It is always not necessary to spend a fortune while travelling and exploring places. Not everyone is endowed with lots of money and who does not like to save their hard-earned money for a rainy day? Travelling on a budget serves a dual purpose, one is that you get to do multiple trips rather than spending everything on a single one and the second one is the whole experience becomes even sweeter when you are home calculating the expenses on the trip and realise you have done it on a budget. We have always kept strict control over what we are spending on a trip i.e., in other words, we travel light on a budget. Based on our experiences, we have compiled several practical tips which you can use to save some money.
Here are our top tips for travelling on a budget:
1. Selecting your destination
Some places will be inherently more expensive than others so you need to be mindful of those while choosing your destination. For example, places which are more popular with tourists, exotic places and remote areas tend to be more expensive than others. Though it is nice to think of visiting these popular places however you need to exercise discretion while making the decision.
2. Prepare a plan
Although it could be loads of fun travelling without a plan however if you are on a budget it could quickly turn into a nightmare. So, plan your travel, book your tickets in advance, book your accommodation and make itineraries for each day. Leaving everything to the last minute could prove very costly (be it flights, hotels etc.) and could cause a dent in your wallet.
3. Travel off-season
The summer vacation is the time when the entire country is out vacationing and it is also the time when the prices of everything skyrocket. There will be the added advantage of a very less crowd resulting in a more pleasurable experience. Service providers like airliners and hotels drop their prices to attract more visitors. It may not be always practically possible to travel in the off-season but it should be considered because it will save you loads of money.
4. Choose your accommodation wisely
If you are travelling solo or as a group of friends it would make perfect sense to ditch that expensive hotel and stay either in a hostel or a dormitory. These are shared accommodations and would cost you a fraction of what an individual room would. Even when you are travelling with a family, you could choose to stay at guest houses or homestays of the locals living in the area. The benefits are multiple here, one is naturally these would cost you lower, second is you would get to experience the local hospitality, cuisine etc.
5. Watch where and what you eat
Eating out all the time will certainly cost you a lot. Now you could ask us how can we carry our kitchen while travelling, the answer is you need not do that. Simple things like buying a loaf of bread and having the same for breakfast will save you a lot of money. Two simple slices of bread with butter will cost you more than probably what you will pay for a full loaf. As an example, on one of our recent trips, we had buttermilk from the hotel where we were staying. It cost us almost three times the readymade alternative available in the market. We immediately switched to that and saved some money.
6. Bargain
Most of the time the prices at the destinations are marked up so the lesson is not to accept what is being quoted. If something sounds unreasonable then bargain hard till it becomes reasonable. This is not to say that you should cause a loss or exploit the locals, one should never do that, but it is not right to pay through the nose as well for something not worth it.
7. Pack wisely
Do give careful thought to what you are packing for the trip. If you carry your wardrobe then it might cost you dearly if you travel by air. All the airliners have a baggage policy, be sure to read up on that. At the same time, if you carry too little then you may have to purchase it locally which is not a good idea. Imagine not carrying woollens heading up to mountains, you will end up spending a bomb purchasing it locally.
8. Use public transport where possible
Avoid hiring personal taxis as they charge very heavily. Sometimes it could not be avoided but try to use the local transport to get around. The buses would cost you a minimum and there should also be an option of shared cabs. If the distances are not too much then use your legs to explore, trust us, the best way to explore a place is on foot.
9. Get a local SIM
If you are travelling to an international destination then it would be a wise idea to get a local SIM. The charges will be very low compared to what your home carrier will charge you.
Hope these points will help make the most of your hard-earned money. These may not be the most exhaustive list to save your money but you can make a beginning with these. Do share your own experiences and let us know how you have saved money on a trip.
