Skip to content Skip to sidebar Skip to footer

How to Travel on a Budget and Keep More Money in Your Pocket

how to travel on a budget

When it comes to traveling around the world and experiencing new activities, foods, and cultures, it is something that almost everyone dreams of doing. However, the only problem is that a lot of us do not have the necessary funds that are needed in order to take such frequent trips to different countries.

How can you travel on a budget when you’re poor? In order to travel on a budget when you’re poor, you will need to prioritize exactly what you need on your trip. This includes your flight and hotel arrangements, as well as what you will pack in your luggage and even what you will eat during your vacation time.

There are plenty of tips that you can follow in order to save even more money throughout your travels. With lots of opportunities to find last minute deals on flights and even free housing for the remainder of your stay, there is no reason why you shouldn’t be able to travel the world without an endless budget.

The concept of flying across the world to various cities and countries whenever you please sounds like the ultimate way to live life. While this certainly sounds great, is it really possible? How can you possibly pay for plane tickets and expensive hotels on a regular basis if you don’t have that kind of disposable income coming in?

If you are interested and passionate about gaining new experiences by traveling the world, keep reading to find out how you can make this a reality. Traveling far and wide on a budget is definitely obtainable when you follow the simple tips that are outlined throughout this article.

How To Travel The World For Cheap

Traveling the world is something that everyone should experience at some point in their lives, from taking a road trip to different local cities or taking a larger leap and jumping on a plane to a foreign country that you have never seen before.

Being well traveled is beneficial due to the unique foods, activities, cultures, and experiences that you would otherwise not be able to gain in your home town.

While it is true that travel can get very expensive, especially when you are considering going outside of the country on your trip, you do not have to miss out on these fun times because you do not have enough money to pay for it.

In fact, there are tons of ways that you can travel the world for cheap. By considering a few helpful tips on how to cut down travel costs, you will be able to explore the uncharted territories of the world, no matter how large or small your budget is.

How To Travel The World For Cheap:

  • Prioritize all of your expenses (hotels, flights, food, etc.)
  • Join a best hotel rewards programs for travel
  • Find the cheapest plane tickets
  • Try to find a free place to stay
  • Rent out your empty house/apartment while you are gone
  • Cook all of your meals instead of eating out
  • Wait for last minute hotel/flight deals

The very first thing that you will need to do before you begin your budget traveling adventures is to prioritize all of your expenses. This will include literally everything that you could possibly spend money on from the time that you depart from your home to when you return.

In doing this, it is very important to consider the bare minimum of what you will need, while cutting out all expenses that are unnecessary. If you can live without it, then it should be cut from your itinerary all together.

Although this does not seem like it will be the most comfortable trip, you must keep in mind that you are trying to travel on a budget. You will not be able to save so much money and still travel like royalty, so as a result, you must sacrifice the extras.

The things that you sacrifice will all depend on your budget, however. If you do have some extra cash to spare for your trip, you can pick and choose what you would like to save on.

For example, you might choose to rent out a very nice hotel room with amazing service and comfortable beds for your entire trip, while getting rid of your plans to also purchase a nice rental car for your day-to-day travels.

Prioritizing, however, should be tailored to the overall experience that you would like to give yourself during your travels. For instance, if you know that you will be walking around in the city a lot to see sights during the day, you might be able to sacrifice your living situation and consider staying at hostels or opt for a shared room or a cheap motel.

Since you would be spending the majority of your time outdoors instead of being pinned up in your hotel room, there is room to sacrifice the quality of the place that you will only be sleeping in for a few hours each night.

Prioritizing your expenses not only applies to your flight and accommodation expenses, but also the smaller things like your meals. While you are out and about on your vacation, you might choose to go grocery shopping at the local market and cook for yourself instead of splurging on restaurant meals every night.

Alternatively, you might come equipped with the supplies that you need such as water bottles and packaged snacks that you purchased at a wholesaler like Costco before your trip, so that you will have room in your budget to pay for some hot meals throughout the day.

These sacrifices can even be as small as choosing an off-branded item instead of the more expensive option. For instance, instead of grabbing a large Starbucks coffee once you arrive at your destination, you can purchase a more generic cup that is half the price.

Or, you can just go without it all together. Traveling on a budget is all about keeping everything that you need and getting rid of everything that you don’t. So, if you don’t need a giant cup of coffee, you will be able to keep the funds that would be associated with that purchase and spend it on something else during your trip.

The next thing that you can do in order to save money on travel is to join some kind of travel rewards programs. Most major banking organizations have some of these cards available that you can apply for to save money or get cash back while you are on vacation.

Travel rewards programs are issued in the form of a credit card, and will help airlines and hotels calculate what you have spent with them over a certain period of time.  As a result of your spending, you will receive points back that you can save up for free flights or accommodations on your next trip.

This method of saving money is very convenient for those who travel very frequently, or are trying to make flying across the world their full-time hobby. However, if you are only planning to travel a few times a year, you might not benefit form these credit cards as much as someone who is a more consistent traveler.

