Money is the biggest obstacle that most people present when explaining why they don’t travel/haven’t as much as they would like. When I see lips forming that “money” word, what I really hear is “priorities.” If travelling is your number one priority, then few other things can truly come in your way.
I have met many people travelling the world with incessant wanderlust with very little money – I’m talking less than $400 a year. Now, I’m not that hardcore, but I’ll tell you how I did it for less than $3,000 (USD).
When travelling, there are five expenses to consider:
- Transportation
- Accommodation
- Eating & Drinking
- Entertainment
- Purchasing Power
Transportation
Waiting for the train to Machu Picchu, Peru
Cheap
Get your flights cheap as dirt by being flexible on your departure date, destination, and time of day. SkyScanner.com is an amazing place where you can search from country to country or even your city to “anywhere.” Or you can set a price alert on Trip Adviser if you have a specific location in mind.
It’s often cheaper to fly into/out of a mega city and then book a separate local flight/take a bus/train to get you to your destination.
Cheaper
The more you move around, the more transportation is going to cost you, so consider staying in one place for longer amounts of time, really getting to know the area. Unless you…
Free
Hitchhike. Some of my best experiences travelling have come from thumbing around continents - its an amazing way to connect with the locals. Just don't tell my grandma. It requires a little bit of intel on how to do it properly so you actually get picked up, but more on that later - stay tuned for a How to Hitchike article.
Accomodation
Location: Anza Borrego State Park, California
Cheap
Hotels in developing countries and hostels around the world offer a night's stay for anywhere between $3-$40. The most I've ever paid for a bed was $17, and there were cheaper options.
Cheaper
There are thousands of volunteer opportunities where you get to trade your labor for food and/or accomodation. They usually involve farming, hostel work, helping out a yoga school or animal rescue center, or teaching a language. Great connections to these opportunities can be found at:
Aiesec = run by students for students, six week - two year commitments available
Workaway = Run by everyone for everyone. Shorter term and less organized gigs available
Woofing = Working on Organic Farms. These are farming volunteer opportunities, all around the world.
Free
When in nature, camp outside. Its awesome.
When in a city, stay with locals. People around the world are excited to meet travellers, so they open up their homes. In exchange for interesting conversations and good times, they let you sleep on their floor/couch/sometimes even a spare bedroom. Check out:
Couchsurfing For everyone, review based
Warm Showers Specifically for touring cyclists
Trust Roots Specifically for hitchhikers
Talk Talk BnB For people who want to learn your language!
Eating & Drinking
Got treated to this meal for free by my awesome Chinese friends. Yes, that is chicken head.
Cheap
Street food, grocery stores, and markets are home to the budget traveller. If you are travelling to a country that doesn't have free potable water, instead of constantly buying disposable plastic water bottles (which quickly add up and destroy our oceans), make the one-time $25 USD investment in this compact, light weight water filter.
Free
You could score free food from your volunteering gig or your couch surfing host. Or you can table dive - an activity where you hang out in a very crowded eating area, such as a shopping mall, and wait for people to be finished with their plate. If there is food left on the table, you sneak in before the bussers and pretend like its your food. Or if its a self-bussing place, you can hang out by the trash can and ask people for the food they are about to throw away; they with never say no.
Entertainment
This gem was found underneath a freeway in Mexico City
Cheap
Rent bicycles and tour the land/city. Get a guide book and read up on archeological sites instead of hiring a guide. If you drink alcohol, buy it at the store, not the pub, and drink it somewhere else.
Free
Go outside! To the beach, waterfall, river, cave, anywhere. Meet locals and just talk with them. Try talking even if you have no language in common - you will amaze yourself!
Purchasing Power
Think about how much your currency will be worth in another country - will you gain spending power, loose spending power, or will it be the same?
If you are from India and you want to travel France on a shoestring budget, you're going to loose a lot of spending power. You may have to utilize more of the free options I have given.
If you are from Australia and you want to travel to Thailand, you are going to gain a lot of spending power. You could probably utilize more of the cheap/cheaper options I've given.
Unfortunately this is a global reflection of huge inequality. Its good to be aware of it when deciding your budget and how comfortable you'd like to be, therefore where you can go.
Thanks for reading! If you want more travel tips, acrobatics, and poetry, follow me @AcroButterfly