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- Herausgeber: John Wiley & Sons
- Kategorie: Lebensstil
- Sprache: Englisch
Tips and tricks for stretching your travel budget all the way around the world
Budget Travel For Dummies will help you plan your next vacation and make it affordable, with tips on how to maximize your budget and squeeze amazing experiences out of every penny. Written by a travel expert who has visited 60 countries across 6 continents, this book will help you find the best deals, including cheap flights and accommodations. You’ll learn how to pick a destination, set and stick to a budget, minimize bank and credit card fees, and manage health and travel insurance. For the adventurer within you, this guide is full of tips on traveling without a plan, living for months with just carry-on luggage, and staying flexible in case you need to change your plans. Yes, you can afford that bucket-list trip.
- Get insider tips on finding cheaper flights and accommodations
- Pick destinations and plan once-in-a-lifetime trips that won’t break the bank
- Learn how to navigate passport and visa issues while abroad
- Avoid common mistakes that can make travel needlessly expensive
This book is for anyone who wants to travel, or travel more, but doesn’t have the budget to stay in 5-star resorts. Jump into the adventure you’ve always dreamed of, with Budget Travel For Dummies.
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Seitenzahl: 440
Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2023
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Budget Travel For Dummies®
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Table of Contents
Cover
Title Page
Copyright
Introduction
About This Book
Foolish Assumptions
Icons Used in This Book
Beyond the Book
Where to Go from Here
Chapter 1: Wanting to Travel at Any Cost
Ditching the Notion That Travel Has to Be Expensive
Deciding Where to Go
Focusing on Less So You Can Enjoy More
Budget Travel that Doesn’t Feel Like Budget Travel
Chapter 2: A Fist Full of Dollars (And Euros and Yen)
What’s a Realistic Travel Budget?
Saving for Travel
Cash? Credit? Both?
Protecting Yourself and Your Belongings with Insurance
Chapter 3: Plan Less for More Fun
Planning Less Reduces Stress
Traveling Without a Plan (Yes, It’s Possible!)
The Drawbacks of Guided Tours, Cruises, and All-Inclusive Resorts
Chapter 4: Now Boarding: Finding the Right Flights
Booking Flights Yourself versus Hiring a Travel Agent
Booking Flights
Choosing between Budget Airlines and Major Carriers
The “Value” of Credit Card Points
Spending More to Save Time
Chapter 5: Where to Lay Your Head
Accommodation Basics
The Secret to Inexpensive Lodging: Hostels (Wait, Keep Reading!)
The Benefits of Hostels and Hostel Life
Hostels for Dummies
Other Inexpensive Lodgings
Chapter 6: Taking the “Lug” Out of Luggage
What You Can’t Leave Behind (but Should)
Don’t Waste Money on Luggage
Backpack versus Luggage
To Carry On, or Not to Carry On
Chapter 7: Packing Light, Packing Perfection
What to Pack for Unlimited Travel
Shopping Locally
Tech Must-Haves to Bring on Every Trip
Gadgets and Gear to Avoid
Packing for Dummies
Chapter 8: Getting Online While on the Road
You Don’t Need to Do without Data
Making Sure You Can Back Up to the Cloud
Downloading Movies, Maps, and Other Cool Apps
Chapter 9: Living Locally on the Cheap
Eating Like a Local
Exploring Efficiently … or Not
Metro Movin’
Fitting In
Chapter 10: Sidestepping Common Blunders
Shopping in a Marketplace: Hustles versus Bargaining
Spotting Hidden Fees and Trying to Decline Them
Being the Least Obvious Target
What to Do if You Get Robbed
Other Common Blunders
Chapter 11: Time to Head Out — Or Is It?
Staying Flexible
Going Slow (No, Slower)
When It’s Time to Move On
What to Do if There’s a Problem
Letting Your Family/Friends Know Where You Are
Chapter 12: Settling In for an Extended Stay
Sticking Around When You Can’t Tear Yourself Away
Changing Flights versus Canceling Flights
When Do You Need a Visa?
Becoming a Digital Nomad
How It Works from Someone Who Has Done It for a Decade
Chapter 13: Ten Things Worth Splurging On
Great Local Food
Unique Local Activities
A Night to Relax at a Nice Hotel
A Good Backpack
A Decent Flight and Location
Comfortable Sneakers/Walking Shoes
USB Battery Pack
Good Noise-Canceling Headphones
Literally Anything on Your “Bucket List”
Travel Itself
Appendix: Travel Checklists
What I Pack
Budget Travel Packing List
Countdown Checklist
Index
About the Author
Advertisement Page
Connect with Dummies
End User License Agreement
List of Illustrations
Chapter 1
FIGURE 1-1: It’s possible to travel on a budget just about everywhere!