This is due to the fact that you must spend money in order to earn any points, and if you do not spend on travel expenses on a regular basis, your points will accumulate very slowly and you might not see rewards for a long time.

Some of the places where you can get travel rewards cards include Bank of America and Capital One.

Next, you will want to make sure that you are doing everything you can to find the cheapest possible transportation for your trip. This will save you a lot of money, because flight expenses usually account for the bulk of travel costs.

To find the lowest airfare, first check out the best day to buy plane tickets to get some of the best deals. Then there are a few tips and tricks we’ll share with you that you can use to find the lowest prices and hidden deals on the internet.

To begin, you will want to start  looking at Google Flights. This is as simple as typing in your departing location and the airport that you will be arriving to on Google. It will ask you how many passengers, if you are taking a one-way or round trip, as well as your departure and return dates.

Once you have filled in all of this information and entered the search, Google will pull up all matching results for airlines that are offering those specific flights.

The great thing about Google Flights is that it will let you know how much you can save on the specific ticket that you requested if you are able to change your dates of travel. This will be beneficial to flexible travelers who are not on much of a set schedule and can easily change plans if needed to save money.

However, when searching on Google Flights, you will not find every single airline and flight that exists for that exact time period, so it would be wise to continue your search elsewhere to really find the best deals.

The next place that you can try to search is a website called WhichBudget. On this site, you can search for plane tickets on a wide variety of airlines. The results that come back to you will be cheap budget plane tickets in several different countries.

Some of the cheapest airlines that you will be able to find will originate in Europe. For instance, Norwegian Air is a well-known budget option with the flexibility to travel anywhere in the world.

To make sure that you are getting the best deal that you possibly can for your plane ticket, you should do some additional research on the airports that you will be arriving to.

When you type in a city on the internet to find a plane ticket, the search engine or website will usually direct you to the main city in that area as far as arriving airports go. Contrary to popular belief, you do not have to listen to this suggestion.

Depending on the location that you will be traveling to, you might be able to switch to a nearby airport that offers cheaper flights than the most popular option. Even though this might require you to travel a little longer to your actual destination, this is a good tip to follow if the savings make sense for your budget and plans.

You can also do a reverse search along these lines, by researching the websites of smaller airports that you find in the area. Here, you will be able to find an influx of budget airlines where you can also get some cheap plane tickets.

Another great place to look for low priced airfare is Expedia. On this site, you will be able to pull up a comprehensive list of budget options for your specific dates of travels, with some bulk deals for longer trips. For the more impromptu traveler, you might be able to find last minute deals for a flight within the same day.

Regardless of which airline and type of flight that you choose, you will also need to consider the costs of the baggage that you are bringing. In normal circumstances, airports will charge a set amount for additional luggage that does not fit in with the minimums.

For example, if you are taking a flight that has indicated that you are only allowed to bring one carry on bag and a smaller personal item, you will be able to bring both of those things at no extra cost to you, as they are included in your ticket.

However, if you are planning on bringing an extra checked bag with you on this flight, it will incur an additional charge since it was not included in the price that you paid overall.

Going back to the subject of prioritizing your expenses and cutting out everything that you will not need on your trip, you should really prioritize what you are bringing in your luggage on the plane.

If you are able to leave some items at home or pack all of your things very carefully into one compact suitcase, you will be able to save a lot of money on your ticket and overall travel expenses. Airlines can charge up to one hundred dollars just for one bag, depending on the circumstance, so you want to stay away from this if possible.

Apart from finding the best flights and making sure that you are following tips to avoid additional charges during your transportation, there will be somewhere that you are staying when you get off the plane at your destination airport.

We have already discussed the options of settling for a cheaper and less luxurious hotel room in this section, but you can even take it one step further and try to find a free accommodation.

After all, you can’t save much more money when you are literally staring somewhere without paying a dime. Keep reading to the next section to find out some helpful tips and tricks for how you can do it too.

How To Travel For Free

While it is true that you can look for some budget hotel options or even a shared room on AirBnb, you would save even more money if you were able to stay somewhere for free throughout your entire trip.

So, how can you really stay somewhere for free if nothing in life is supposed to be free? The answer lies with the people that you know, from family to friends, that live in the area in which you are traveling to.

If you have someone that you know in your destination city or country, it would be a good idea to ask them if you can crash on their couch or stay in an extra bedroom while you are visiting.

This will be a great way to find a balance of spending time with the people you love and experiencing the place that they live. You might even be able to get some helpful tips and suggestions of things to do in their town while you stay with them.

Although this will work in the places where you actually know people, there will be a lot of places where you are completely alone, especially when it comes to traveling to other states and countries that are unfamiliar to you.

How To Travel For Free:

  • Find free accommodation
  • “couch surfing” with locals
  • House sitting job

Websites For Free Accommodations:

  • CouchSurfing
  • The Hospitality Club
  • Global Freeloaders
  • MindMyHouse

In these cases, you can consult the internet for a free place to sleep at night. There is a popular website called CouchSurfing, which lists places that you can find a couch, bed, or empty space on the floor to sleep while you are passing through the area.

