11 WAYS TO SAVE MONEY WHILE TRAVELING!

I was able to travel for one whole year across Asia, Oceania, and Europe with only €10,000 / $11,000USD! And after reading this article, so will you. Keep on reading to find out the 11 best ways to save money while traveling.

That’s including flights, accommodation, food, activities… everything.

Traveling had always been one of my passions, and after my 25th birthday, I decided to leave France to go travel around Asia mainly, for 6 months. But now, here I am, over a year later, on a Working Holiday Visa in New Zealand, having traveled to 13 different countries on a tight budget and enjoying every single second of it. Here are all my secrets!

1. Save Up As Much Money As Possible Before Leaving

To start off on the right foot, as soon as you’ve taken your decision to leave, you will need to start (or continue) saving up some money. I left with €6,000 in my pocket (after spending €1,000 on my first one-way ticket), for 6 months. It wasn’t a lot, and I knew it, so I had to be careful. I wish I’d saved more, but in a way, I don’t. Thanks to the fact that I wanted to travel longer, I needed to find a solution to make more money. And I did!

I recommend only spending your money on essentials (accommodation & food), nothing else, and putting the rest aside. You’ll be amazed at how much money you’ll have saved up after cutting out all other expenses!

2. Limit Alcohol And Cigarette Consumption

Alcohol is expensive everywhere around the world. Even in countries where the cost of living is very cheap, alcoholic drinks are still very high up there, especially cocktails! In Bali & Thailand, I mostly bought beers when I wanted to take the edge off and party, or I’d buy the cheap (and local) alcohol in convenient stores and just make my own mix with it. I definitely regretted those nights the next day – massive headaches! But just know there still is a cheap option out there.

Cigarette prices really depend on which country you’re in. I don’t smoke, but I’ve heard that in Australia & New Zealand, one pack of cigarette ranges between $30.00AUD and $38.00NZ for a 25-pack. This is a HUGE amount! But then, in Thailand or Indonesia, a pack of 20 costs no more than €3.00! Apparently, they’re bad and disgusting though.

So, on this point, it really depends on where you’re traveling. I’ve met many travelers that quit smoking because of the huge expense it was!

Psst, check out my article on the must need apps to travel!

3. Eat Like A Local

Aaaah, my favorite topic; food! Anywhere you go, eating like a local is the best way to save a bunch of money while traveling. And you’ll be surprised at how delicious the meals are! Of course, it depends on where you go; a Pad Thai from the night market in Chiang Mai, Thailand for 60bt (€1.60/$1.75US) isn’t even comparable to a $30.00AUD BBQ in Australia.

It can be very tempting to go in a fancy looking restaurant in Bali for example because at the end of the day, prices are still a bit cheaper than Western ones. So of course you’ll want to splurge here and there, and you should! But if you limit yourself and mostly eat where the locals eat, you’ll save a ton of money, discover new flavors, and meet incredible locals.

4. Travel Slowly – a Great Way to Save Money While Traveling

Traveling slowly is my favorite way of traveling. You get to enjoy the scenery because you’re taking a 10-hour long bus instead of a 1h30min flight. You also get to stop in cities less popular and so less touristy, that you wouldn’t have gone to otherwise. Taking your time, not stressing about crunching in all the activities and flights together. AND, you get to save sooo much money by taking a bus/train instead of a flight.

And a huge bonus, is that you reduce your carbon emissions when you choose to travel slowly!

Thinking of solo traveling? Check out here if it’s made for you or not.

5. Set Yourself A Daily, Weekly Or Monthly Budget

Learn how to manage your money properly, because there will be activities, experiences or hotels that you will not want to miss out on. Without over planning, ask around and look up on the internet what the unmissable things to do are in the country or city you’re traveling to. This is a really great way to save money while traveling!

Even though you’re on a tight budget, you need to know where you want to spend your money the most. That requires making sacrifices, but it all comes down to your preferences. So, set yourself a budget to respect and you’ll be able to do things that excite you the most!

For example, in Nepal, I preferred eating only in very cheap local restaurants (which were still very yummy) for a couple weeks, to be able to jump off the 2nd highest bungee jump in the world and the highest swing in the world.

In Australia, I traveled 4,500km in 7 days in a Mercedes van, and for that, I mostly ate pasta for a week and went through Apollo, a relocation van company that charges you $1 a day for the van rental, but you’ve got a time limit.

In Malaysia, I ate noodles and rice for 2 weeks to save up for Singapore, one of the most expensive countries in the world.

I’ve slept in airports many times, to save on accommodation.

In Nepal, I did the Langtang Trek instead of the Everest Base Camp, because I still wanted to hike the Himalayas.

In Thailand, I stayed in the cheapest hostel on booking.com, and set myself a strict daily budget because I wanted to live there for 2 months.

Traveling cheap also means compromising. You just need to think ahead and choose your priorities carefully.

Check out my article on Adventure Travel in Nepal here!

6. Be Flexible & Have An Open Mind About Plans Changing

Don’t book too many things in advance. Be flexible about your plans. Be open to waiting a couple days longer in Hanoi, Vietnam and paying cheaper transportation to head on your Halong Bay cruise.

