Don’t have money to travel? LOOK AT YOUR OPTIONS
A lot of people asked me to make a post on my blog about travelling on a budget:
There are economical ways to travel, you just have to find them. Your first tool is THE INTERNET, we live in a world of information, use Facebook or Myspace to find someone from the country your interested in and then ask questions.
There are deals everywhere in lodging, flights, and even food. Short trip? First and foremost is your luggage, don’t check any! If you can’t live out of a carry-on and a book bag for a week or two, then don’t forget to miss the fashion show in New York, they have them 4 times a year. You can wear your fancy heels (ladies) or your frozen gook hair there (men – okay I just really wanted to use gook in a blog post since I watched Jersey Shore lol). If you’re going on a long trip for 2.5 weeks or more, then check a bag. Make sure it’s international so they don’t charge you an arm, a leg, and your children to take it with you. Always try to travel in a big group with friends, things always come out a lot cheaper and you will have way more fun (3 or more people). Of course group can get too big, 7 or 8 is starting to push it.
Lodging:
Short Trips: Couch Surfing, Hostels, Rent your own apartment, NO HOTELS
Long Trips: Hostels, Rent your own apartment, NO HOTELS
Couch Surfing is exactly how it sounds. You stay with a person from the host country and sleep on their couch. I was lucky enough to have my own room, bed, and internet, the first time I couch surfed. This is more geared toward young professionals, college students, and shorter trips. (I didn’t believe either until a female friend told me she couch surfed all through the Middle East without any problems, very legit). Hostels are cheap and convenient. The only downside is you really don’t have any privacy, most of the time you share a bathroom and room and you have to pay extra for your own room and bathroom. Renting an apartment is my choice of lodging: you get your own room, your own bathroom, and if you share an apartment with a group of friends it comes out cheaper than a hostel! Biggest thing of all is you get your own kitchen which leads me to my next topic. FOOD! Yay!!!!
Everyone obviously wants to experience local dishes and snacks, I have been very lucky to try such exotic dishes around the world. I have tried whale in Iceland, the best steak in the world in Buenos Aires, goodies from the hot dog cart in Dominican Republic, and a fresh mango shake in Costa Rica. You can save a significant money by not eating out every day and buying food at the local market like sandwiches and fruits (and… brace yourself… cooking, even if its cereal and mac-n-cheese).
And last but not least airfare, everyone knows the online websites to go to the find a cheap airfare, there are however, little tricks you can use to maximize your potential. Consider the country where you are going and normal tourist patterns. Everyone tries to visit Europe in the summer, try to fly in the early spring or late fall. Brazil or South America, keep in mind their seasons are opposite ours (our winter is their summer), many tourists will travel there in American Winter. Always remember that everyone wants to fly on the weekends, who wants to fly midweek? YOU DO BECAUSE ITS CHEAPER!!
Airfare: Short Trips: Use different combination of airlines and routes to find the cheapest fare, you’re not checking bags so you can move quick.
Long Trips: Try the airlines from the country you’re going to (example: Colombia: Avianca Airlines, Argentina: Aeolineas Argentinas) Otherwise fly one airline and collect miles.
Misc: Don’t forget to use low cost carriers around the world (example: Europe: Ryanair)
Kayak Airfare Skyscanner Ireland Iceland
See you on the other side
Marcello Arrambide
Wandering Trader
