Travelling the world is a staple on the bucket lists of many and while everyone should do it, not everyone will. Whether it’s simply because they ‘never got around to it’ or they didn’t have the money, too many are missing out on the wonders of the world we live in. For those putting off their trip for money reasons, we’re here to tell you that a low budget is no excuse for missing out! While you could opt for a short-term loan in the case of a financial emergency while abroad, travelling on a budget can be achieved through careful planning and flexibility. Here, we’re exploring just how to do that below.
Find Somewhere Free Or Low-Cost To Stay
The unfortunate truth of travelling the world is that accommodation is always going to be your highest cost – unless you can find somewhere free to crash. While most places have hostels on offer, staying in one every night of your trip can quickly add up, especially when you’re moving from place to place regularly. Luckily, the world is catering for the low-on-cash budgeter, with the likes of Couchsurfing.com offering travellers the opportunity to crash on someone’s couch or spare bed for free. You could also opt for investing in a one-person tent or camping hammock to be able to set it up absolutely anywhere. You’ll see more sunsets and sunrises than you ever would in a hotel!
Eat Like A Local
Tourist traps have become an unfortunate fact of worldwide travel, but you might be wondering what exactly a ‘tourist trap’ is. Well, true to its name, a tourist trap is essentially an area, usually around a landmark or tourist attraction, in which most of the food, souvenirs, drinks and frankly anything else you might want to buy will be priced much higher than in other areas.
If you really want to save money, avoid these locations completely, other than to see the landmark itself, and instead opt for eating like the locals do. While it might mean learning a bit of the language so you can order your food – really, all you need to know is how to say ‘can I have’ and how to pronounce the items on the menu – eating like a local will ultimately mean a much cheaper and probably much nicer meal. What’s more, in many countries across Europe in particular, English is a widely spoken language and even some of the smallest local restaurants and cafes could have an English speaker working there.
Try Your Hand At Haggling
When it comes to negotiating prices and haggling with the locals, a lot of tourists will shy away from the action and just pay the full price they’re being asked for. Remember those tourist traps we mentioned before? Well, in these cases, you can usually try and negotiate the price down. Vendors put the prices up intentionally so that they can be haggled down in some cases without them losing out on any profit. Keep it light and friendly and you might even have fun while you’re doing it!
Work Your Way Around The World
You might be thinking “Why would I want to work when I’m travelling for holiday?” but working your way from country to country could prove much more rewarding than simply sunbathing on every beach you pass. Not only will you be earning the money to enjoy the days off you’ll have, but a lot of underdeveloped countries are always looking for part-time help for teaching, farming, construction and countless other random jobs. A lot of hostels will even offer you free accommodation if you work for them for a few hours a day, and then you can spend the rest of the time exploring your destination. Alternatively, you could start up an online career before you go. Freelancing or travel blogging could be a great way to bring in a little extra cash while using your trip as inspiration.
Visit The Tourist Centre
Tourism centres are goldmines that are often easily overlooked. Filled with information, free maps, samples and sometimes even free souvenirs, a quick trip to the local tourist centre could leave you stocked up for your entire stay. Tourism centres will have plenty of information about the cheapest ways to travel, free things to do while you’re there and will often have tourist cards that get you discounted entry to a wealth of different locations, and in some countries, you may even get free public transport like with Berlin’s Welcome Card for example.
Travelling doesn’t have to be a costly affair. Working while you travel and keeping your expenditure low will help you ensure that you’re not spending any more than you can afford or are at least making up for the money that’s being spent along the way so you can relax and stop worrying about money on your way around the world.