Have enough flexibility to be able to accept plans that come to you; talk to other people in hostels, maybe you could share a ride with them even though it isn’t on the date you were wanting to leave, and let it be ok!

Always ask for the locals’ opinions; don’t always trust things you read on the internet (lol), and have a flexible mindset – that’ll allow you to do something even the internet doesn’t know about.

7. Get A Working Holiday Visa

At some point while traveling, I ran out of money. I saw and experienced a lot of things without restricting myself that much, but I wanted to keep going! And most and foremost, I did not want to go back to France.

So, I booked a ticket from Thailand to Australia, invested $635AUD into a Working Holiday Visa, and found a job. Australia is really good money! I got a job as a car washer and got paid $32.00AUD an hour. $32.00 AN HOUR! TO WASH CARS!

In just 6 weeks, I was able to save over $8,000AUD. It didn’t come easy though, I set myself a budget of spending only $30.00 a week on groceries, my shared house rent was $112.50 a week, and that was it. That’s all I’d spend, besides maybe a restaurant date with my boyfriend here and there.

I restricted myself a lot, but in the end, it was worth it. Thanks to that money, I was able to keep traveling for another 5 months!

I have a rather funny story about this experience you can read here.

Several countries offer Working Holiday Visas for many passport holders, such as: Australia, New Zealand, Canada, France, Spain, Italy, Argentina, Brazil, Japan… take your pick!

You can choose to settle for awhile in one of these countries, or just go there temporarily to make money, and keep on ticking countries off your bucket list.

8. Volunteer – a Great Way to Save Money While Traveling!

save money while traveling - volunteer workaway — Volunteering in Malaysia

Volunteering in another country is the best way to lay low, get free accommodation and food (and if you’re lucky, a bit of cash as well) while exploring another part of the world. I’ve had a few volunteering opportunities in New Zealand and Malaysia, and it was really cool experiences!

I went through the Workaway website, which I wrote a full article about here, but there are others that are also great. Thanks to that, I was able to save money while discovering new cities.

In Australia, it is very common to have a “work for free accommodation” agreement with hostels. You can work around 9/12 hours a week for them (mostly cleaning) and in exchange, you don’t need to pay for accommodation.

9. Stay In Hostels Or Homestays

Hostels are an incredible way to save money while traveling and have tons of other advantages! You get to meet people from all over the world, pay such little money, be flexible, get tips from the hostel owners or other travelers, plan trips with people you’ve just met, you get free water and sometimes even free breakfast! Also, you might even be as lucky as I’ve been, and get an amazing boyfriend out of the deal 😉

Homestays are a great way to connect with locals because you stay with a family. You get a glimpse of their traditions, routines, and food habits. Prices are usually very cheap, and/or you can get free breakfast or dinner included.

Check out my article on must-have apps while traveling here.

10. House Sitting to Save Money while Traveling

House sitting is a GEM to save money while traveling! Basically, people put their houses up on a website (mostly Trusted Housesitters, KiwiHouseSitters, Workaway, AussieHouseSitters…) for however long a period of time (from 3-4 days to months), and you can apply to keep their house while they’re away. It’s that simple!

A lot of times, there is also a pet to look after, and plants to water. It’s something to take very seriously because you’ve got the responsibility of a house that isn’t yours, a dog/cat that isn’t yours… people really trust us house sitters to take care of their house and animals as if they were our own.

So if you’re ready to fully commit to the requirements of house sitting jobs, it could be a great way to save money! These websites do cost a bit of money upfront, I paid €45.00 for a 1-year membership on KiwiHouseSitters.

I’ve done House Sitting with KiwiHouseSitters and kept a 2-story villa (with a pool & spa pool!!!) for a little over a couple weeks, while the family was off to Bali. I did it as soon as I arrived in Auckland, New Zealand, to not spend money on accommodation while getting everything set up (bank account, tax number, phone number, job, apartment…) I was able to save more than $1,000NZ thanks to house sitting!

The family we housesat for was so, so sweet; they picked us up from the airport and let us spend the first night in their house while they were still there. We’re still in contact today, and they even invited us over for dinner 1 month later!

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11. Negotiating

Negotiate, negotiate, NEGOTIATE! All the time! Don’t get trapped by the tourist traps and negotiate everything!

In South-East Asia, I was seen as a target for locals because I stood out. So, every time prices weren’t indicated clearly somewhere, I knew I could negotiate to at least half the prices they were offering me.

Activities, transportation, accommodation, clothing, food… everything! Aim for half the price they’re offering you, because that’s usually the price it’s worth (if not less). At first, you’ll think you suck, but after practicing, you’ll become unbeatable, and learn to walk away when they won’t lower their prices.

Now, I’m not saying to go overboard, because some people do rely on us traveling to survive, so make sure you don’t go down too low. Just aim for a fair price for you, and the seller.

Ugh, I hate money. But with these 10 tips, you should become a pro at budget-traveling in no time! I really hope you can see that money shouldn’t stop you from traveling, because it surely hasn’t stopped me – I’m broke.

See you around the world somewhere, someday 🤍 ✈️