The Ultimate Guide for Traveling on a Budget

HELLO fellow travelers or fellow wannabe travelers! A few of you approached me the other week asking about how to travel on a budget because YES I am a college student and NO I don’t have the funds to do all the things and eat every single meal at a five-star restaurant.

But, in my travels so far I have come across a few and tricks on how to save money while getting out there and EXPLORING! Woooo!!

I am gonna break this post down into different categories and how to save money for each:

• flights

• accommodation

• transportation

• food

• activities

F L I G H T S

How does one book the perfect flight? I believe there isn’t really an algorithm out there that can answer this question. HOWEVER, there are a few resources out there that I have found handy when looking to book my next flight.

➳ Kayak saves you the trouble of finding which airline is gonna give you the cheapest price, it does it all for you!

➳ Scott’s Cheap Flights is something I recently signed up for. It’s a free email subscription that sends a list of really cheap travel destinations and accompanying flights straight to your inbox!!

➳ Southwest Airlines is the only airline I know of that checks bags for free, so definitely take bag/seat costs into consideration when choosing an airline. Southwest also has a flight price available called “wanna go now” that sometimes offers great deals for tickets.

➳ Make sure your bag is under 50 lbs. Like really…go check right now. When we flew to Seattle, Jack’s bag was 58 lbs and he ended up having to pay $100 extra, so to avoid that at all costs find a way to weigh your bag BEFORE your trip!

A C C O M M O D A T I O N

This is where traveling can get really expensive, and thankfully I have a few key tips that could really help limit how much you spend on a place to stay.

➳ Travel to somewhere where you have relatives or family friends! Then, reach out to them and politely ask if you could stay a few nights. I was super nervous to ask my family in Seattle if I could stay the summer, but they welcomed me with open arms. You never know unless you pick up the phone and ask!!

➳ If you don’t have family around (which is usually the case) I have always found that Airbnb is the cheapest and best way to go. Sometimes you can even find a host family that will cook for you!!

CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP AND RECEIVE A FREE $40 TOWARD YOUR NEXT AIRBNB!

***TIP: Wanna know how to trick the system and create a NEW account with another email in order to get free travel credit? Open up and incognito tab on your computer and sign up using an alternative email 😉 shhhh I told you nothing.

➳ My friend Stephanie from Australia came to the states to travel for a year and told me about Hostel World. It’s especially great if you are solo traveling and wanna meet some cool people to do activities with! Of course, some hostels are gonna be sketchier than others so do your research, but there are some great options out there!!

➳ Workaway is something I am DYING to try! Basically, you stay with a host family in another country for FREE. In exchange for room, board, and most meals, you provide some sort of service like nannying, teaching English, or doing farm work or maintenance work. You only work for a few hours each day and have the weekends off, so there’s still a ton of time to explore.

➳ Au Pair World is another great way to travel and experience other culture on a budget. Sign up to stay with a host family and nanny their kids for a few months. Most of the time you also receive some pocket money for food/activities.

T R A N S P O R T A T I O N

Being that I am under 25 and can’t rent a car, transportation has been tricky. BUT, any somewhat organized city is gonna have decent public transit so that’s always a plus!

IF YOU DON’T HAVE A CAR:

➳ Use the bus system! Check out that city’s local bus system online and see if they have a “metro card” you could purchase and load with ride credit (sometimes they offer student discounts ;)). Depending on the rate, it might just be easier to have a bit of cash on you instead! This is definitely the cheapest option for getting around, BUT it is also the slowest, so if you are wanting to squeeze in a lot in one day it may not be your best option.

➳ Uber and Lyft are only expanding and are now available in even more places! I would recommend downloading BOTH apps because you will find that in some cities one will be cheaper than the other. In Seattle, Lyft is significantly cheaper. This method of transportation is a little more expensive, but it allows you to get around faster.

➳ A lot of cities are also incorporating different short-distance methods of traveling like bikes or electric scooters. These are also super cheap and are great for getting around a city that’s not very spread out. In Seattle, we have ofo and in Atlanta, an electric scooter company called Bird just took over!

IF YOU DO HAVE A CAR:

➳ Gas is gonna be your worst enemy! Here are a few practical tips for saving on gas:

don’t blast your AC, drive with the windows down!!check your tire pressure and make sure you’re not due for an oil changeuse cruize control as much as you can and try not to go over 60 mphuse the app Gas Buddy to find the cheapest put stop near youborrow a friend or family member’s Costco card to save a bit on gas

F O O D

Food is definitely the category where I like to splurge a little bit. BUT, there are still plenty of ways to save money here!

➳ Grocery shop! Yeah, it’s not as exciting but if you have access to a fridge, grab some simple breakfast snacks and sandwich stuff and plan on only eating out for dinner.

➳ If you’re more of a foodie but can’t afford to eat out for every meal, break it up like Jack and I do! Instead of three big meals a day, we eat out for two (usually brunch and dinner) and then get a coffee in the morning and a light snack in the afternoon. Usually, the entries end up being bigger than I can eat, so Jack and I often split one which also helps us save money.

➳ Groupon is a MUST! Jack and I have saved so much money by using Groupon for meals. Sometimes you can simply receive cash back, no purchase necessary.

➳ Check online or in the window for happy hour menus. A lot of the time, food or appetizers are also included at a discounted rate. It may only save you a few dollars, but every bit helps!

A C T I V I T I E S

What do you do in a new, exciting place when you are on a budget? You can always find free or discounted activities, it just may take a little digging!

➳ Limit yourself to one or two paid activities (museum, musical, art gallery, etc) and spend the rest of the time doing free ones! Here are my favorite FREE activities to do when exploring a new place:

picnic or hang at a local park, visit a farmers market, window shop in cute independent stores, go on a hike or walk

➳ Carry your student ID with you if you have one! I have found that a lot of places will give discounts to students with their IDs. If you’re not sure about a particular, it never hurts to ask.

➳ Again, Groupon is a LIFESAVER! Just look up fun activities in the area you are traveling to and see if anything catches your eye.

ONE LAST THING…

at the end of the day, it’s all about mindset. Travel may seem next to impossible, but it may just take a shift in mindset and a small change in your everyday life. Jack and I chose to make traveling a priority, so it may limit us on how we spend money back at home.

Also, how you choose to budget while traveling may look different depending on your preferences! If you would rather stay in a nice hotel but choose to eat cereal bars and pack sandwiches every day, go for it! On the flip side, if you would rather stay at an Airbnb with a shared bathroom but have money for brunch, that is also great. TRUST ME, there are ways to make everything work. Just because you aren’t getting five stars in every category, doesn’t mean it’s not worth it. The point of traveling is the experience itself. 

There you have it! I hope you found this useful, I had so much fun putting it together.

Do you know any good budgeting tips that I don’t? Drop them in the comments below!