A man has ditched the UK to live in Thailand after vowing “never to return” as he starts a new life. Riyan Ruparelia, 22, bought a one-way ticket and flew to Bangkok, Thailand, in January 2023 with plans to travel the country indefinitely.
Prior to his big move, Riyan was working 30 hours a week as a receptionist at Powerleague – earning £11-an-hour.
Still living with his parents in Brent, London, Riyan says he knew he wouldn’t be able to afford to rent on his own in the UK – so he started looking elsewhere.
After visiting the popular Asian country prior to his move, Riyan fell in love with Thailand and booked a one-way plane ticket from Heathrow costing him £500.
Riyan has been in Thailand for a month and vows never to return to Britain, with plans to also move his family to Thailand in the future. He said he also feels safe walking alone at night in Thailand – something he didn’t feel comfortable doing in London.
Riyan, a content creator, said: “I don’t plan to live in the UK ever again. I will come back and see my family but I don’t feel like the UK is the sort of place I can see myself living now. As a country, it is not heading in the right direction.”
He added: “On my wage, I was just not able to move out of my family home. I know for a fact I would not have been able to afford rent. With rent prices through the roof and unaffordable housing, how are people affording to live in the UK?
“Here in Thailand, the cost-of-living is a tenth of the price compared to the UK.”
Riyan said his parents were “supportive” of the move and he hopes they will move to Thailand once they retire. “If you know London, there is so much knife crime and robbery,” he said. “You don’t feel safe walking the streets and it is not getting any better.
“Here in Thailand, people will leave their keys and bags on their bikes.”
After being in Thailand for two months, Riyan is planning to travel around the country before deciding where to settle down. “It is a huge country, you have the megacities, the mountains and the amazing beaches,” he said.
“At the minute I am travelling around to work out where I want to settle down. I am doing a big group tour in April so I will settle down somewhere after that.”
