If the price tag isn't an issue, you should go for managed k8s.

If you want to do it yourself, I can recommend Talos Linux & this guide[1] to get an understanding of which parts you will need to configure & why.

What are the tradeoffs?

Pros managed:

  - easy, you basically click a few buttons (or do some terraform configuration)
  - well tested

Cons managed:

  - costly
  - less flexibility (although thats rarely an issue if you don't have any special requirements)

Pros self managed:

  - costs less (you just need some VMs)
  - you have full control
  - more fun & you learn something

Cons self managed:

  - takes more time (provision VMs, install basic stuff via helm etc)
  - takes more experience (i wouldn't recommend doing this if you have no experience with it before, e.g. with a mirror instance)

Overall, I would recommend going with managed k8s, if your goal is to just get up and running. If you have some extra time, experience and are willing to learn, go with self managed.

[^1]: https://datavirke.dk/posts/bare-metal-kubernetes-part-1-talo...