Traveling on a budget

[Weird Tolkienish Figure]

Any tips?

I find the money aspect is the hardest obstacle right now. Especially flight costs.

[disneysteve]

I could give some general tips but it would help to know where it is you want to go.

[bjl584]

We'll need more info. Driving might make more sense but it depends where you are going.

[Weird Tolkienish Figure]

I could give some general tips but it would help to know where it is you want to go.

I have relatives in the UK, that was high on my list. Europe is expensive.

[disneysteve]

I have relatives in the UK, that was high on my list. Europe is expensive.

I don't really know much about foreign travel. Sorry I can't help.

[rennigade]

Unless you have skymiles/points to book a flight with, flights really arent that cheap no matter what kind of "deal" you manage to get.

As for Europe...I guess you could stay in hostels and eat cheap. Public transportation is cheap. Or if you have family members just stay with them.

[97guns]

take a cruise, some are as cheap as $60/day, includes all meals and room, you dont really need much money once your on board, if your near the coast a cruise can be picked up there, no airfare needed

[snafu]

Have you tracked the figures from the on-line discounters like Expedia, Kayak, Cheap flights etc? It's less expensive to fly in 'shoulder' seasons or flight to secondary airports with less expensive, Interntional carriers. The downside of foreign carrier Asiana {Kr] is that you must go to Seoul, Cathay [Jpn] through Tokyo etc which add hours and connections.

Ground transportation, food and accommodations seem expensive but exchange rates are terrific. British Pound is now only USD 1.38. Euro is .072 thanks to the strength of USD.

[Nika]

International travel can give you the most bang for the buck. Few suggestions:

1) Go off the beaten track. Not on the American hotlist where every retiree goes and cruise ships disembark. Costa Rica will be pricier than Viet Nam or Philippines, that both have gorgeous beaches and tropical weather.

2) Go to a cheap country and go for a long time. The cost of airfare becomes a much better deal if you are going for a long while. You can go to a far away country and come out ahead, after really enjoying yourself.

3) Learn the language of whatever country you are going. Even speaking at a very basic level is a lot better than not understanding anything at all. It gives you more options, and that often brings down cost.

4) Know the country. For example, I would not like hosteling in China or even US, but in Ecuador and Argentina it is quite nice. Accomodations were great, atmosphere relaxed, and you meet a lot of long term hostelers who have been in the country for many months and can tip you off to fantastic places to go.
Know how things work in a country. For example, in the US, the closer you are to your flight/hotel stay the higher are the prices and generally less options for good deals. In many developing countries it is quite the opposite. Also, booking things after you are there get a lot less expensive. So when I traveled to these places, I would just book first 2 nights after my flight, and winged it from there.

5) For trips from US start scanning airfare as far in advance as you can, so you can really recognize a great deal when you see one. Depending on how much you spend, and if you can manage your ccs well, when running a promotion, airline cc can give you a great deal in miles. Depending on a carrier, you can engineer a free stopover to visit one additional place. Hotel CC are generally a good deal. For an annual fee, you get a free yearly night, which I usually use in a hotel that costs far more than the annual fee.

6) Be flexible and don't view the way things are done at home as the "right way". Just be open to experiences and don't have pre-set expectations and you will enjoy your trip.

[Carol33]

Look for promo or vacation packages. Also booking the earliest possible could give you good discounts both for flights and accommodations.

[anaidaa]

Travelling on a budget includes a thorough planning long before your trip. Don't be fooled by ostentatious advertising from airlines, travel agents or companies. Book a hotel that is close to all shopping areas, you may not need a rental car.

[gambler2075]

International travel can give you the most bang for the buck. Few suggestions:

1) Go off the beaten track. Not on the American hotlist where every retiree goes and cruise ships disembark. Costa Rica will be pricier than Viet Nam or Philippines, that both have gorgeous beaches and tropical weather.

2) Go to a cheap country and go for a long time. The cost of airfare becomes a much better deal if you are going for a long while. You can go to a far away country and come out ahead, after really enjoying yourself.

3) Learn the language of whatever country you are going. Even speaking at a very basic level is a lot better than not understanding anything at all. It gives you more options, and that often brings down cost.

4) Know the country. For example, I would not like hosteling in China or even US, but in Ecuador and Argentina it is quite nice. Accomodations were great, atmosphere relaxed, and you meet a lot of long term hostelers who have been in the country for many months and can tip you off to fantastic places to go.
Know how things work in a country. For example, in the US, the closer you are to your flight/hotel stay the higher are the prices and generally less options for good deals. In many developing countries it is quite the opposite. Also, booking things after you are there get a lot less expensive. So when I traveled to these places, I would just book first 2 nights after my flight, and winged it from there.

5) For trips from US start scanning airfare as far in advance as you can, so you can really recognize a great deal when you see one. Depending on how much you spend, and if you can manage your ccs well, when running a promotion, airline cc can give you a great deal in miles. Depending on a carrier, you can engineer a free stopover to visit one additional place. Hotel CC are generally a good deal. For an annual fee, you get a free yearly night, which I usually use in a hotel that costs far more than the annual fee.

6) Be flexible and don't view the way things are done at home as the "right way". Just be open to experiences and don't have pre-set expectations and you will enjoy your trip.

With regard to Costa Rica, it would be cheaper to get there than southeast asia. I spent 3 weeks in Nicaragua/Costa Rica in November, and flights were way cheaper than getting to Asia. Nicaragua is also about half as expensive as Costa Rica, and I spent 2 weeks in Nicaragua and a week in Costa Rica. Also spent 2 weeks in Costa Rica about 5 years ago, and to be honest, I enjoyed Nicaragua way more.

With regard to asia, I personally have enjoyed SE Asia the most... I've been to 37 countries and counting, and Laos, Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam are way up there in terms of the experiences I had and the people I met.

Another tip would be that it is often way cheaper to book stuff when you get there, rather than from home. Especially in asia. When I was in Indonesia I got a guided trek up to Mount Merapi to watch the sunrise, and it was about 30$.

http://alwaystrekking.com/mount-merapi/

I was just curious how much it would cost if I booked from the US, and so I emailed around when I got back. Exotissimo travel quoted me 427$

[theduc]

in my opinion... the best place to stay when traveling is with locals through Couch Surfing (www.couchsurfing.com)! I've stayed with people through out Europe and the U.S. Plus We've had people from all over come and stay with us. It's the best way to get a true local experience... plus it's a free place to stay and you make friends all over the world!

I even had a friend that got married and their honeymoon was a year long trip around the world... and most of the trip they couch surfed with people.

Note: It's not always a couch... a lot of people have spare bedrooms for their guest as well. I even stayed with a couple in Germany that had a spare computer setup for guest to look for their next place to stay.

[AsiaTraveler]

Europe is more expensive than some other destinations, but that doesn't make it impossible. My husband & I spent 12 days there in 2010 for about $2000 total out of pocket cost. The only way we were able to keep it that low was through strategic earning & use of Frequent Flier miles and hotel points as well as TONS of research for affordable accommodations, etc.

Getting the miles needed to fly overseas takes some advance planning but is very possible IF you have the ability to be approved for some new credit cards, can meet the minimum spend (usually a few thousand $ in a few months), and can use the cards responsibly, including paying them off every month.

[normajean]

I disagree with Europe being expensive. A family member just did Austria, Turkey, Check republic, and a couple other places for nothing by taking buses and staying in hostels, some of which run $10/night. Spring in Prague?