FIGURE 1-2: The picturesque village of Hallstatt, Austria is a UNESCO World Her...
FIGURE 1-3: Time to find some adventure!
Chapter 2
FIGURE 2-1: Three plans from Allianz, one of the larger travel insurance compan...
Chapter 3
FIGURE 3-1: Looking straight up at the remarkable ceiling of the Sagrada Famili...
FIGURE 3-2: An example route from Rome2Rio between Aukland and Wellington, New ...
FIGURE 3-3: A cost comparison of a package deal versus the same trip self-booke...
Chapter 4
FIGURE 4-1: Window seats are my preference. Why risk missing views like this of...
FIGURE 4-2: The price for flights doesn’t vary much between booking sites.
FIGURE 4-3: Check out a flight’s price history to determine the most affordable...
FIGURE 4-4: A sample calendar that shows price differences depending on what da...
FIGURE 4-5: You never know what gorgeous views you’ll see from the window seat,...
Chapter 5
FIGURE 5-1: This hostel room in central London is on the small side for a four-...
Chapter 6
FIGURE 6-1: The author (right), and his favorite travel backpack. Fuzzy friend ...
FIGURE 6-2: The roughly 40L main pack (left) and 15L daypack of my Osprey Farpo...
Chapter 7
FIGURE 7-1: Here’s how I pack everything I need for a travel adventure.
FIGURE 7-2: Three sizes and brands of packing cubes.
FIGURE 7-3: I’ve used the same plug adapters from Ceptics for years.
Chapter 8
FIGURE 8-1: A SIM card (foreground) is a tiny device roughly the size of a fing...
FIGURE 8-2: A recent adventure as shown and tracked by Polarsteps.
Chapter 9
FIGURE 9-1: A collection of metro cards from Japan, Australia, Portugal, and th...
Chapter 11
FIGURE 11-1: National parks, like Yosemite in the US, can be incredible — if th...
FIGURE 11-2: Give yourself time to just enjoy being in a place as magical as th...
FIGURE 11-3: The road to Sólheimajökull glacier, Iceland.
FIGURE 11-4: Exploring Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland with friends.
Chapter 12
FIGURE 12-1: If you met these two kangaroos (beacharoos?) in Lucky Bay, Austral...
FIGURE 12-2: The monasteries in Meteora, Greece.
FIGURE 12-3: The legendary Monument Valley, Navajo Nation, southwestern US, mad...
FIGURE 12-4: There and back again, Aoraki/Mount Cook, New Zealand.
Guide
Cover
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright
Begin Reading
Appendix: Travel Checklists
Index
About the Author
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Budget Travel For Dummies®
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Library of Congress Control Number: 2023951015
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Introduction
Picture yourself relaxing on a tropical beach with white sand and azure waters. Picture yourself exploring the cobblestone alleyways of an ancient city. Picture yourself on horseback among a herd of zebras. If you could go anywhere in the world right now, where would it be? What’s stopping you?
If you’re like most people, the answer is money. The good news is, travel doesn’t have to be outrageously expensive. Budget Travel For Dummies shows you how to keep costs low and still have an adventure you’ll remember forever.
You can discover not only how to make your next trip more affordable but also how to make all travel so easy and inexpensive you’re able to head out and explore again and again and again. You can find out not only how to budget money for a trip but also how to budget the true rarest of resources: time.
There’s a whole world of adventure out there. Let’s go explore.
About This Book
This book is the culmination of ten years of extensive and extended travels in addition to ten-plus years before that making many, many travel mistakes. I’ve written about travel for The New York Times, Forbes, and numerous other publications, all while traveling through 60 countries, 50 states, and during months of continuous adventure. There are numerous personal anecdotes throughout these pages, and I’ve included advice from other travelers I’ve met on the road.
Topics covered in this book include
Getting the most bang for your traveling buck
How to pack for any trip and save on luggage
Budget-friendly lodging and dining all over the world
How to get the best price on airfare
Common travel blunders to avoid
And more!
I’ve organized the book to flow from initial planning, to booking flights and accommodations, to packing, then on to things you’ll need to keep in mind while you’re traveling. Feel free to bounce around, though!
Foolish Assumptions
The foolish assumptions are actually by me about you! While writing this book I’ve had an idea in my head about who you are, with the hope that I can pre-answer any questions you have and write about things you want to know. Broadly speaking, I had two types of people in mind for this book. First, someone who’s new to travel. Second, someone who has traveled but wants to travel a lot more. In both cases, of course, they’re on a tight budget. More specifically, you’re
Someone who wants to travel, perhaps for the first time, and you can’t figure out how to afford it.
