STANDING up from her sun lounger and getting ready to walk down the beach to pick her children up from school, Jasmine Scarr couldn’t believe how much her life had changed in a few months.
The mum-of-three, 34, left her life in Darlington, County Durham to move to a tropical paradise where she pays just £670-a-month, including bills, to live in a luxury four-bed villa with a private pool.
The move to the tropical island of Koh Chang in Thailand has transformed the lives of HR worker Jasmine and her husband Ross, 38, who works in the mining industry, as well as their children Jayden, seven, Jenson, six, and Mali, two.
They now enjoy £3 meals, £2 beers and blow-dries costing as little as a fiver.
Their plush new home also boasts a play area for the kids and access to a paradise beach.
It’s all in stark contrast to their former life, where the mortgage on their basic three-bed house cost three times as much.
“In England, I was constantly busy and always buying myself unnecessary things, but it doesn’t work like that in Thailand,” she says.
An estimated 40,000 to 55,000 Brits now live in Thailand long-term, with migration up 255 per cent since 2018, thanks to increased remote work flexibility and recent visa expansions.
Jasmine first dreamed of moving to the Southeast Asian country after travelling there as a teen.
And despite buying what she thought would be her and Ross’s “forever home” in November 2023, she had the nagging sensation she was missing out on a better life.
“I always said from that first trip at 18 that I’d love to live there,” she says.
“When I visited with my husband, he fell in love with the country as well, so we got married there in 2022.
“We talked about moving two years ago, but I fell pregnant, and we ended up buying a house, which I thought would be ours forever.”
In May last year, Jasmine and her whole family jetted to Thailand on holiday and, during a tranquil day at the beach, her life plan suddenly changed.
“My husband and I took our children on holiday to the resort where we married, and as we sat on the beach together, it was at that moment we said we had to go for it – and if it didn’t work out, we knew we could always come back to England.”
Their family members voiced concern wondering if they’d get bored or it was safe, while their parents were worried about being away from their grandkids.
“It was definitely one of the hardest parts of the move for everyone” Jasmine says.
But her mind was set, she sold her house for £356,000, sold their belongings through eBay and five car boot sales and got a Digital Nomad Visa, which cost £1,500 for the whole family.
“We haven’t put anything into storage; we really did sell everything”.
“The only items we’ve kept are sentimental, like photos, which we’ve put in our parents’ attics for safekeeping.”
“It is a big move, and it can be hard, but it can also be as simple as you want.”
When the family set off to their new home of Koh Chang in May this year, they took just five suitcases.
“We were prepared to come out here and have a simple life, and even five suitcases was too much,” she says.
“We’ve actually got rid of one since moving.”
“The only possible deal-breaker we had was not being able to bring our two nine-year-old Labradors, Harley and Hugo, with us.
“They’re part of our family, so we wouldn’t have moved without them, but we actually found the process straightforward.
“We just needed to ensure that their vaccinations were up to date and that they had the correct paperwork.
“We flew direct from London to Bangkok via Thai Airways to make the journey as stress-free as possible for them.
“I booked an evening flight, hoping that they’d sleep for most of it.
And despite ditching almost everything she owned, Jasmine says she hasn’t had to sacrifice the things she really loves.
Koh Chang’s tropical beaches, hiking trails and stunning waterfalls more than make up for anything material she may have left behind.
“Our house, which is located within a resort, is right on the beach,” she says.
“We’ve got a swimming pool, and the kids have a play area and park.
Her new pad isn’t the only thing making Thailand feel like the perfect new home.
The local community does, too, and she’s already picked up conversational Thai.
“Koh Chang is a large island with a gorgeous sense of community made up of lots of local Thai people, who have welcomed my family with open arms,” she says.
“My sons have been accepted into a Thai village school, which they attend part-time while our little girl is at a nearby nursery.
“It gives them the opportunity to spend time with local children while also improving their Thai, since everything is taught in the language.
“In such a short time, my sons have already learned the basics, such as hello, thank you, and how are you; they can count to 100, order food at restaurants, and are learning the Thai alphabet.
“It’s amazing to see how quickly they’re picking it up.
“My boys also play football for the island team, and a lot of their friends go to the school, so it’s a great way for them to develop social circles.”
Jasmine also homeschools her children.
She doesn’t strictly follow a UK syllabus, but largely leans on Usborne books, designed to support the National Curriculum.
Thanks to the six-hour time difference, she clocks in remotely to her job afterwards.
She says: “Our employers were really supportive of the move, which made the process much easier.
“It gives us the flexibility to create a lifestyle that works for our family.
“We can spend more time together, experience a different culture and give the children the opportunity to learn in different ways, while continuing with our work.”
“The kids go to school in the mornings from Monday to Thursday, and we pick them up at 12.
“Then we’ve got the rest of the day together to learn.”
Even rainy days don’t hamper the kids’ enjoyment – and there are no pricey trips to soft play.
“We’re in the rainy season at the moment, so I recently took the children to a crafts and painting event at a resort, which was £1 per child,” she says.
“I could never do that in England.
“If it was raining, they’d either be stuck in the house watching television, or we would’ve gone to soft play, costing me £25 or more.”
With rich wildlife surrounding their home, Jasmine’s children spend less time on screens, too.
Though they occasionally still go on their iPad and Nintendo Switch, it’s only for 20 minutes to unwind in the evening.
Time spent in the kitchen is also minimal.
Cheap food prices allow the family to eat out every day for under £2.50 per person.
She says: “The only time we eat at home is at breakfast.
“We tend to keep it simple: fresh fruit, toast and eggs, or the kids will have cereal.
“For lunch and dinner, we share around seven dishes in the middle of the table, and the bill comes to around £12 for all of us.
“We pretty much exclusively eat at local restaurants, so we mainly enjoy Thai cuisine.”
The UK’s ever-increasing pint prices are also a distant memory for Jasmine.
In Thailand, a large beer costs just £2, while on the weekends, she’ll enjoy a cocktail for around £3.
While she admits to having lost interest in shopping, Jasmine still indulges in beauty treatments.
“I don’t put a single bit of makeup on here, because no one bats an eyelid at what you look like,” she says.
“I still go and get my nails done, but it costs £14 for a mani-pedi together, and a cut and blow-dry at the hairdresser is a fiver.
“Now and then my husband and I will enjoy a 60-minute massage for £6.”
With a whole new selection of destinations on her doorstep, Jasmine is also looking to explore more of the world with her family, including a bucket list trip to Disneyland Tokyo for Christmas.
She says: “Compared to the UK, flights to Tokyo aren’t much at all.
“Even when I look at flights to Australia, you can pay similar prices to what you’d pay travelling from England to Spain.”
After seeing Jasmine’s newfound quality of life, family and friends have planned regular visits.
While missing them between trips can be challenging, weekly FaceTime calls keep her in the loop with her loved ones in the UK.
Jasmine hopes her move is permanent, and when her five-year visa expires, she plans to apply for a renewal and will consider exploring new business opportunities in Thailand with her husband while running her Instagram and TikTok travel handle, @pawsandpassports.family.
“The quality of life we have in Thailand is amazing,” she says.
“We spend so much more time living outdoors, surrounded by nature, with monkeys and elephants on our doorstep and incredible ocean life around us.
“It’s a completely different way of life to the one we had in England.
“For our family, the freedom, experiences and quality time we have together here make Thailand feel like home.
“And if we miss the UK, we can always go back.”