How To Save Money When Travelling – Five Fantastic Tips

Money should never be a barrier when travelling, but you shouldn’t come home with a crippling debt either. You can have some great experiences, and at the same time, not rack up a massive debt, not starve yourself and be able to go back for more. If you’re clever about it, you can save money while travelling, allowing your budget to stretch further.

Tips For Saving Money When Travelling

Budgeting is vital if you’re on a long trip but also helps for small trips. Put simply, the more money you have available the more you can see and do. Sometimes budgeting is different depending on where you go, for example, if you’re in a developed country it’s cheaper to cook your own food. However, in a developing country, it may be easier and cheap enough to eat out (away from tourist spots). Though, obviously, this is only worth thinking about if your hostel or other accommodation has a well-equipped kitchen.

How much you need to budget will also depend on where you travel. Some countries are just brilliantly cheap, others really aren’t. But when you travel you want to make your money go as far as possible, regardless of where you are.

For tips on saving up for your travels, read this post.

Luckily, there are some strategies you can use for saving money on your travels, whether you are travelling Europe, America, Asia or anywhere else in the world! Here are my top tips for saving money as you travel, wherever you go:

1. Make Friends

Of course, you want to meet people and make friends when travelling, it’s part of the fun. You’ll want some companionship on your journey, but did you know that making friends can also help you save money? It’s a mutually beneficial relationship, as you’ll help them to save too. It’s a mutually beneficial relationship. How can they help you save money? There’s a number of ways you can save each other money:

Firstly food. Buying small amounts of food gets expensive if there’s a group you can buy bigger packs, share the food and the cost. Cooking in a group is also fun, and a great way to get a good meal. Whenever me and Dave cooked in a group whilst travelling we also ended up with cake (bonus)! You can share snacks on bus journeys, buying multipacks to spread the cost. If you don’t want to cook you could go out and have a sharing platter – these generally give plenty of food for a group of hungry backpackers.

You can also share dorms with these people and if there’s a fairly large group, bigger dorms tend to be cheaper. This comes with the added benefit of knowing everyone in the room, especially if you’re on the same trip and so going to sleep and waking up at similar times.

Group rates may be available for certain activities, plus you can all share tips on where and how you can save money. Others may know where’s cheap to eat, where the best deals are etc. Not to mention, with any luck you’ll have a free bed all over the world.

2. Sacrifice Your Privacy

This can be difficult the first time, but you soon get used to it. Dorm beds in hostels are usually much cheaper than private rooms (especially in developed countries). The bigger the dorm, the cheaper the bed tends to be, so you can draw a line on how cheap you go.

And don’t worry too much about being able to sleep in a dorm, the majority of backpackers are respectful of each other. Most travellers will try not to make noise if the lights are off at night, or if they are leaving early. Of course, you get some idiots, but then again you could get a VERY noisy couple next door in a private hotel room and not be able to sleep. Believe me, if you’re tired you will sleep.

Another plus point of a dorm room is that you can guarantee you’ve got fresh bedding  – you’re generally the one to put it on.

Though one little note, I’d advise not having a dorm with an en suite if possible. One toilet between six strangers is not the best idea, you can guarantee that person who takes FOREVER in the shower will get in just before you have an urgent call of nature.

Tip 3: Drink Tap Water

I know it sounds stupid, but seriously, drink water. Use refillable water bottles. Bottles of pop (and water) are expensive, so drinking ‘council pop’ (aka tap water) will save you money in the long run.

If the tap water is unsafe to drink, many hostels have a water cooler hidden away somewhere that you can refill from, though you may need to have a search around or ask. There are also plenty of ways you can treat water to make it safe to drink, such as a Life Straw or Liberty Bottle.

Another plus point to using your own refillable – you are helping the planet. An incredible 80% of plastic bottles end up in a landfill. And they are going nowhere, so they are terrible for the environment. In fact, from production to being discarded, plastic bottles are terrible. So help out the environment, and your budget, by using a refillable bottle and drink tap water (but don’t forget to make it safe first if you need to).

Need a decent refillable? Check out my Hydro Flask Review.

3. Only Buy What You Need

This may sound obvious, but only buy what you need. Don’t go splashing out on your first day of a trip to find you’ve got to really tighten your belt a few days later.

Alcohol, for instance, is expensive and not really needed. I’m not saying go tee-total, just be sensible. Don’t sit in the hostel, alone drinking a litre of goon, it’s not healthy for you or your bank balance. I once met a guy once who was living off the free pasta and rice that the hostel supplied, but had to have a pack of four cans every night. I doubt he experienced much… If there’s a group having a night out fine, let your hair down, you don’t want to miss the nightlife, that’s an experience in itself (especially if you’ve got a group of friends to experience it with). Simple choices can make this cheaper, such as drinking the local poison, avoid bottles and share pitchers.

Another needless expense can be coffee and tea. Luckily, a lot of hostels supply these for free, so fill up a thermos flask and take it with you, but don’t go out buying it. Little spends like this add up quick, so if you don’t need it, don’t buy it.

Also, don’t go rushing out to buy Souvenirs on your first day. They’re a pain to lug around anyway! If you want souvenirs, leave it till the end of your journey to see if you have the money and make life easier. Or make sure they’re small and usable on your trip.

 

5.  Don’t Use Private Transport

Seriously, private transport is the worst! Taxis are expensive, so don’t use them. And if the driver realises you’re not from the area, they can get even more expensive. You may need them every now and again, but avoid where you can.

Instead, walk where you can, as it’s a great way to explore. Personally, I love getting to a new place, dropping my bag off, grabbing a map and exploring the surroundings. It’s a great way to find your feet and the general ‘feel’ of the place. Getting lost in a new city is half the fun.

If you’re on a time limit (or if you’ve just landed in an airport) walking may not be an option. But there’s generally a train/tube/bus service available. Although these can be awkward with a big bag, they’ll be much cheaper than a taxi. In big cities, you can normally purchase cheap tickets, like day tickets or a week pass. These are great if you’re sticking around for a bit. Or a city card often includes public transport.

Read about my adventure with the IAmsterdam card in this post.

A Little Extra Note

I hope you find my top five tips useful. But there is one big tip I didn’t put on here as it’s not what you do, it’s more of a thought process. I feel that it’s the most help when having to live cheap:

Don’t see money as money. Instead, see money as a night in a hostel or an activity you want to do, you pick. I always saw money when travelling as a night in a hostel. When looking at the price of something I thought “Is X worth Y amounts of nights in a hostel?” For example, is that litre of goon, on my own worth a night in a hostel? For me, no. Is that skydive worth four nights in a hostel? For me, yes. And I still do it when I’m at home. That is the best tip I can give you.

Travelling doesn’t have to be expensive. You can easily cut your costs down to travel more and have all the experiences that you want. The above are five ways I normally save money when travelling. Do you have any more tips? Leave them in the comments below.