Someone who has the time to travel more, but not the money.
A few more general assumptions:
Most of my advice can apply to solo travelers as well as couples and families. I’ve made specific callouts when that’s not the case.
My advice throughout is for adults of “all ages.” There’s no upper or lower limit on travel, budget or otherwise.
My advice isn’t gender specific. I am a man, but I’ve had lengthy conversations with women (friends and fellow travelers) and have made sure to include their advice throughout this book.
Perhaps most importantly, I don’t believe in gatekeeping travel. If you’re 80 and want to see elephants in the wild, 20 and want to stand on the battlefield of Thermopylae, or 50 and want a selfie atop the Eiffel Tower, do it. It’s all an adventure, and you should follow your heart. My goal is to help you afford it — not just that next trip, but the one after, and the one after that, and the one after that …
Icons Used in This Book
Throughout the book, I use a handful of icons to point out various types of information. Here’s what they are and what they mean:
This is an important point that’s key to budget travel or travel in general.
I’ve traveled a lot and I’ve found a lot of ways to make it easier. These tips should help you too, though they’re often more situational.
Basically the negative version of a “Tip,” something that might cause an issue or is worth avoiding if possible.
This icon points out helpful online resources as well as items you can find on the resources page at www.dummies.com/go/budgettravelfd.
Beyond the Book
I’ve put together an online resources page to help you get the best prices on flights, find the right accommodations, and more. Here’s what you can find:
Direct links to the best booking websites
Links to trusted (by me) gear review sites
Visa, passport, and other important travel info
Just go to www.dummies.com/go/budgettravelfd. Be sure to bookmark the site so you can easily find it later.
Where to Go from Here
Everywhere! No, seriously. The world is a lot smaller than it seems. Go wherever seems interesting to you, assuming it’s in your budget and welcoming of visitors.
Where you should go in this book is an easier question. You can certainly read it chapter to chapter, cover to cover, if you want. There’s certainly lots of info throughout (I hope!) and even if it’s a section you’re not sure you need, there might be some nuggets in there that you weren’t expecting.
Alternately, you can bounce around. If you just want to know about booking cheap flights, finding the best place to stay, or what to pack, you can dive into those chapters directly. There’s no Budget Travel Extended Universe you’ll need to research to get the most out of each section. If there is something I explain better elsewhere in the book, I make a note of it.
If you’re new to travel, I would say starting with Chapters 1 to 3 is a good idea. They’ll give you a framework about what travel in general and budget travel specifically can be. They include a lot of “best practices” that will help throughout your adventures.
If you’re a more advanced traveler and just want to know some key ways to save money, Chapters 4 and 5 are two important chapters to help keep your costs down.
Lastly, if you’re really advanced and want to know about how to travel for weeks, months, or longer, start with Chapters 11 and 12.
Thanks for reading. I hope your next adventure is epic!
Chapter 1
Wanting to Travel at Any Cost
IN THIS CHAPTER
Figuring out where you want to go
Narrowing down your to-do list
Living large on a small budget
Adventure — that’s what travel means to me. Whether it’s exploring the streets of Vienna, floating in the clear blue waters of Fiji, or hiking through a rainforest, it’s all an adventure. Travel can be a weekend away upstate, or a multi-month journey around the world. Big budget or small, long or short, travel can make you feel alive, rejuvenate your psyche, and give you memories you’ll cherish for a lifetime.
The trick, of course, is being able to afford it. Don’t worry, though. I’m here to help you become an avid traveler whatever your budget.
Be sure to check out www.dummies.com/go/budgettravelfd to find any web addresses mentioned in the chapter as well as links to other fun and useful sites.
Ditching the Notion That Travel Has to Be Expensive
You don’t need to be rich to travel. I mean, sure, it’d be great to hop on your private jet, get whisked away to your private island, and enjoy a feast prepared by your private chef. If you’ve got a line on how to do that, I’m all ears. But I’m not waiting around to hit that lottery. I’ve traveled for months at a time on a limited budget. How limited? Less than many people spend on rent, even to gorgeous locations like the one in Figure 1-1.
Geoffrey Morrison
FIGURE 1-1: It’s possible to travel on a budget just about everywhere!
The fact is, the way most people travel is significantly more expensive than it needs to be. I’ve heard people who were convinced that a trip to Europe can’t cost less than $4,000 plus airfare. I’ve heard people dismiss entire countries because they think it will cost too much. Most upsetting, I’ve heard from far too many people who think that all travel is “too expensive,” despite having an income higher than mine.
