How to Save Money for Travel
Are you planning a trip and wondering how to save money for travel? In this blog post, we will share with you tips on how to save money, so you will be able to travel the world long-term, or you will enjoy a short, but long-awaited holiday. Do you want to know how we saved money for travel? Keep on reading.
Do you want to travel the world, but think you cannot afford it with your average salary? Well, with a bit of motivation, changing your lifestyle, persistence, and a good plan, you will save money for travel easily (or at least it won't be that hard as you might have thought).
Remember that nothing is impossible, if you are really passionate about it, and if you put your heart in it.
Now, it is only necessary to define how much money you are going to need and come up with a realistic plan in how long you are able to save enough money to explore your dream destination(s).
Just before we will share with you our personally tried and tested tips on the best ways to save money for traveling the world, we cannot fail to mention one important thing.
We think it is pretty clear, but just to make sure we are on the same page, we will say it loud.
You are going to need a job. Even it would have been awesome to skip this part, to make your dreams come true, first, you need to have a salary to save money from.
We can often hear opinions that traveling is only for privileged people, who have a lot of money and who do not have to even work hard for it.
Although part of this is true, and we realize that the possibility to travel the world is a privilege and not all people have the same access to resources, we disagree that you need a lot to travel the world, of course, unless you require luxury.
As we come from the Czech Republic, our salaries cannot simply compete with salaries in the USA, Canada, UK, Australia, or Western Europe.
The average wage in our country is around 1700 USD per month. We often met people on the road who told us they do not make enough money in their home country, but we know that 99% of them made for sure more than us at that time.
We do not complain, we only want to show you, that you can save money even when you come from countries with poorer economies.
But still, we've been traveling together for more than a decade now, and hopefully, this trend will continue in the future.
Sure, today we are in a bit different position than we were a couple of years ago, but thanks to knowing how it really is like to save money from almost nothing, we feel we can share with you valuable tips we've learned along the way.
If you are dreaming about traveling, you need to save money but do not know where to start, you've come to the right place.
Twice in our lives we let our apartment go, sold our stuff, moved to another country, worked hard for a year, and saved money.
In this guide, we want to share with you all the necessary steps you need to take before setting off. Based on our experience, we are confident that you will save money for travel and fulfill your dreams.
BE REALISTIC
Probably the most important thing you need to realize before you start saving money for travel is, that it really pays off to be realistic from the very beginning.
There is nothing wrong to dream from time to time and imagine how it would be like to have tens of thousands dollars to travel, but that is most likely not gonna happen.
So before you start, create your plan based on solid data. Set your expectations right.
Are you saving money for a short, but expensive vacation? Are you planning to travel long-term?
What countries do you want to visit - how expensive are they? Let's say you want to visit Ecuador.
Do you want to take rather an expensive Galapagos Islands Cruise or explore the inexpensive inland places such as Quilotoa Loop, Cuenca, or Mindo?
But you also need to consider your income and make a rough guess how much you are able to save monthly.
Are you willing to live frugally for many months to fulfill your dream, or are you easily distracted by new passions that are achievable more quickly?
Look back at your life. We are pretty sure you will see patterns, you will realize how you act in different situations.
No one understands yourself better than you.
Looking at yourself critically might be hard, but it will help you to achieve your goals.
You can find flaws that could have put you off traveling and saving money in the past, and this time, when you have a fresh start, you will be able to avoid them and be successful.
COMMIT TO YOUR DREAM
By now you probably know that saving money for travel won't be possible without committing to your dream. The hardest part is not the decision, but the whole process, as you will have to stick to your plan as failing is not an option.
Once you have the clearly defined goal, all your future steps and decisions should be revolving around making sure you will achieve it.
Even though you should not be blinded, and you should still do your best to enjoy your current life, there is nothing wrong when you will be getting up and going to bed with the dream of yours in mind.
Every day you can review how closer you got to have enough money for your future journey.
It does not have to be necessarily positive, but in case you slipped, you will know what to do better the next day.
We remember our days in Canada where we were working for a year and saved there money for our year-long trip around South America and Central America.
At that time we were super-motivated, and no matter how hard the year was (we are grateful for the experience though), we spent the time planning our trip, and doing our best to make it happen.
By the way, finding the right motivation is easy. Just look at the pictures of Iguazu Falls, Salar de Uyuni, or Patagonia.
FIGURE OUT HOW MUCH DO YOU NEED TO SAVE FOR TRAVEL
By deciding that you will do your best to save money for travel the analytical part does not end. Of course, you need to figure out the final number you want to achieve, the number that will give you the freedom.
There are several ways how to do it.
You can set a goal, and say that once you reach it, you are going on a trip. You will buy a flight ticket the next day, and that will be it.
