Travelling is more of a privilege than a luxury. There is no doubting that in order to have the chance to travel. You must be privileged in certain respects (having a first-world passport, for example), but this does not imply that you must be wealthy. Are you wondering how to travel for cheap? Whilst travelling the globe can seem incredibly expensive, it doesn’t always have to be. There are many alternatives to save a lot of money on the road.
How To Travel The World On A Budget
As you’ve read, there are several methods to travel for free overseas. You can travel a lot through couch surfing, woofing, hitchhiking, and leveraging your social network. We all have dreams of visiting Paris and seeing the Eiffel Tower. But in reality, these experiences are free. It only depends on how resourceful you are and how much you are ready to forego in order to get there.
How To Find Cheap Or Free Accommodation?
Stay In Hostels
You might not find it all that enticing to share a room with a bunch of unknown strangers, especially in light of the depressing portrayal of hostels in bad films like Hostel. But the truth is that staying in hostels is one of the finest ways to travel cheaply.
Hostels today are becoming more and more accommodating to the growing number of backpackers and budget travellers. To the point that sometimes their quality surpasses that of the antiquated, old hotels you frequently find in the city centre.
The days of squeaky bunk beds, limited privacy. And filthy rooms are long gone. Today’s hostels have contemporary, spotless furnishings, capsule-style mattresses, curtains. A free breakfast buffet, quick WiFi, and much more.
Hostels are popular among travellers who like to stroll around cities rather than rent cars. So you are assured to stay in a convenient area for a quarter of the cost of a hotel room. You’ll save even more money on transportation as a result.
The truth is that most of the money you spend on vacation is spent on lodging. And if you can save only a third of that cost each night, you’ll save a lot more money than if you try to cut costs in other areas.
Travel To Cheap Countries
You must make intelligent destination choices if your money is limited. Yes, I too would want to watch killer whales in Norway’s Fjords. But do you have any clue how pricey it is there? Consider purchasing a motorbike and travelling around India. Before choosing a nation. See what is feasible within your budget.
Asia is a great playground, and visiting this region is perhaps the most affordable way to see the globe. You get a lot for your money in nations like Nepal, India, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, and China. Central America is another undiscovered treasure for travellers on a budget. With wonderful locations like Guatemala, Nicaragua, and El Salvador that won’t break the bank. Learn more about it in my inexpensive locations throughout the world to visit. Find out how much a vacation to Thailand costs here, or see how much you can expect to spend on a budget trip to Bali.
How To Get Around Cheaply When Traveling?
Get On A Cheap Flight
A airline ticket is among the most expensive travel-related costs. But with so much competition in the travel sector today. Finding a fantastic airline price to a destination you wish to visit shouldn’t be difficult.
Keep an eye out for fantastic flight prices offered over the summer by airlines like RyanAir, WizzAir. And EasyJet in Europe, AirAsia and Lion Air in Asia, and JetBlue and Southwest in the US.
The easiest ways to search for inexpensive flights are to visit websites like Skyscanner or Expedia. Choose a desired destination, try selecting a full month as opposed to a specific day. And then choose the least expensive option.
The cheapest days to book your flight are often Tuesday and Wednesday. So be sure to keep an eye out for that when you are seeking to buy a ticket.
Take Public Transportation
Acting like a native and taking public transit is one of the cheapest and best methods to explore a new location. I recognise that learning a new city’s public transport system may be pretty complex at first, but once you get the hang of it, you will be able to go far and wide without spending a fortune.
If you’re in a major city, consider taking the mass transportation system’s trains to go around the area efficiently and affordably. They are frequently the simplest mode of transportation, therefore understanding them shouldn’t take too much time. They are also affordable, dependable, and effective.
Buses and trains are among of the most effective ways to travel big distances between cities on a budget and with the added benefit of seeing the countryside. If you take an evening bus as opposed to a daytime bus, you can further reduce your lodging costs.
Check out websites like Busbud.com (for Europe and South America) and 12Go (for Asia) before your trip if you want to avoid the hassle at the bus and railway stations and quickly purchase a ticket for a long-distance travel on a bus or a train.
Pick The Right Season
Popular travel destinations are drastically cheaper in the off-season. Think Italy in the winter, Hawaii and Florida in the summer, and SouthEast Asia during monsoon season.
Avoid travel while schools are out since costs will go up and businesses will try to take advantage of families who can only travel during these weeks. Find out when is the ideal to go to the place you want to go, and then depart shortly before or after these dates. You’ll still have a fantastic trip during this time, although the sun might not shine quite as brightly (on the good side, it won’t be nearly as hot). This time period is known as the “shoulder season.” In order to draw customers during this period, hotels and airlines reduce their pricing.
How To Eat Cheaply When Traveling?
Eat Like A Local
Trying all the street cuisine that can be found at night markets is one of the best parts of visiting destinations like Thailand and Taiwan. Local street food options are plentiful, frequently good, and best of all, they are quite inexpensive when compared to the same meal served in restaurants.
For instance, you might anticipate paying between 60 and 100 THB for one meal if you went into a posh restaurant in Thailand and ordered a Pad Thai. However, you would only spend 35 to 40 THB each dish if you went to the night markets where all the locals congregate, which is half what you would pay at a restaurant.
One of the easiest methods to reduce your food expenses when travelling and yet experience the local cuisine is to eat like a native. So, if you want to travel on a budget, be sure to stop by a local market and sample some of the food that the people there are eating.
Hitchhiking
You may also attempt hitchhiking if you’re seeking for a cost-free way to move around while you travel. I would advise you to only hitchhike in nations where doing so is accepted, such as New Zealand and Australia, or in regions with amiable residents and limited access to public transit, like Pakistan’s Karakoram Highway.
There are a few things you should know before you start hitchhiking since it’s a waiting game. First and foremost, ensure sure hitchhiking is permitted by the legislation. Especially while travelling overseas and unfamiliar with the local tongue, you don’t want to get into any problems with the police.
Second, anticipate on putting in a lot of time the day you want to hitchhike. Before a local can pick you up, it may take hours, and even then, they might not take you where you want to go right away. In order to get further, you will probably need to hitchhike more. When I want to hitchhike to far locations, I frequently set for a whole day for travel.
General Tips On Traveling The World Cheaply
Do Not Exchange Money At The Airport
When converting money overseas, it is generally advised not to do it at the airport or, for that matter, use an ATM. They frequently take advantage of you severely by charging outrageous withdrawal costs, sometimes losing more than 50% of the value.
I advise using your credit card before you leave the airport or just having a little amount of cash on hand to exchange at the airport. As a result, you’ll be able to depart the airport and exchange the remaining funds once you’re at a legitimate currency exchange location.
Try Woofing
Woofing is another thing that occurs. That seems pricey, don’t you think? Do not assume it is similar to working in exchange for lodging and meals. World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms is a sizable multinational organisation that connects travellers wanting to spend a few hours in exchange for shelter and food with farmers searching for labour.
Farmers in more than 100 countries are searching for enthusiastic travellers who are prepared to work hard. To sign up, you must pay the $40 registration fee on the WWOOF website. This is one of the finest methods to travel for free overseas and a terrific way to save money on lodging. This is a fantastic approach to go to pricey nations.
Have any other good tips and tricks for how to travel the world for cheap? Share them in the comments!