This is one of the few times in this book I’m going to be judgmental: Most people are wrong about travel. It doesn’t have to be expensive. It can be affordable enough that most people, with a little planning and savings, can travel anywhere. While I don’t have just one secret that allows this (that would be a pretty short book!), there are a variety of simple adjustments and “best practices” in this book that can greatly reduce the cost of every aspect of your adventure.
My goal is to show you not only how you can afford your next trip, but also how to use the skills you’ll learn to have one after that, and one after that, and fully embrace the goal of adventure. Because no matter where you want to go, the way to get there is budget travel (hey — that’s the title of the book!).
Deciding Where to Go
By far the best way to be able to afford travel is picking your destination carefully. This, above all other tips and tricks, will save you the most money. Or to put it another way, your money goes a lot farther in some places than in others. Don’t get me wrong, if you’ve got your heart set on seeing the lights of Paris or the sun setting over Serengeti, there are ways to make that affordable, too.
If you just want to get out there, to go somewhere you can’t read the signs and no one knows your name, you can find a variety of options similar to the popular places where you can enjoy a comparable experience at a fraction of the cost.
For example, Tokyo is one of the most expensive cities in the world. If you’re looking for the hustle and bustle of a huge city, along with some amazing varieties of food, Taipei is significantly more affordable. London is another hugely expensive city, but if you’re looking for history and atmosphere, Lisbon has that Old World feel and is easier on the budget.
Not every place has a less-expensive option. If you have your heart set on Paris, France, then Paris, Texas, is not going to work. The Luxor in Las Vegas is not the same as Luxor, Egypt. It’s a big world out there, though, and there are adventures to be had all over. If your budget is limited now, you can get out there, explore, and make some memories right away without having to save up for three years for just one short trip.
With any luck, you’ll have more money in the future to venture into more expensive places. Or even better, you’ll discover from this book and your initial budget travels how to become such a clever and frugal traveler that you can spend days and weeks in even these expensive places, with a budget that seems impossibly low right now.
For now, if you’re not set on a location, several flight booking sites (more on these in Chapter 4) can show you what the cheapest flights are from your closest airport. The best deals might be a less-visited and less-expensive location.
If you’re not sure where to go, the following sections should help you narrow down the best destination for your next adventure.
What kind of experience are you looking for?
Some types of travel are more affordable than others. If it’s your dream to spend weeks on safari in southern Africa, that’s going to be difficult to do on the cheap. If you want to try every restaurant and café along the river Seine, you’re going to need deep pockets.
What is it about the location that appeals to you? If there’s some personal reason, that’s great. But if it’s just “I want to see X,” it’s worth asking yourself what it is about that specific location that’s drawing you there. If it’s to see something unique about that location, the Eiffel Tower or Iguaçu Falls, go for it. If it’s just to be on a beach, to climb a mountain, or explore an unfamiliar city, there are lots of inexpensive and still incredible options.
Of course, you don’t have to have a reason. I’m absolutely not trying to talk you out of seeing what you want to see. I’ve certainly done plenty of “touristy” trips myself (see Figure 1-2 for just one example), and I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that. Even if it’s just “I want to take a picture on the Great Wall of China,” don’t let anyone talk you out of it. I’ve certainly gone on trips for worse reasons. I once took a series of trains from northern England to Spain because I thought it’d be funny and make a good story. It was, it did, and I won’t do it again.
If your budget is extremely limited, though, and you just need to get out and see the world, figuring out what you want from travel is the first step in figuring out what locations can satisfy that desire, and more importantly, which of those are affordable.
Geoffrey Morrison
FIGURE 1-2: The picturesque village of Hallstatt, Austria is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and gets thousands of visitors a day. It’s gorgeous, but so are many other less-visited towns in the area.
Ideas for first-time travelers
It’s a big world out there. That’s exciting, but also daunting. If you’re new to travel, the whole idea can be intimidating. It’s awesome if you have an endless list of places you want to see and things you want to do, but don’t feel the need to tackle all of it at once. The idea of budget travel is not to be cheap but choosy so that you can make travel sustainable on your budget. Rather than breaking the bank for a singular “trip of a lifetime,” the goal is to take as many trips as often as possible throughout your lifetime, creating countless memories over many years.
Hopefully, you can narrow down your dream travel list to what you want to see the most. Don’t let anyone make you feel guilty about what’s on this short list. If you want to take a selfie in front of the Leaning Tower of Pisa or eat sushi at a fish market in Japan, you do you. It’s all an adventure and as long as you treat the locals with respect and you have fun, who cares what your former roommate’s brother’s partner’s jealous cousin has to say about it.
Throughout this book I give you tips that should help you wherever you want to go, but I want to give you this piece of advice now, before you get your heart set on any one place: start slow. If this is your first trip of hopefully many, stick to one place, and ideally, a place that’s not overly challenging to visit.
