Many people love to travel; it’s only when we travel that we learn about other places – their cultures, history, cuisine, lifestyle and natural environment. However, travel is still a distant dream for many because of the costs that are usually associated with travel. In this article we tell you how to enjoy traveling while saving your precious money.
1. Research Cheap Travel Options
Plan your travel well in advance by researching for cheap air, rail, bus, ship and ferry rates. Always opt for budget airlines that can take you to your destination at a fraction of the price you’ll pay to a commercial airline.
2. Research Cheap Stay Options
If you know your destinations well in advance, research cheap local stay options such as Youth Hostels and Backpacker Hostels. Remember the idea is to find a place to sleep, not to enjoy first class amenities. Use sites such as Laterooms.com and Lastminute.com to look for cheap overnight stay options. See if you can stay with friends or contacts at your destination, if that works out mutually. If you’re traveling to a place with forests and parks, look for free campsites. With minimum equipment, you can stay at these campsites and use their facilities to save money. If you are traveling by car, park at overnight rest stops and sleep in your car. If you’re into road travel, you might invest in a camper to avoid the accommodation issue entirely.
3. Visit Only Free Attractions
Every travel destination has plenty to see and do without having to shell out entry fees and tickets. Avoid these paid tourist attractions and walk around your travel spots to get a feel of the place’s culture and lifestyle. Use shuttle buses or local rail transports to save money. Find out what all you can do in the area without blowing money; get free tourist pamphlets from railway and bus stations and use them to figure out cheap activities. Use sites such as Lafreebeee.com and Freecycle.org to find out free attractions in the US. You can visit museums on free days, and sign up for free movie screenings also.
4. Save Money On Food
Food is probably the most expensive indulgence for the traveler. It’s hard to know if you are being overcharged for food at a strange restaurant. Even a simple meal might become expensive. To avoid this, pack food to go from cheap outlets, always keep noodle packs, and soup packs that you can heat up anywhere and eat. If you plan on staying for more than a few days at a spot, buy fruit, bread, cheese and vegetables at a local market. You can fix basic meals at your hotel or hostel and avoid expensive meals. Also consider investing in a camp stove to fix cheap meals at free campsites. Check out for free food coupons on Fatwallet.com and Freestufftimes.com.
5. Avoid Buying Souvenirs
Shopping is another way to spend money you don’t have. Take plenty of digital pictures of your travel spots and keep them as souvenirs. If you must shop for souvenirs, assign a specific budget for it and don’t spend more than the budget.
6. Book Only Overnight Stays
Before you arrive at your destination, you won’t know what kind of cheap stay options might be available. It’s best to book for just one overnight stay through the internet before you travel, and once you reach your destination, shop for a better, cheaper deal.
7. Pack Enough Necessities
People end up spending money buying necessities at a strange place, when they could have packed those things before traveling. Buying necessities at a tourist spot usually works out very expensive. For example, basic necessities such as toothpaste, brush, hairbrush and shampoo tend to cost a lot in a place that has to import most of this stuff. Pack whatever you need for your entire trip, including medications and spend money only for emergency supplies.
8. Carry Baby Wipes And Deodorants
While traveling cheap, you may not always have access to free showers or baths. Instead of paying to use these facilities, it’s always best to carry large size baby wipes and some deodorant bars, to stay fresh and clean. Baby wipes come in very handy on road trips where you’ll have to park in the middle of nowhere for the night.
9. Carry A Folding Bike
If you are backpacking, it’s a good idea to carry a folding bike as an alternative option to hitchhiking. You can travel short and long distances on your bikes with no expense at all, and fold it up and store in the back of the vehicles on which you hitchhike.
10. Carry First Aid Medications
Emergency medical care can be very expensive when you’re traveling in areas where you’re not covered by your health insurance. Or, you may not have health insurance at all. In any case, carry all basic first aid medications with you. Learn about first aid procedures so that you can take care of minor emergencies by yourself instead of paying a doctor. There are free medical clinics in many major cities; investigate these when you plan your trip.
Teena Celis works for Australian company Adrenalin offering more than 2500 unique gift ideas to their clients ranging from hot air ballooning to driving a real V8 race car.