Additionally, you can check The Hospitality Club and Global Freeloaders for locals in the area who are prepared to give you a place to sleep at no extra cost, as well as show you around the city.

Another great way to score a free place to stay on your vacation is to find a housesitting gig. There are certain websites where you are able to connect with people who own homes everywhere, and are in need of someone to look after their homes while they are traveling as well.

One of the best places to look for one of these opportunities is MindMyHouse. With the small payment of a twenty dollar annual membership, you will be able to create a profile and start looking for a temporary job.

While this option will usually require caring for animals during your stay, you can’t really complain about having an entire hours to yourself for free on your vacation.

To go along with the idea of housesitting for someone else in order to get a free place to stay, there are ways that you can make up for the money that you will be spending during your travels.

If you own your home or apartment and are planning to be away for several weeks to months, you can list your place on sites like Airbnb and Trip Advisor so others can stay there while you are gone.

The best part about this concept is that you will be getting paid for that other person to stay in your home. So, while you are enjoying your vacation, you can rest assured that you have a little bit of extra money in the budget for eating and entertainment.

This will help you save tons of money, especially if you have chosen to find free accommodations somewhere listed above during your trip. You could also think of this option as being paid to travel, in a way.

Cheapest Countries To Travel To

Now that we have gone over all of the ways that you can save money while traveling the world, you might be thinking about all of the places that you might want to visit using all of the important information that you have learned so far.

To help you out even further with saving some money, I have put together a list of some of the cheapest countries to travel to in the entire world.

While adhering to the budget tips that were outlined in the earlier sections, you can consider planning a trip to one of these foreign destinations to get the most bang for your buck.

Take a look at the list down below to get an idea of some of the cheapest travel destinations in the world.

Cheapest Countries To Travel To:

  • Indonesia
  • Mexico
  • India
  • Colombia
  • Cuba
  • Bulgaria
  • South Africa
  • Turkey
  • Thailand
  • Greece
  • Argentina

Most people might be surprised to read this list, but it is true that some of the most beautiful places in the world are actually some of the least expensive to travel to. Depending on where you are coming from, you might even be able to find a cheap flight to some of these destinations.

Of course, with longer flights comes higher prices, so you might want to research which one of these destinations are closer to your home city so you can make sure that you are able to save on plane tickets.

Regardless of how long your flight will be, however, the overall costs of hotels, food, and entertainment in all of these countries is much lower than most. In fact, you can end up spending much less than fifty dollars per day when you choose one of these countries for your next vacation.

As a result of saving big bucks on your daily travel expenses when you fly to one of the countries on this list, you might even be able to splurge in different areas. For example, you could give yourself the option of choosing a five star hotel for the price of a cheap motel in the United States.

Alternatively, you can splurge on huge spreads of food while you are traveling since the prices are so low, or instead of trying to cram into a cheap seat on a plane, you might be able to upgrade your flight due to the cut in costs that come with these types of trips.

Just because these countries are considered to be the cheapest travel countries does not at all mean that they are any less desirable than other locations that you could choose.

Indonesia and Cuba are full of gorgeous, sunny beaches and amazing food, while Thailand boasts a relaxing and green atmosphere all throughout. In places like Colombia and Greece, you will be able to experience the unique culture that you would not be able to find anywhere else.

As you can see, there are so many ways that you can plan to save on your next vacation, no matter where you will be traveling. It is a common misconception that you must spend thousands of dollars to travel to other countries frequently, but this couldn’t be any further from the truth.

If you do not have deep pockets with a bottomless budget for your travel affairs, there is no need to worry. The money that you have to spend on your vacation should not, in any way, affect how much you enjoy your time there.

Vacations are supposed to be relaxing and enjoyable, which is something that you should be doing throughout the entire duration of your trip. Instead of stressing about what you are spending on a daily basis, you can rest assured that you can do everything that you have planned to do, only on your own terms.

With the help of all of the insightful tips that were outlined in this article, you should now be an expert on finding the cheapest flights, hotels, and even making some extra money while you are away in another country. Now, the only thing that you have left to do is decide on where in the world you are going first!

Related Questions

How Can I Get Rich Quick?

Perhaps consider participating in multiple side hustles to make money for travel. This is the best approach to use if you are looking to make upwards of $1000 a month. Find a good balance, and before you know it, your savings will multiply before your eyes!

How Can I Earn Money in a Day?

Looking for an immediate source of income? Taking online surveys is likely your best bet, as you can make money right away. Donating plasma is another great option, as you get paid per donation. Though it takes some planning, having a yard sale can earn a large sum of money in a single day as well.

How Do You Make Money in Retirement?

Retirement does not need to mean that you stop making an income. Retirement is actually a great time to focus on side hustles that you are passionate about. Starting a blog, YouTube channel, or podcast is a great option, as is selling creative work! Other simple ways of making money without working are selling or renting, taking surveys, investing money, and donating plasma.