I’m not here to yuck anyone’s yums, but for novice travelers I generally recommend places that are well-known tourist destinations. This partially goes against my advice of going where the tourists aren’t, but there’s a line to be walked for sure between affordability and accessibility. Perhaps the cheapest destination isn’t as easy to navigate as a slightly more expensive option. On the other hand, the easiest destination could be the most expensive for getting around, while one a bit cheaper could prove nearly as easy.
What do I mean by “easy”? Tourist-friendly destinations will have the infrastructure to help you out if something goes wrong, many people will speak English, and it will be fairly simple to get around. Cities might be entirely walkable or have an extensive metro system. Grocery stores and inexpensive eateries will be plentiful. Stores will take your credit cards, or it will be easy to find a cash machine.
Later, when you’ve got a few trips under your belt, feel free to go somewhere you’ll never hear English, no one takes credit cards, and the hotels are a room in some guy’s garage. Some of the best adventures in my life have been to places where I’ve vibrantly stuck out like every inch of the bald, bespectacled weirdo that I am. It’s great! It’s just not something even I could have handled at the start of my extended travels.
Of course, I realize many live life according to the credo that says being out of your comfort zone is the only way to live. At least, that’s what all the posters, candle holders, bathmats, and pillow cushions at IKEA tell me. I don’t disagree, but there’s being out of your comfort zone, and there’s being out of your comfort zone. If you’re new to travel, maybe bushwacking through a swamp five hours from the nearest town isn’t the best way to start.
So find your own way and your own adventure, but as someone that’s done this for a while, there’s no shame in starting small. In fact, starting small is an amazing gateway into something epic.
If you’re not set on a specific destination, there’s no harm starting with places where you speak the language. There’s endless fun being in places where you don’t, but for a first overseas adventure, it’s okay to start with at least one thing you’re familiar with.
Don’t try to do everything at once
By far the biggest, and often expensive, mistake new or infrequent travelers make is trying to cram in everything, everywhere, all at once. If you’ve been saving for months and only have two weeks to travel, it’s understandable you want to see everything possible. But this is a recipe for disaster. I discuss more about planning in Chapter 2, but it’s crucial to start pushing back on your own intentions before you’ve set anything in stone. Narrowing your focus to one place or area will not only save you money but will also make your trip better overall. Wanting to see every capital in Europe during a two-week vacation is not a tenable plan. One or maybe two is a far better start.
I made this mistake for many years, and it never ended well. I’d be disappointed I didn’t see certain things, I’d be rushed seeing the things I did see, and through it all, nothing but stress.
Here are a few things to keep in mind now:
You’ll always see less than you want to.
The more you try to do, the more expensive the entire trip.
Quality time with a few things is almost always better than mediocre time with many things.
Flexibility is the best gift your planning self can give your traveling self.
There’s nothing wrong with a to-do list. They’re great! Just don’t expect to do it all. Prioritize and plan, with the intention of changing as you go.
Focusing on Less So You Can Enjoy More
When you’re looking at a series of dates in the future, it can be easy to think you have more time than you actually do. Everything always takes longer than you expected. Take a step back. What city have you visited the most? Could you explore it all in a day or two? There’s no reason to think you could do the same while on vacation. If your itinerary involves something like “We’ll spend an hour here, and then an hour here …” stop. You’re almost certainly trying to do too much.
Dialing back the number of things you want to do will not only save you money and stress, but it will also let you be in the moment and enjoy the things you’re actually doing. In the above example, what if you get to the first location and want to spend more than an hour there? What happens then?
I’m not saying pick only one thing to do each day, though that can be fun, too. I’m saying don’t plan on seeing five cities in ten days or four museums in an afternoon. You’ll always be on the go. Doesn’t that sound like work? Generally, I try to spend at least three days in any location and limit my daily to-do list to just a few things. Sometimes three days isn’t enough and a few things is too much, but it’s a safe place to start.
Keep transit to a minimum. Planes, trains, and automobiles are fun, but unless your intention is to enjoy the transit itself as part of your adventure (and for what it’s worth, I do), then the time spent in transit could be better spent enjoying yourself in that place you just left.
Multi-city travel agendas are perilous. I’m not saying don’t do it, but you should be cautious. Far too much could go wrong, and it’s possible you’ll be seeing the inside of a vehicle more than the place you’re visiting.
Planning less is one of the greatest challenges for any lover of travel. Whether it’s wanting to get the most out of a hard-earned dollar or not wanting to waste precious vacation time, everything in your being is going to want to plan as much as possible. Here’s why you should resist that urge.
