7 Quick Tips on How to Travel the World on a Budget
If there is one question that I most regularly receive, it is, “how can you afford to travel so much?” People see my Instagram stories and YouTube videos and imagine that I must be some trust fund baby bouncing from country to country on a bottomless bank account. They seem to assume that the only way to afford regular travel these days is with a generous cash flow, but that could not be further from my reality. In fact, I don’t know if I’ve ever begun an international journey with more than a few thousand dollars in my bank account. Yet, even with a minimal budget, I have managed to spend months at a time out of the country before returning home. I’m here to share the tips and tricks I’ve learned along the way that allow me to travel as often as I do.
Never stay in a hotel
My number one piece of advice on this topic is to avoid hotels at all costs. Hotels are nothing more than a drain on your resources. In this day and age, with the internet at our fingertips, there are multiple apps and resources that provide alternatives to hotels, which will allow you to travel cheaper for longer.
As if I’m not being clear enough with this opinion, I made an entire blog post dedicated to “Why You Should Never Stay in a Hotel.” One point I mention is hostels being significantly cheaper than hotels and can still offer the same, if not more, benefits as a hotel. For example, imagine you are looking for a place to stay in Lima, Peru. Depending on what aspect is most important to you (I.e location, free breakfast, wifi, etc.), the cheapest hostel I found listed on Hostelworld is $3/night, with the average being about $10-12/night. Essentially, a full week at a hostel in Lima would range from $21-$84 on average. You would be hard-pressed to find a hotel rate of $21-$84 for a single night, let alone an entire week. Additionally, for a slightly higher cost, most hostels offer private rooms if that is what you are interested in.
Another tried-and-tested alternative to hotels is Couchsurfing. I have used Couchsurfing across multiple continents and have only ever had positive experiences. Couchsurfing connects travelers with hosts, who offer an available bed, couch, or floor space in exchange for some sort of service or experience. For example, when I am traveling, my profile says that I can offer my host a home cooked meal or wash dishes in exchange for staying with my host for free. Couchsurfing not only puts a roof over my head, but I also benefit from the unique experience of staying with a local. In my traveling experience, the times I’ve stayed with locals have been some of my most cherished memories.
My final favorite alternative is to travel with a tent. Not only because of the added senses of security and financial comfort that come with dependable access to a free shelter, but also because of the liberating freedom to move at one’s own pace without the time constraint of a hotel reservation. It is often easier than anticipated to find a space to set up a tent; but even if you’re struggling, there are dozens of apps that can help you locate open areas to camp.
Hitchhike for transportation
A recurring theme of this article is emphasizing the importance of seeking out seemingly insignificant cost-cutting opportunities that can eventually add up to large savings by the end, and avoiding Ubers and busses is no exception to that.
In my blog post titled “5 Reasons Why You Should Hitchhike When You Travel,” I explain that one of my greatest cost-saving tricks while traveling is hitchhiking. Not only do you benefit from free transportation, but you also gain local insider knowledge of the area, such as inexpensive grocery stores and free activities. You will be amazed at the amount of money you save and the great distances you are able to travel once you add hitchhiking to your repertoire. When you realize that bouncing from one European country to the next can be a free experience, the door of opportunity to travel cheaply swings wide open.
If you are under the impression that hitchhiking is impractical or inherently dangerous, I would recommend checking out my 2 blog posts on the subject: “11 Tips for Being an Effective Hitchhiker” and “How to Avoid Being Murdered While Hitchhiking.”
Grocery shop
I assume, like me, you have experienced periods of time marked by struggling to find motivation to go to the grocery store, leading to eating out for a week straight. At the end of that week, you check your bank statement and stare in awe at the atrocious amount you spent. The following week, you hit the grocery store and begin to recoup your funds. The financial struggle of regularly eating out vs. grocery shopping while traveling is no different.
Throughout my years of traveling, I have learned that what you eat can make or break the bank. Eating out at a niche little cafe or restaurant in a new city may be an experience worth spending money on, and is not something I suggest avoiding altogether. But, just like everything else in life, there needs to be balance. By limiting eating out to once a day and self-preparing the remainder of your meals and snacks, I can guarantee that you will cut your food budget in half. Additionally, embracing the opportunity to experience the area as a local would (shopping where they shop and eating the way they eat) allows you to further immerse yourself in the culture.
