Reading Time: 4 minutes 9 Tips For Globetrotting On A Budget
This is a collaborative post by Ellie Jo with budget travel tips.
Seeing the world is something many people want to do, but think they don’t have the means to do it. There’s a common misconception that wealthy people are the only ones that get to travel multiple times a year.
With the hacks below, you can begin fulfilling your lifelong aspiration to travel more frequently. Here are nine tips to help you do it.
Budget Travel Tips
Vacation Savings Account
Create a savings account devoted to your travels. Preferably one you can’t dip into whenever you feel like it.
Identify where you want to go, whether it’s on one the Best Nepal Tours, or marveling at the Eiffel tower in Paris. And then work out how much you can afford to put aside each paycheck to meet your travel goals.
Following this, create a standing order to gradually build up your holiday sum. This shall prevent the need to take out holiday finance, which often accrues costly interest.
Take Time On Your Travels
One of the best ways to cut down on travel expenses is to travel at a slower pace. For example, flights that stop off at a destination or two are sometimes much cheaper than a direct flight.
However, try not to limit yourself to flying. From trains to coaches and ferries to your own car, there are plenty of ways to travel to help you save money. Just work out which transport is the most cost-effective and book it.
Delete Browser Cookies
If you choose to shop for accommodation and travel online, search incognito. In doing so, you’ll avoid cookies from holiday websites that track your travel preferences on their site.
When you revisit the site, it can often cause the prices to surge, as the business is aware of your growing interest. To prevent the costs from rising, clear your cookies and browse in private.
Swap Homes
An increasingly popular form of accommodation, particularly for families and couples who prefer a homely and functional environment, is house swapping. House swapping for holidays is much cheaper than staying in conventional accommodation such as hotels and holiday resorts.
Here are a few examples of sites you can begin your search for your perfect home swap;
- Love home swap
- Homebase-hols
- Exchangeholidayhomes
Take Less Luggage
The cost of adding an excessive amount of luggage to your flights might feel compulsory at the time. But when you go away for a week or two, you tend to not use the 50kg of stuff you’ve taken.
So why not save money and opt to pack lighter on your next trip? Choose comfortable, practical options, and think of items you can wear a few times. Less luggage means less stress for you having to monitor more stuff, and, of course, no additional fees added to your flights.
Source Free Attractions
Prepping before you hit your destination will help you to avoid ploys and tickets for destinations that you may have been able to enter for free. For example, you can view the statue of liberty in New York, on the Staten Island ferry, for free. There are boat trips you can take too that cost money.
But if you’re wanting to save money, the free option is always worth considering first. Scour your destination online, search for free events in the area, ticket giveaways and coupons and discounts before you go, and save a fortune on sightseeing and attractions.
Use Local Eateries
Commercial restaurants often have a high price tag to follow, so save yourself picking up eye-watering bills on your next holiday, and opt for some healthy local food instead, from cafes, family restaurants or food trucks. It’s a lot cheaper, and arguably a better reflection of your destinations cultural cuisine.
Budget Your Money
Planning to go away without a budget, is a one-way track to impulse buying and overspending, that will devour your holiday savings.
Budgeting your money will prevent astronomical spending on accommodation, transport, and attraction, which uses up all of your globetrotting savings. And prevents you from traveling across the world to your next desired location anytime soon.
Get Around On Foot
Unless you’ve chosen an extremely secluded area, with deserted surroundings, if you’re going somewhere, be it the beach, an attraction, or monument, why not walk?
It’s free, good for your health, and will mean you can take in the scenery and sights along the way to.
With the tips above, you can satisfy your need to travel and see the world much more often. You just need to prepare in advance, consistently make thrifty choices, and be mindful of your spending.
See also:
Your Dream Vacation on A Budget
The Perfect Vacation? How to Find Best Vacation Spots, Cheap
Rachel is an Austin blogger, educator, mom, wife, young breast cancer survivor writing about health, saving money, and living a happy life in Austin, Texas.
Rachel has written for HuffPost and Hometalk and has been featured on KXAN, Studio 512, Fox 7 Austin, and CBS Austin.