The challenge of planning to do less
This is all crazy, right? Who am I to tell you your five-day, 14-city adventure isn’t going to be legendary. Well, I’ve traveled a lot, all over the world (60 countries and counting), and in all my years of travel, every time I’ve tried to do a lot, it has gone poorly, and every time I’ve tried to do less, it has been amazing.
I get it, though. There’s immense pressure for an expensive trip to be perfect. I call this “The Curse of ‘Once in a Lifetime.’” I hate the phrase “once in a lifetime” because it’s often absolute nonsense and a toxic way to think about travel. Going to Europe for two weeks? Not once in a lifetime. Seeing a zebra in South Africa? Nope. Hiking Angel’s Landing at Zion National Park to watch the sunset? Okay, that one is definitely once in a lifetime for me because there is no way I’m doing that hike again.
What I’m saying is it’s vital to push back against the idea that your next trip is the only trip you’ll ever take. If you don’t see something this trip, you can go again. The whole idea of budget travel, in my mind, is to make travel inexpensive enough that you can do it over and over again. Not, “I went to Europe once for two weeks,” but instead, “I went to Europe last year, and I’m going again this summer.” Not, “I saw a zebra in South Africa,” but instead, “I saw a zebra in South Africa, and I’m going to Zimbabwe next spring.”
If you embrace the mindset that there will be a next time, it can greatly reduce the stress in needing to see everything possible in one go. Sure, it would be great to do everything on your list during one trip, but if it’s at the cost of always feeing rushed and not enjoying any of it, what’s the point?
And if you do miss something then — oh no — you’ll have to go back. How terrible. Better start looking at flights now.
How to narrow your focus (one city, not five)
Make a to-do list. Apps like Keep on Android and Notes on iOS let you create a list and have access to it from any internet-connected device. Make a huge list! Go nuts! But as you do, figure out what’s most important. You’re never going to see it all. You’ll probably only see a fraction of it and that’s absolutely fine. What is it you really want to see or do? What are the core memories you want to create on this specific trip. As you add something new to the list, slot it in above things you currently find less interesting. Soon enough you’ll have a list that’s in a rough order of things you want to do from most interesting to least.
Now that you have this semi-ordered list, pick the things you absolutely have to do. Maybe this final curated list is just a few things. If it’s just one thing, that’s even easier! Try to keep this “must-do” list as short as possible. It will make your trip far more manageable and less expensive. If you’re able to do everything on your core list, you’ll still have the rest of the list for ideas. With any luck, you’ll find other cool things to do once you get there.
If you’re having trouble moving things down your priority list, check out online reviews. Take these with a big ol’ grain of salt, though. People love complaining, especially online. Even US National Parks get bad reviews sometimes, and these are some of the most beautiful places on Earth. That said, the text of the reviews might give you an idea what it’s like, which can be helpful. Maybe some spot is actually always crowded with tourists, or cheap souvenir shops, or something else that isn’t readily apparent from photos and write-ups.
For instance, I went to an incredibly famous castle in Scotland and found out after I got inside that it was barely older than my house. The whole thing was built from a nearly bare rock in the early twentieth century. Sure, it looks great in pictures, but knowing it’s barely older than my parents sure took the shine off it.
There’s also nothing wrong with keeping things on your to-do list for a potential future visit. Enjoy your first visit at a reasonable pace, and then you’ll know what you want to do and how to get there for your next visit.
Travel days eat into your adventure
For example, let’s assume that like most Americans, you have two weeks of vacation. You want to see as much as you can on a trip to Europe. You want to spend a few days in Paris, a few days in Amsterdam, a few days in Berlin, and a few days in London. It’s going to be great.
Except, it’s not. That’s going to be brutal. Anyone who has been to Europe is going to think the above itinerary is crazy, and yet I’ve met people who have tried. Best case, each transit between cities mentioned above is a day. Some less, some more. So for your 14-day trip, that’s one day on each end flying and at least four days to each city. Throw in one where you’re jetlagged and miserable, and suddenly your 14-day trip is actually seven. So you have roughly one and a half days in each huge city to see everything you want to see.
It’s a difficult decision, but you should try to minimize travel days on any trip, although I discuss some exceptions Chapter 4. For the most part, however, unless the transit is itself part of your trip (night trains, ferries, and so on), try to avoid it.
It’s easy to make the mistake of not leaving enough total time for a specific journey. That one-hour flight isn’t really one hour. It’s probably closer to six hours door-to-door when you include getting to and from the airport, security, and so on. Don’t expect to do much on transit days other than transit, even if it seems like a short trip.
