Traveling is a good way to escape from your daily hustles. It broadens your horizon as you explore new places and meet new people. It is therapeutic. A vacation rejuvenates yourself and lets you recuperate from stress. It empties your mind from all those anxious thoughts and fills it with great adventures and new experiences. It allows you to discover the world, and more importantly, it helps you learn more about yourself too.
Traveling is fun. Well, that is until you have enough funds to support your vagabond dreams.
Everybody dreams of going to certain places. It could be that talk of the town luxurious resort or somewhere as far as your mind lets you. This could be visiting the Eifel Tower in Paris or going to Disneyland in California. We all have bucket lists of places to see and things to do. Heck, one might even obsess filling the world map with “I’ve-been-here flags” too.
But a little reality check would tell you to postpone ticking off those boxes on your wanderer’s list. Your strict boss. Your busy schedule. Your personal responsibilities. But the major deterring factor is – as you guessed it – your bank account: your financial resources to travel wherever you want.
Without a thick pocket, you might be left with only a handful of places out of the hundreds on your bucket list. It is limiting. Imagine the cost of traveling. Airfares can be quite expensive, not to mention other costs like transportation, accommodation, food allowances, and ticket prices to wherever hotspots you intend on visiting.
Have you experienced calculating your travel expenses and ended up sweeping your vacation goals under the carpet? Frankly, I did. A lot of times.
Like you, I have tons of vagabond dreams and a bucket list I am eager to accomplish. However, with my finite resources, I put a lot of my dreamed vacation spots on hold. Of course, the last thing we’d want to happen is to come home from a vacation, buried in debt. So I saved money, and years later, I began my first few expeditions.
My travel experiences concluded with one big realization: I can travel the world on a budget!
You don’t really need a fat paycheck to tour places. Just be wise about your spendings. So, let me share with you some tips on how you can travel on a limited budget:
1: Have a travel buddy
While it’s very rewarding to travel independently, there are some advantages to traveling with a buddy.
For the most part, it is downright cost-effective. You can split your accommodation cost at a fraction of the number of people you’re traveling with. Tours are usually cheaper when booked by groups too.
Travel buddies are also good reinforcements. You are each other’s comfort zones when touring new places. Also, let’s not forget how they can be handy during some picture-perfect opportunities. You can take wonderful pictures of each other and share precious moments with!
2: Stay in hostels
Accommodation rates are what usually eat up your budget. Forget about staying in luxurious hotels as you’ll be spending most of your time outside your room anyway.
There are many budget-friendly places you can stay, wherever you are. Backpacker inns and hostels are some of my favorite options. Besides enjoying a comfortable room at prices you can’t resist, these places let you socialize with other travelers. You might end up meeting someone you can travel with!
Websites like Airbnb and Agoda can show you great accommodation packages at cheaper rates. You might also consider getting a Klook promo code to get great deals.
3: Book cheap airfares
You can get cheap airfares by booking in advance and getting ticket sales. Say, if you have plans going somewhere soon, book your ticket at least 3-4 months in advance. It is cheaper compared to booking your flight tickets at the last minute.
All airlines have exciting promo deals and discounts every year. Be warned though, promo fares sell like pancakes! For you not to miss out on these big sales, subscribe to the airline’s emailing system. They’ll send you news and updates straight into your inbox! It is also ideal if you’ll follow their social media accounts.
The internet is filled with a budget air discount code. It’s best to start exploring them.
4: Limit your meal allowance
A gastronomic adventure is important when traveling to new places. It’s how you can taste a bit of their culture. But here’s a word of advice: Don’t splurge nor binge-eat!
It is good to taste one of their famous dishes at a time, but you don’t necessarily have to feast on them! Some renowned local dishes are cheap, while others can be quite expensive. Take advantage of those free breakfasts in your stay-in location (if there’s any). And if you can cook, much better.
Some pennywise travelers would even fill their tummies with noodles and other comfort foods from the convenience store, so they’ll less likely binge on expensive menus later on.
5: Visit free landmarks of the city
Museums, churches, and other historic landmarks can be often enjoyed for free. Make sure to visit these places and learn a lot from the town’s history.
There are tons of free walking tours. These are usually done by students and locals. Try to ask around or look more about this online. You can save tons of dimes just by joining free walking tours with other tourists. Don’t forget to tip your volunteer host though.
6: Organize your trip
An organized trip helps you stay within budget! You must plan your daily itinerary, and make the most of every location you’re visiting. If you’ll be visiting a particular town, explore everything on the spot before moving to another place. This saves you transportation costs. It also maximizes the time you spent traveling. More so, your trip becomes smoother and hassle-free.
Conclusion
Traveling is for everyone, no matter how much money you have in your bank account. Learn to spend your money and time wisely, and you can conquer the world. What other money-savvy travel tips can you recommend? Let us know in the comments.
