Can You Really Travel Cheap and actually have a great vacation?
Cheap is a relative term. What is inexpensive travel to some may obviously be pricey to other people. Also, as we have mentioned before, the actual word cheap conjures up less than desirable images.
Making a cheap vacation budget
Forget the connotations of the word. It does not have to be cheap and nasty. In fact, it can be cheap and really good. Oddly enough, if you have the time, it can be cheaper to travel longer then it is for short breaks. How’s that?
If you’re looking to do a budget international trip, you have to accept that it will cost money. However, the good news is that it does not have to mean you take out a second mortgage for the pleasure.
One of the best ways to address your budget is to determine what it would cost you to stay at home. Let’s say that you include the costs of power, gas, groceries and all the daily costs that come with living.
I have a situation in South Africa (where I live part of the year) where I can temporarily cancel my satellite TV subscription for a period of time, my gym membership and suspend other essential and non-essential services while I am gone. This means that I can then take those costs out of the equation. What’s left is either rent or bond and investments.
So, let’s suppose my daily living expenses are $100 a day (that is, I have determined this to be the expenses I can suspend while I am out of the country). That means that I have a budget overseas of $100 a day. If I go for 1 month I will spend $3100. I factor in some allowance over and above of say $30 per day, airfare of $1500 and I will be looking at the real cost of the vacation (i.e. the surplus amount to be paid after my savings on the living expenses) and I know I need to have a real hard cash vacations savings chest of $2430.
Obviously if you are living frugally at home already or on a tight budget, the money you may be able to set aside could be only $25 per day or less. That’s okay. Every saving goes toward the dream vacation. You can factor in your personal savings from the above calculation and aim to save the remainder with real time monthly savings.
So, to travel internationally, in real terms, the vacation for one full month would be $2430 for my spouse and myself. For an international trip that’s pretty cheap for 2 people for a 4 week international vacation. It is doable for most average earners who have the freedom to take that kind of time off.
If you get creative, you can add to the value of going overseas by renting out your apartment/house for that period of time. This would create added income and budget…
Cheapest Deals For Accommodation
One of the best methods I use when arranging accommodation is to just cover three days or so for my first week in a destination. This will give me time to rest up and then take a look at what’s available out and about. The concept here is to find those out of the way B&B’s and small hotels that may have a vacancy for a night or two.
Some people prefer to have it all sorted so they do not spend their vacation looking for accommodation. But you really shouldn’t have to, if you’re smart about it. 
Obviously, if you go someplace in high season you’ll get the double whammy of higher prices in most establishments, including restaurants and souvenir stores and also will not have much luck finding cheap lodgings – if any. The off-season is a good time to travel – usually just on the shoulder of low/offseason. The sights are less crowded, the ambiance is more natural and not touristic and the prices are cheap.
One of the most effective ways to find your further accommodations, aside from walking the streets, is to take with you a laptop or tablet or simply use your mobile and access the internet.
Check out the HotelsCombined search engine and it will suggest the cheapest accommodation in your vicinity, filtering results from all the big operators like Travelocity, Bookings.com etc.
This approach, described above, will require you to be adventurous and flexible but the rewards outweigh any perceived lack of itinerary or planning. After all, travel should be an adventure. Going to a 5-star resort may be all well and good but what could you be missing out on?
So What's Stopping You Taking an Awesome and Cheap Vacation?
If you really start getting creative, save money on your day to day non-critical items, stop that impulse buying and all the other tips and tricks to save, you’ll be surprised how quickly you can reach that airport with tickets in hand. With some good and diligent planning, you’ll find some cheap places to travel and you are on your way.
Bon voyage, my friend!
More Tips for cheap travel
- Don’t simply always fly from A-B. Maybe a more creative route will help keep the costs down. Look for arrival and departure points that may be a little off the beaten track but will save you plenty.
- Try an itinerary in the opposite direction of the suggested and accepted routes. Sounds weird but you can definitely score cheaper costs this way.
- Avoid the high seasons. As I already mentioned, keep away from peak seasons. They are not value for money and will always guarantee a crowd.
- Be active with your credit card and frequent flyer points. I have managed 50% and more of my flights with good management of these points and miles. Some buddies of mine have actually got to Europe for free using their points and miles.