Budget Travel that Doesn’t Feel Like Budget Travel
In all my years of traveling on a budget, I almost never felt like I was traveling on a budget. I’ve stayed at beachfront resorts in Fiji for $30 a night (as shown in Figure 1-1). I’ve explored Japan from Wakkanai to Nagasaki eating the most amazing food for less than $50 a day. I’ve stayed for weeks in the most expensive cities in the world, and I’ve done it again and again year after year.
So when I say “budget travel” I’m not talking about the quality of the adventure. I’m talking about getting the most adventure you can for your specific budget. That doesn’t always mean spending the least amount possible. It’s about spending the least amount to get the most enjoyment.
That’s what you’ll discover through the rest of this book. How to save money and selectively spend money to get the best travel possible on whatever budget you have, from the mountains (like those in Figure 1-3) to the ocean and everywhere in between. Not just for your next trip but to also make travel financially sustainable so you can enjoy regular adventures for years to come.
It’s okay to selectively spend more to get a specific experience you want. You’ll find ways throughout this book to save money on the less important things, so you can spend more on the cool stuff.
Geoffrey Morrison
FIGURE 1-3: Time to find some adventure!
Chapter 2
A Fist Full of Dollars (And Euros and Yen)
IN THIS CHAPTER
Knowing what to budget for travel anywhere
Finding ways to save for your trip
Deciding whether to go with cash or credit
Weighing the pros and cons of insurance
When many people hear the words “budget travel” they probably imagine dank and dripping hovels, eating saltines with no salt, and staring longingly as better-off travelers enjoying catered meals and 1,000-thread-count sheets. Get that idea out of your head. It’s possible to travel anywhere on a budget and have an epic time doing it.
Sure, the more money you have the more options you have, but putting off travel until you have a less limited budget might mean you’re not traveling for years — or maybe ever. The best time to travel is now and there’s no reason to wait. (Well, almost no reasons, but more on that in a moment.)
Money isn’t most people’s favorite subject, but you need it to travel. So in this chapter, I talk about how much you’ll need, costly traps to avoid, and how to save up for the trip of your dreams.
As incredible and potentially life changing as travel can be, don’t go into debt to do it. Travel is one of the most important things in my life, but I’m still the first to tell you it’s a luxury. I am always aware how lucky and privileged I am to be able to travel as much as I do, and I think that’s an important perspective regardless of how much one travels. So save what you can and plan that epic trip, but if you can’t save as much as you want to, don’t feel bad. Put your actual needs first and don’t get a new credit card just to max it out on flights and hotels. If you saddle yourself with tons of debt now just for one trip, that means you probably can’t afford another trip down the road. Another trip, or worse, something costly and more vital.
What’s a Realistic Travel Budget?
This might seem hard to believe, but you should be able to visit just about any city in the world for less than $50 a day. In some places you’ll find it difficult to spend $50 even eating at restaurants for every meal. In others, it might be tight with sandwiches and tap water. This is not including the flight, of course, but I talk more about that in Chapter 4.
Generally, that $50 is per person. However, some costs can be shared. It might be cheaper to buy some foods in bulk, lowering the per-person cost. A hotel room for one person is very expensive, still expensive but less so for two, and fairly affordable for four. Starting your budget at $50 per person, per day, though, is a great place to start.
A bit of a spoiler, but a big part of how you can make a budget of $50 per day work is hostels. I know, I know, you’re thinking I’m crazy. Your first thought about hostels is probably that they’re, at best, a foul hole that even cockroaches avoid. Your second thought may bring up a series of horror movies that have done to hostels what Jaws did to sharks. Although I go into it more detail in Chapter 5, you should know that I once shared your view of hostels, and I was wrong. I’ve stayed in hostels all over the world and in most places I prefer a hostel over a hotel. In fact, most hostels I’ve stayed in are better than hotels that cost two to three times their price. In most places hostels are safe, clean, and a great way to meet people. You can use other ways to get your budget below $50 a day, of course, but staying in hostels is one of the easiest and best ways to do it.
Travel can be more affordable than you think
When you think of an expensive location, what comes to mind? Common answers are probably Tokyo or London. How about beachside on a tropical Pacific island? You’d certainly be right about all three. There are lots of potentially expensive places to visit. I mention these three because I’ve stayed in all of them for under $50 a day. In Tokyo, that’s staying at my favorite place in Japan. It’s on the west bank of the Sumida River, with a view from several of the beds of the Skytree and the iconic Asahi Group Office Building. In London, it’s a hostel where I met one of my best friends. The hostel in Fiji was only a few steps from the beach. Not bad for $50 a day, right?