On the other hand, you can say that you will be saving for let's say a year, and then your long term travel plans will be based on how much you were able to save in such an amount of time.
When planning a short-term vacation, it is a bit different. You must tell your employer when you will take time off.
This way you know how much time you have to save money, and it can be your advantage.
If you save more, you can afford a more luxurious vacation, or you can simply keep it on your account and leave it as a base for your next trip.
How much money do you need to save for travel immensely depends on your final destination(s).
One of the most popular places to travel is either Southeast Asia, Central Asia, and some countries in South America and Central America. The reason is simple.
The cost of traveling there is low when you compare it to the cost of traveling in Europe, the USA, Australia, or New Zealand.
Do thorough research, and look for information on how much things cost in a country you would like to visit.
Search for prices of food, accommodation (here you must define whether you are willing to sleep in cheap hostels, or if you require a higher level of comfort), transport, activities.
Know the top attractions you would like to see in every country.
Even when, for example, Peru is quite a cheap country, visiting the highlight of Peru, Machu Picchu or hiking the Inca Trail doesn't come that cheap, and you need to add extra money to your budget.
In general, to figure out how much money you need to save for travel, you have to know where you are headed, and you must know your travel style and be comfortable with it.
When we were ready to leave Canada, we knew we can be on the road for approximately one year (we budgeted around 40 USD per person per day), but it meant that we had to often live quite frugally.
We usually aim to travel on $50 a day, but our budget was even lower this time.
There were days when we were seeking a bit of comfort and we asked ourselves why not to pay for a more expensive room when we can afford it.
But in the end, our more responsible selves won as we knew we would regret it later.
CONSIDER UNEXPECTED EXPENSES
In real life, you must count on unexpected expenses. When you are still saving money for your next trip, your washing machine may break down, your car may need repair, or public transport in your city can cost more that year.
But unexpected expenses are very common even when you are already on the road. You can miss a bus, so you will have to pay for another ticket.
Underestimating your unexpected travel expenses is one of the biggest travel mistakes you can make.
Or your phone might be stolen - this is what happened to us in Bogota - and you will need to buy a new one in a foreign country.
In Westfjords, we had a flat tire, which we had to fix.
That's why it is always better to have a financial pillow for an unforeseen event. It would be very unwise to leave your home without having at least a couple of hundred dollars you can use in case of an emergency.
Or ask your parents or friends if they would be willing to lend you money when you get into unexpected trouble.
Rule number one is that you should always have at least money for a flight ticket back to your home country.
TRACK YOUR EXPENSES BEFORE YOU START SAVING MONEY (AND DO NOT STOP)
One of the best tricks to save money is to track your expenses. Nowadays, there are so many tracking apps out there, that you can choose the one that works the best for you.
We use an app called simply Wallet, and we write down all our expenses and earnings. It is pretty useful, but there is one essential thing. Be honest and do not cheat.
You need to write down really all your expenses, even those small ones, such as your everyday cup of coffee.
This way you can easily evaluate what for you spend your money on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis.
There will be rent, electricity, internet, in general things you cannot that easily cut off, but a large part of the expenses are grocery shopping (you can always shop cheaper) or money you spend to enjoy your free time.
At the end of the month, look into the app, and it will help you figure out in what segment you can save more money.
We use the tracking app even when we travel, so we always know how much things cost in a foreign country, and using the app is also a habit we brought to our everyday life.
When we need to save money, thanks to this feature we can look into our expenses, and see, where is the room for improvement.
Tracking your expenses is also useful when traveling long term, so you can quickly know if you are staying on the travel budget or not.
OPEN SAVINGS ACCOUNT
If you are serious about saving money for travel, you should open a savings account. Keep your regular account and when your wage arrives, leave on the account only money you will need to run your household. The rest should be sent to the savings account.
Opening a new account is nowadays free in many countries, and this little feature will help you to keep your money separated.
Make a mental note that you cannot touch money on your savings account.
If you have some money left on your regular account after the end of month, you can always transfer them to the savings account, to make sure you won't spend it for things you do not need.
This tip has also a placebo effect.
The savings on our savings account will always grow, and this trend will keep you motivated and organized all the time.
If you have an online banking account, you can even set there a goal of how much money you want to save, which is also very helpful.
CUT UNNECESSARY MONTHLY EXPENSES
When you look at your monthly expenses realistically, we are pretty sure you will find things that you do not have to buy. We are talking about everyday treats such as coffee or cakes, but also about concerts or cinema tickets.
We also think you do not have to buy new clothing every month or go to a party every Friday.
To be successful in saving money, sacrifices must be made. If you are really serious about traveling, we believe you won't find the new rules that harsh.
We are not saying you cannot buy anything, but on the other hand, the more you will save, the faster you will start your adventure.
