ‘OK, I need to be Julia Roberts and go overseas.’ Six months after watching that film, I used to be residing in Barcelona,” Yvonne mentioned.

That have of residing overseas gave her a style for journey. She turned a Delta Air Traces flight attendant for 3 years. When the pandemic hit, she left her job and spent two years exploring the US and Mexico whereas residing in a van she had transformed.

Her mother and father weren’t shocked when she informed them she was planning to maneuver overseas once more. “I all the time adopted by way of with loopy concepts,” she mentioned.

But it surely did shock her mother and father, who nonetheless stay in Indiana, when she informed them the place she was going.

“After I talked about Bangkok to them, they have been like, ‘What? Bangkok?’ Lots of people are shocked to listen to that,” she mentioned.

Bangkok has lengthy been a sizzling spot for expats. Information from the Bureau of Registration Administration of Thailand signifies that there have been 102,189 foreigners residing within the metropolis as of the top of 2024.

In comparison with many Western cities, Bangkok affords a comparatively low price of residing. With two well-connected worldwide airports, it is usually a hub for journey round Asia.

A number of People who moved to the Thai capital beforehand informed BI that they have been drawn to the town’s vibrant life-style, good meals choices, and relative affordability.

In July final yr, Thailand additionally launched the Vacation spot Thailand Visa, or DTV, in an effort to draw distant staff and digital nomads.

Constructing a life in Bangkok

Residence-hunting was a breeze since Yvonne already knew what she was in search of: Unobstructed views of the town skyline, a balcony, and a handy location.

“I needed to be close to a 7-11, inside a 5-minute strolling distance. I knew I needed to be close to a daily grocery retailer, and so far as the unit itself, I wanted a washer and dryer,” she mentioned.

Because of an actual property agent she linked with by way of a Fb group, Yvonne discovered her one-bedroom residence inside per week of her transfer. Lease is 22,000 Thai baht, or about $660, every month.

She finds it onerous to select a favourite spot in her residence.

“I like being in my bed room as a result of it has floor-to-ceiling home windows, and the view is completely superb,” Yvonne mentioned. “However I additionally love my balcony too.”

Her constructing has a fitness center, a pool, and a big coworking house with personal name cubicles.

Yvonne did not know anybody in Bangkok earlier than she moved.

When she first arrived, she began utilizing Bumble BFF — the friendship model of Bumble — in addition to an expat Fb group to attach with new individuals.

“You go to completely different meetups, after which one good friend actually turns into two, and three, and 4. You simply construct from there,” she mentioned.

Yvonne has been engaged on studying Thai, because the language barrier has been the largest problem of residing in Bangkok to date.

“After I communicate their language, they simply gentle up, and so they’re extra welcoming. I simply really feel such as you join extra, and I believe that is vital,” she mentioned.

Discovering peace within the Thai capital metropolis

Yvonne says she feels extra relaxed in comparison with when she was residing within the US.

“In 2019, once I was nonetheless a flight attendant, I used to be on the go a lot. It was all the time fast-paced. I used to be go, go, go, go, go. Even once I was off work, I used to be nonetheless attempting to maintain up with the Joneses,” Yvonne mentioned. “Whereas now, though Bangkok is a metropolis — and a busy metropolis at that — I discover peace within the metropolis. It is so bizarre.”

A part of it, she says, is as a result of flexibility of her job. Being an entrepreneur offers her the liberty to rearrange her schedule.

Aside from filming and importing movies onto her channel weekly, Yvonne additionally travels typically, each for leisure and as a part of the group journeys that she hosts beneath her journey company.

Though issues in Bangkok are comparatively reasonably priced in comparison with the US, it might be a generalization to imagine that all the things is affordable, she mentioned.

“Whereas it may be very cost-effective, and for us People, my greenback stretches additional, it would not essentially imply that it’s cheaper,” she mentioned. “Particularly should you’re going out and spending a lot cash on dinners and issues like that, it could add up.”

That ties into the largest piece of recommendation she has for anybody who needs to maneuver to Thailand.

“Lots of people come and assume that $2,000 will get them by for a number of months at a time. No, I believe that doing the correct analysis on condos and what it actually prices to stay right here is the best way to go,” she mentioned.

Yvonne additionally encourages individuals who transfer right here to get to know the locals.

“I believe having native associates is an effective way to get aware of a rustic. They might help you when your expat associates are usually not in a position to,” she mentioned.

Relating to her long-term plans, it is onerous to maintain her wanderlust at bay.

“Individuals ask me, ‘How lengthy will you be in Bangkok?’ I do not know. I am right here till I am not,” Yvonne mentioned. “So it’s simply till I really feel like I am known as someplace else, however for now, it is Bangkok.”

Do you could have a narrative to share about relocating to a brand new metropolis? Contact this reporter at agoh@businessinsider.com.