Now, I don’t want to oversell it. In the cases of Tokyo and London, it was far more of challenge to eat well while staying under $50. That’s not steak and sushi every night. Often lunch would be pre-made sandwiches from Tesco or onigiri from Family Mart. Though to be fair, in the case of the latter I’d probably eat those for lunch even if I was rich. Dinner might be an inexpensive take-away or restaurant or, even more cost effective, making something at the hostel bought from ingredients at the local market.
There were, of course, a few times when even I couldn’t stay under the $50 mark. If you want to stay in Venice in the summer, for instance, that’s going to be costly. One of the most expensive places I’ve ever visited was Dubrovnik, Croatia, during the peak of Game of Thrones. If you’re not familiar, Dubrovnik was the stand-in for the fictional capital city of King’s Landing on that long-running show. Everything in the real city was expensive. The hostel was $40 a night for a 12-bed room and all the food was amazingly expensive. That’s what I get for going to what was probably the most touristy location in the world at the time.
Other times, in other locations, even eating at restaurants for every meal I couldn’t come close to spending $50.
My hope is that this information changes your perspective on how inexpensive travel can be. Sure, $50 a day is by no means cheap, but it’s significantly better than spending $200-plus a day that I’ve heard people claim to be the bare minimum to travel.
Why $50 a day is a great place to start your budget
If you’re new to travel, $50 gives you a specific number to aim for, especially if you have plans to travel in the future but you’re not sure of the location yet (which is great!). I say $50 because that’s a good average. Depending on where you’re going, you might need more, or less, but $50 is a nice even number to begin your planning. So for a two-week trip, that’s $700 plus airfare. Conceivably, and again this depends on where you’re going, you could do an entire trip for less than $1,500.
What does travel life look like on $50 a day?
Accommodations
Roughly half of your budget will be going to your accommodation. Hostels, as I mentioned, are the easiest way to do this. Even if you’re traveling as a couple, a hostel will almost always be cheaper than a splitting a hotel. There are other options I’ll talk about in Chapter 5, like splitting an Airbnb or couch surfing, but for now we’ll say $25 is going toward some sort of place to sleep. You can spend less, for sure. I stayed in an immaculate and cozy hostel in the heart of Lisbon for $20 a night. I’ve stayed in some great hostels for as low as $15 a night. Prices will vary depending on where you’re going and when, but $25 is a good average for now.
Food
Next up is food. One of my favorite things to do while traveling is trying out local restaurants. This can be expensive though. Ideally wherever you’re staying has a kitchen. Most hostels do. This is another easy way to save money. Buy groceries and cook your own meals. Pasta goes a long way and is cheap everywhere. Some fresh bread and local cheeses have served me well all over. Generally, though, you’ll have enough in your budget to eat one local meal every day — like a local fast food chain or some epic street food. If you’re spending less on accommodation, you’ll have more money for food and “other,” the category you lump everything else into that you want or need to spend money on.
The rest
I classify everything else as “other” since it’s impossible to say what you’ll need or want to spend money on. Many museums around the world are free as is exploring where you are. A local metro ticket is likely a few dollars a day, but it’s worth it so you can see everything you want to see. Sure, some things can be expensive, but that doesn’t mean you have to avoid them. Your budget is simply a daily average. You may spend more or less of that $50 each day, so you can splurge on an expensive item one day by staying under budget another day.
For example, as of this writing, a ticket to the top of the Eiffel Tower was $30. That’s more than half a day’s budget! But you’re not doing that every day. So one day you might enjoy walking around (free) and be under budget, and the next day you can buy a ticket for an epic view from the top of the tower.
Like I said, $50 is a good place to start. If you aim for that, save up for that, but end up going a little over, that’s okay. Just don’t go too crazy. When you’re home, you’re hopefully saving for your next trip, not paying off your previous trip with interest.
If you know you want to do something expensive, like sky diving, scuba diving, surf lessons, Michelin-star restaurants, car rental, and so on, make sure that cost is included in your budget. Maybe that means you need to save more than a $50-a-day average, but maybe not.
Airfare considerations
I’ve got a whole chapter (see Chapter 4) dedicated to figuring out ways to save on airfare. It’s a big chapter because airfare is the single biggest expense of any trip. It could easily be more than half your total budget. There isn’t any one single thing you can do to save money on airfare. There are lots of little things you can do, though, and those little things can add up.
A few broad tips to keep in mind if you haven’t skipped to Chapter 4 already.
Weekends and the summer are the most expensive times to fly. Ideally, avoid both.
Airline points, via flown miles, credit card perks, and so on, can be great but
only
if you use them regularly. Once every few years is not regularly.
Some websites let you see historical prices for different routes. You can also set up alerts for price drops.
There’s surprisingly little profit in airline seats, which is to say, the same route isn’t going to be radically different in price across different airlines.