You can find online thousands of tips on how to cut unnecessary expenses.
From skipping the morning coffee, canceling the gym membership (jog outside for free), visiting restaurants less to moving to a cheaper apartment.
Your imagination can run wild here, and it is only up to you how fast you want to save money for travel.
As we've said at the beginning, if you are committed to your dream, you won't find changing your lifestyle that hard. The more you save, and the more new rules will be strict, the shorter will this thrifty phase lasts.
DO NOT OVERTHINK IT
We know you are saving money for the trip of your life but on the other hand, it is necessary to let off steam from time to time, to stay motivated.
You are not a robot.
We believe you are a down-to-earth person, who can distinguish between unnecessarily splurging, and one-time treat. If all of your friends go to a concert you want to see so badly, go with them.
If your partner has a birthday, go out for dinner. Even though it would be much better to be strict all the time, you still need something to look forward to, that is not in the far future.
I and Martin live pretty economically, but although we didn’t buy many clothes when living in Calgary, we still had to buy a proper winter jacket and winter boots.
Those were essential things to survive a super cold winter in Calgary.
We from time to time went to the cinema, visited many museums, twice we attended the NHL game, and we also bought tickets for Calgary Stampede.
Thanks to it we always had something to look forward to, and this way the waiting for our year full of travel was more bearable.
DO NOT BUY THINGS YOU DO NOT NEED
When saving money for travel, it is absolutely necessary to distinguish between wants and needs. We live in a materialistic world and got used to the fact that we can buy almost everything in no time.
If you've committed yourself to save money, you simply have to cross out things you do not need for your everyday life. It sounds hard, but it is actually much easier.
If you do not know where to begin, write down only things you cannot live without - and by those things we mean essential things like food (no junk food).
To save money, we recommend you go shopping only once or twice a week.
This way you won't be distracted by shelves overflowing with things you like but do not need. We are pretty sure that you can wear a year or so only clothes you already have in your wardrobe, so you will avoid shopping centers in general.
CHANGE YOUR HABITS
To save enough money for vacation in a short amount of time, you will most likely have to change your habits. That is necessarily not bad.
Instead of going to the gym, go out jogging. We do it all the time. Running outside is free, and it is great to breath fresh air.
It is fine even in winter, even though we must admit it was a bit uncomfortable in Canada when it was -20°C all the time.
Instead of going regularly to the cinema, join a library club. Most of the popular movies are based on the books anyway, and books are often better as they provide their readers with more details.
Learn how to cook. Eat healthier. Fast foods are not only expensive, but the food is crap.
You will also find this skill useful when on the road, as you can find good hostels with kitchens in order to save money while traveling.
Saving money will help you to get out of your comfort zone, you will learn new things, and who knows, you might never get back to your old habits anymore.
When you decide to save money for travel, it is a unique opportunity to give up your unhealthy habits.
Except for stop eating unhealthy food, you can also quit drinking overly sweet drinks or even quit smoking. We think smoking is nowadays really outdated, and if you've already started tracking your expenses, by now you know how expensive it is.
Well, we think everyone knows, but it is often a shock to see how much people spend on cigarettes monthly.
The same goes for drinking.
Simply put, saving money for travel can help you realize your bad habits, and you can replace them with the good ones - of course, that is very subjective.
DO NOT THROW AWAY THINGS, FIX THEM
Rule number one. If you can fix it, do not throw it away. This should be a rule incorporated in your everyday life, but you need to follow it even more carefully when saving money, and it does not need to be only for travel, but for anything.
If you want to save money and practice sustainability as well, fixing things is a great way how to be more cautious and responsible.
When you rip your favorite jeans, or when your socks have a hole, take a needle and thread, and start sewing. If you've never done that before, check out videos on Youtube.
We know that you must invest your time in fixing things, but not only you will learn something new, but you will also save money for your trip.
COOK AT HOME
The real game-changer in saving money is cooking at home. We love eating out, but we prefer to prepare our own food.
This way it is very easy to save money, but you also exactly know what you eat. Many people eat in restaurants daily, and even though we understand it is much more comfortable because cooking at home takes time, it is also much more expensive.
Home deliveries are convenient, and within minutes you can eat Indian, Chinese, or Japanese cuisine. It is very tempting. But if you really want to save money, you will have to give up eating out and learn to cook.
To stay persistent, it is necessary to figure out what you are going to eat, do shopping, and then find time for cooking.
The internet is full of recipes, and if you are a complete beginner, you will find there simple recipes that usually take up to thirty minutes to finish.
If you see visiting restaurants like a way to socialize, you can invite your friends over from time to time, and cook together.
SELL STUFF
In the final stage of saving money for travel, you can sell stuff you do not need. Of course, you can do it even when preparing for a short journey, but in that case, choose carefully things you would like to get rid of.
