Traveling means something different to everyone, whether it’s trekking around Asia, heading to the beach, taking vacation packages in Scotland or enjoying a city break, but sticking to a tight budget sparks similar feelings for every single person. Worries creep into your mind like, “Will I have enough money to eat every day?” and, “What happens if I break my budget?”. Fortunately, regardless of the type of adventure you’re planning, there are several ways to make sure you stick to a tight budget.
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Book Well in Advance
If you leave booking your travel to the last minute, there’s a good chance you’ll miss out on that dream holiday you’ve been looking forward to. However, if you choose to book in advance, you’ll find better accommodation/travel deals and availability. As well as saving money and having more choices, booking your holiday in advance will help you to avoid exchange rates and transaction fees typical during the peak season.
When you do book your flights, you should be flexible with your availability and carefully monitor flight prices for a few days. To do this, you can use Google Flights to track prices and get alerts when cheaper options become available.
Photo by Guilherme Stecanella on Unsplash
Travel Out of Season
Peak season runs from June to August in the northern hemisphere and November to February in the southern hemisphere. During these times and popular holidays like Christmas and New Year, demand for travel is high, so every business involved in the travel and tourism industry hikes their prices. Therefore, if you want to benefit from smaller crowds and cheaper prices, always be willing to travel out of season.
Stay in Apartments or Hostels
When people travel, hotels are the first choice of accommodation to pop into most people’s minds. However, regardless of their convenience, they’re not always the cheapest option. If you’re looking to stick to a tight budget, you should steer clear of hotels. Instead, explore the availability of apartments and hostels. In many cases, you can stay at a hostel for between $10 to $40, which is nothing when you look at the average cost of a hotel per night, which is around $125.
Pack Light
If you’re trying to stick to a tight budget, then ditch any unnecessary luggage. Airline fees for heavy bags are extortionate, so make sure you keep your bags within the standard weight allowance. As well as making your trip cheaper, you’ll find it much easier to carry out bags around at your destination.
Buy a Local SIM
Most people have a smartphone, and much of the world has come to rely on them, whether it’s to book tickets or keep in touch with loved ones. However, when you’re traveling out of your home country, you will be charged roaming fees. Although these vary between countries, they’re still an added expense that you shouldn’t have to pay more for.
To get around expensive roaming fees, it’s a good idea to buy a local SIM card. Although you’re still paying to use your smartphone, it’ll be much cheaper than facing roaming fees.
If you want to save even more money on your mobile costs, you should consider only using your phone when you’re connected to local Wi-Fi.
Eat Local Food
A central part of any vacation is experiencing new foods, but eating can become expensive if you’re not careful. Therefore, to avoid paying over the odds, you should escape the tourist destinations and eat where the locals do. Not only will this help with sticking to your budget, but you’ll also have a more authentic experience.
Traveling on a tight budget can be a scary prospect, but there are ways to keep costs down and still have the experience of a lifetime.
