Budget travel can be a little overwhelming for someone just starting their travel adventures, but it doesn’t need to be difficult. These 6 tips on how to save money while traveling are easy to follow and actionable. Plus, they will help you save money while traveling. This 17th post in the Travel Tip Tuesday series is from Darah and Garrett from the travel blog, Where Food Takes Us.

 

So, how do you save money while traveling?

Saving money probably isn’t the first thing you think of when you travel. Rather, you’re dreaming of that relaxing or super adventurous holiday and all the fun you’re going to have. Daydream away! But we think you can have even more fun on your travels if you save money while doing it.

Well, with ATM and foreign exchange fees, accommodation, mode of transportation, there are quite a lot of areas to save some money for the more important things in your travels. In this post, we talk about 6 ways to save money while traveling. We have put these into practice over the past year of traveling abroad!

 

1. Get a bank account that helps travelers – Charles Schwab

Exchange rates, ATM fees, it’s all just money going down the drain. However, for travelers who really want to keep some spending money in their wallet (who doesn’t?) then you should really look into the Charles Schwab High Yield Investor Checking Account. It’s a mouthful, we know, but we’re not paid to talk about it, we just really love it. 

We can use it at any ATM around the world and the fees (ATM and foreign exchange) are covered. That means we avoid exchange offices and terrible ATM fees when we need cash quick. We’ll never forget the ATM in Thailand that charged a $20 USD fee. Seriously? That’s just throwing money away!

We hope this checking account stays this awesome forever because after traveling for more than a year abroad, it has saved us a ton of money on ATM and foreign exchange fees. It’s our favorite checking account for travelers so check it out! Not only is this a great way to help you save money but it’s one of our biggest tips for being smarter with your money while traveling too.

 

2. Try a Long-Term Stay

People typically think of hostels when it comes to budget accommodation. While we agree hostels are really cheap, especially for the solo traveler, we’ve found Airbnb long-term stays to be more bang for our buck.

We love Airbnb because we can always find exactly what we need in any city we visit and we stay in a more local part of town. Having our own kitchen is also a huge plus for cooking in (more on how that saves money below). The best part about Airbnb, and this might be true with similar services, is that they offer long term stay discounts.

If your plans allow it, try to stay in one place for at least a week to capture a weekly discount or a minimum of 28 days for the monthly discount. Even if your stay is a few days short of a month, consider checking out how much 28 days would cost because it could be cheaper for you to make a booking for 28 days but leave after 26 days. 

 

3. Housesitting

Is housing too expensive in your chosen destination? We know the feeling! We really wanted to travel the United Kingdom, from Scotland down to Wales, but budget accommodation was just hard to come by. However, we found housesitting is a great way to get free accommodation in an expensive location.

We used Trusted Housesitters, a house and pet sitting service, to travel our way through the UK and stayed in many homes that gave us the opportunity to explore nearby towns and cities. Just be careful about what housesits you accept because some people don’t like the fur babies left alone for more than a few hours, which makes exploring rather difficult.

That said, we’ve also had some easy sits where the pets were easy to manage and we could explore the area for hours or even take them with us! For example, our house sit in Cardiff had two amazing dogs (pictured above) who we brought with us to explore the Brecon Beacons National Park. It was amazing!

 

4. Google Flights

The biggest hurdle to going abroad is the flight. Not only does a 10-20 hour flight sound horrific, but the price tag doesn’t help either. While there’s nothing you can do about the flight time, there’s a lot you can do about the price!

There are many sites out there that offer flight deals but our favorite is Google Flights. Not only is Google Flights so user-friendly but more times than not you can find some really great deals. You can search by an entire continent, view a price calendar and so much more, making it easy for you to plan ahead and find the best deals.  

 

5. Alternatives to Flying (Buses, Trains, etc…)

Flying is without a doubt one of the quickest ways to get from Point A to Point B but sometimes it’s not the most cost effective. If you’re looking for budget friendly transportation then look into trains, buses, and cars.

Depending on the country, trains are typically more expensive and quicker than buses. That said, they’re both great for long distances. Some pros for trains are that you’re able to stand up, use the bathroom at ease and have more room. 

The biggest benefit of buses is that they’re typically the cheapest transportation option but you can’t walk around and it’s pretty hit or miss on if there’s a bathroom or if the person in front of you reclines all the way back (so annoying).

One money saving tip for trains and buses is that if you take one at night then you save on a night of accommodation as well as your transportation. You’ll also arrive at your next destination early enough to get a head start on exploring!

As for cars, they can lead to more adventure but unless you get a great deal on a rental car then it’s probably the most expensive alternative to flying.

But wait, there’s more! We recently discovered a service called BlaBlaCar. 

How BlaBlaCar works: people who are already driving a certain route offer people the opportunity to reserve a seat in their car. It’s a lot like carpooling with your coworkers to work but paying a small fee for the ride. 

We used BlaBlaCar as an alternative to using the train (workers were on strike!) when we were in France and wanted to travel shorter distances like Orleans to Paris. That said, BlaBlaCar is only popular in a few countries. But it’s a great way to meet people and a very cheap way of getting around!

 

6. If You Enjoy Cooking

Cooking is one of the best and most underrated ways for you to save money while traveling. Sure, you want to try the local cuisine but for every meal? You can save so much by cooking in for breakfast and dinner and then eating out for lunch. Or mix and match that for whatever formula you prefer.

Not only is cooking in better for your budget but it’s better for your health. Think of some boiled/scrambled eggs in the morning with some fruit. Add some coffee and you’ve got a pretty good breakfast and best of all, it’s cheap!

A big benefit of cooking some meals for ourselves is that we’re full by the time we start exploring. This is really nice if we find ourselves in the middle of the city square, AKA the touristy part, and we don’t have to waste money on something quick in an overpriced area.

If you’re feeling adventurous you can try your hand at cooking the local cuisine. It’s become one of our favorite things to do in destinations. We sample the local food then try to cook some up in our Airbnb kitchen. We’re practicing so we can take these recipes back to the States!

 

Summary on saving money while traveling tips

Honestly, there are ways to save money in every destination (island travel is pretty hard to pull off though). The essential part of saving money is to not ruin your travel experience. Whether you’re just lounging away or going non-stop, find a good balance between saving and spending that will make your travels worthwhile and memorable because that’s what matters!

 

About Where Food Takes Us

We’re Darah and Garrett from Where Food Takes Us, two mistake-prone wanderers with a mad love for food. We quit the 9-5 life to move abroad. Now, unexpectedly, we’re digital nomads who teach English online. Life is full of surprises!

We believe in sharing budget-friendly advice and seek to offer a unique point of view on travel destinations around the world. We hope our fellow wanderers can find our words useful and in turn feel inspired to travel and eat the world!

 

About the Travel Tip Tuesday Series

Travel Tip Tuesday is a series from travelers on how to travel better on a wide range of topics. Please reach out if you have a topic you think would work for this series – as long as it’s helpful to another traveler.

 

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Thanks for reading!

Happy and safe travels.