**Another added bonus of staying in a hostel over a hotel is the benefit of having a fully functional kitchen at your disposal. That space makes grocery shopping and preparing food far easier.
Carry a reusable container with you
Along the same vein of grocery shopping and preparing your own meals, saving extra food in small tupperware containers can go a long way in efforts to save money. Whether you prepared the food yourself or you have leftovers at a restaurant, having a place to store leftovers is crucial.
I can recount dozens of experiences in which 2-3 bites of food in a tupperware container prevented me from purchasing a snack or small meal while on the road. These savings of a few dollars may seem insignificant, but when you begin to adopt these travel tips as regular habits, they can begin to pay off. I have likely saved myself hundreds of dollars over the years by keeping my leftovers and saving any offered food for another time. Hostels often offer complimentary breakfasts, and taking an extra portion for later can protect your wallet later on.
Live like a local
If you’ve ever moved, you know that the places you end up missing most after leaving a city aren’t its expensive museums or fancy restaurants, but the small features unique to that area. You tend to miss the aesthetic of the coffee shop close to your house, the sounds and smells of the street you walked down on your way home from work, and the neighborhood vendors at the Sunday farmer’s market. Every city around the world has wonderful experiences to offer, whether it be a specialty bakery or an overgrown patch of wildflowers in the park, and it’s your privilege as a traveler to discover what makes each place special.
As I mentioned earlier with grocery shopping, altering the way you travel to more accurately match the experience of a local will further your immersion in the culture. You will not only have a more engaging traveling experience, but you will also save yourself hundreds of dollars. A good rule of thumb that I’ve developed: if you find yourself surrounded by other tourists, you’re probably in an expensive place. Walk a few blocks away and try again.
Track flights with multiple destinations in mind
In my experience, the flight is the most expensive part of any trip, so cutting down on that cost is a key piece of traveling cost-effectively. My best suggestion for this is to keep your outgoing date and location of interest flexible. I have a list of several countries I’m interested in traveling to, and a few favorite flight tracking apps that allow me to search for the cheapest flights possible. In my spare time, I search for flights to any of those listed locations, and once I find a flight within my budget, it is then (and only then) that I book a one way ticket.
Although I wish I could simply pick my top location and magically find a cheap outgoing flight, traveling on a budget doesn't necessarily allow the option. However, the good news is that finding cheap flights and traveling with the tips and tricks I’ve shared can allow you to travel more often--and in turn, eventually landing you in every place on your list.
Consider work and volunteer positions
As I’ve repeatedly echoed throughout this article, one of the most rewarding aspects of travel comes from immersing yourself into an area’s culture. What better way to do that than finding a paid or volunteer work position? International volunteer organizations like Workaway and WWOOF offer a wide variety of jobs, from agricultural farm assistance to in-home cleaning and nannying. You can specify the amount of time you’d like to work in any particular place and choose hosting families/organizations based on your needs (i.e a place to stay, grocery assistance, a shared vehicle, etc.). If you’re looking to travel long-term from city to city, a little volunteer work can go a long way in helping you afford your adventures.
In my opinion, what makes a journey memorable is the unplanned, unexpected, and sometimes even challenging moments that greet you on your path. When I look back at my time spent in a country, it is the authentic experiences that are the most memorable, the ones that connect me to that specific location of the world. And aren’t these very experiences the ones that draw travelers like you and me in? These experiences make us feel permanently connected to a location, rather than feeling temporary, like a tourist passing through.
I remember the conversations with drivers who I met while hitchhiking more vividly than the mundane bus rides. I reminisce about the evenings spent in my tent with the glow of a mountain sunset more often than the times I reached for the lamp switch on a hotel night stand. I look back fondly at the moments of wandering aimlessly down grocery store aisles, unable to read the labels and meticulously calculating the currency exchange. It’s the authentic experience that sticks with you as a traveler, and luckily these are the experiences that also make traveling on a budget possible.