One morning in their two-bedroom apartment in Bangkok, Donetta Barber noticed her daughter, Maleah, gazing out the window.
As Maleah watched the cars go by on a busy street below, the 9-year-old turned to Barber and said, “Mommy, thank you for moving us to Thailand. I’m just so grateful for this experience.”
For the 39-year-old single mom, it was the sign she’d made the right choice.
Just a year ago, their lives looked completely different in Fresno, California, where Barber was running her aesthetic and body sculpting business.
Two to three trips a year gave them breaks between hectic school drop-offs and pickups and the long hours she spent working.
But it wasn’t until the pandemic, when they spent several weeks in Costa Rica and met Americans who had left the US behind, that Barber realized living abroad was something she could do.
“Moving abroad was something I always wanted to do, but I was scared,” Barber told Business Insider.
Moving to Bangkok
In January 2024, Barber was planning a birthday trip to Asia and noticed her social media feed was dominated by people moving to Thailand.
When she realized how much more affordable life outside the US could be, the idea of moving became more appealing.
“I can cut my costs in half, if not more, moving abroad. What’s keeping me here in the US? There’s nothing,” she said.
Barber briefly considered moving to Bali, Indonesia, but felt that living in a city would offer her daughter more structure.
Finding a Bangkok-based community group called “Adventures While Black” helped seal the deal when she realized they could find like-minded people, she said. The group, whose Instagram page has over 20,000 followers, hosts regular meetups around the city.
Barber said she involved her daughter very early on in the moving process.
“I was excited to learn Thai and go to night markets. And I was really excited about exploring the temples,” Maleah told Business Insider. “I was scared and kind of excited because I was going to a whole new country. And I didn’t want to leave my friends and family.”
In July, the mother-daughter duo packed up their bags and made the move, renting their California home out to a friend. Settling in has been easy.
Their spacious apartment is easily accessible by public transportation. It’s close to popular night markets and grocery stores, and their unit gets a lot of natural light. The monthly rent is 37,000 Thai baht, or about $1,150.
Barber says she tries to stick to a monthly budget of about 80,000 Thai baht, or $2,500, for the two of them. She tracks spending with a physical budget binder to avoid overspending in a city where she says everything feels affordable.
A slow life in Thailand
The duo is part of a wider trend of people relocating to Thailand.
The country has been positioning itself as a hub for long-term foreign residents, introducing the five-year Destination Thailand Visa in 2024. The visa is aimed at digital nomads, remote workers, and those who want to participate in cultural or wellness activities, like Muay Thai. Barber and her daughter are on this visa.
Several Americans who relocated to Thailand in recent years told Business Insider they were drawn to the country’s safety and relative affordability.
Barber, now a content creator who remotely oversees salon suites in the US, says she has finally been able to slow down and spend more time with her daughter, who is “thriving” in an international school.
Instead of rushing, Barber says she’s learned to go with the flow. After dropping her daughter off at school, she plans her day however she likes.
“It could be anywhere from going to a yoga class, going to get my nails done, self-care day. Or — and I do it a lot — I’ll hop on the train and just get off on a random spot and explore different areas,” Barber said.
Part of what makes those days enjoyable, she said, is how safe she feels moving through the city.
Even so, there were some cultural differences to get used to. There’s far less sense of personal space, especially on crowded trains, and they’ve had a few uncomfortable encounters with strangers touching their hair or trying to take photos without asking, Barber said.
“I love that Thai people are so nice and we get to do a lot more things that we didn’t in the US, like get massages all the time and eating good food,” Maleah said. “I also like that it’s so safe here, me and my mom can be out at night and not worry.”
Barber says she has found a circle of friends through social media groups and other parents. She also created a community group that regularly organizes meetups for kids like her to form friendships.
“I’m truly living what they call the soft girl era,” Barber said. “I feel like my mental clarity is better. I have more time to do stuff.”
Do you have a story to share about relocating to a new city? Contact this reporter at agoh@businessinsider.com.
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