Selling stuff is quite a quick way how to reach your magical number.
Many people sell everything they possess such as furniture, car, or even a house.
We think you do not have to be that strict unless you completely want to change your life and start over. Before we started our travels, we sold clothes we did not use anymore, and furniture in the apartment we rented.
In New Zealand we bought and then resold the car when we were ready to leave the country.
Today selling stuff is pretty easy, every country has a platform to sell used things, and usually, the sale is fast and safe.
TELL YOUR FRIENDS
If you plan on saving money for travel, you should not keep it as secret. Tell your friends or colleagues at work. Reaching the goal then will be much easier.
Support from friends is very helpful, and it will keep you motivated, once you say that aloud.
When your close circle knows about your dreams you also do not have to make excuses why you do not want to go to restaurants anymore, or why you don’t want to buy that pretty dress in a store.
Everyone will know that you are in a certain stage of your life when you need to live more frugally, and if you have really supportive friends around you, they will understand your motives.
You might even become an inspiration for many people, and who knows, they may even join you on your path.
Travel Insurance
We never leave home without travel insurance that was designed to cover our expenses if something goes wrong during the trip.
Travel insurance protects against theft, flight delays, injury, illness, cancellations, and much more.
World Nomads provides travel insurance for travelers to cover their trip essentials, including sports and adventure activities.
SafetyWing is affordable travel insurance for backpackers, long-term travelers, and digital nomads.
Travel smarter and safer!
FIND EXTRA INCOME
To save money quicker, it is a good idea to find extra income. It is no fun, it is exhausting, but having a part-time job will really speed up the process.
We lived abroad twice.
In New Zealand and Canada. In both countries we took as many shifts as we could, sometimes we even worked two weeks without a pause, just to make enough money.
In Canada, I had a full-time job from Monday to Friday, and on Wednesday and Thursday I took extra shifts on a hotel's front desk, so I worked 14 hours a day, plus sometimes extra shifts on weekends. Martin did the same.
We did not see each other as often as we are used to, and some days were really challenging, but when looking at the experience retrospectively, it was really worth it.
Had we needed to save money for travel again, we would have done it again in a heartbeat. It is not possible to work this way too long, but with the right motivation, the year flew by too fast.
FIND FREE THINGS TO DO
When you cannot spend money on unnecessary things, it is a great time to discover what you can do in the city where you live for free. We think you will be surprised by how many activities can be done for free.
Cultural events, exhibitions, or sports, these are only a few things that are sometimes for free. As we live in Prague, we often look for free things to do.
We have even written a full blog post on free things to do in Prague.
Find a website that features free things to do in your city and sign up with your email to receive updates.
Thanks to it we learned there is no entrance fee in Municipal House in Prague on certain national holidays.
Be creative, be active, and surely you will find exciting things to do that will not ruin your efforts.
DEVELOP NEW WAYS TO EARN MONEY
We know you worked really hard to save enough money for travel. We believe travel will change your life.
And we also hope that this whole journey, not only the practical part, but even all those preparations will show you what you are capable of, and you might even find out new ways how to earn money on the road.
Believe us, you will learn so many things. When traveling, we came up with an idea to start a travel blog, which is today the main source of income. Thanks to it, we are location independent and can keep building our business.
But there are so many other ways how to make money.
You can create content, write posts for others, teach English abroad, set up websites for companies. Well, there is an uncountable number of options.
Your creativity, passion, and a bit of luck can ensure that the travels will never end unless you want to, and you can both save and make money on the road.
To save enough money for travel can be time-consuming and challenging as well.
You will need persistence and supportive friends and family to stay on the path.
It can happen that at some point you will be down, and negative thoughts will flood your mind. Try to keep a positive mindset all the time, and when the bad thoughts appear, do not let them grow.
It is ok to slip occasionally, but even more important is to get back better and stronger.
Even though the journey of your life might seem far away, always think of saving money to travel as a step number one. It is the first and most important step on your journey.
If you dedicate the effort to your dream, you will enjoy your travels even more later, because you will always remember how much you had to sacrifice for your happiness.
Travel Resources
Here you can find links to all the travel resources we use and which you might find helpful when planning your next holiday.
Accommodation: When looking for accommodation, we usually search hotels via Booking.com or Hostelworld.
Tours: Although we love to travel independently, some places are better to visit with a guided tour.
We prefer GetYourGuide for its easy-to-use interface and solid reputation. Another great alternative is Viator.
Rental Cars: When going on a road trip, we always use Rentalcars.com, a reliable site for booking a rental car in advance.
Flight Tickets: When looking for flight tickets, you can search Skyscanner to find the best price.
Travel Insurance: World Nomads and SafetyWing cover against risks of travel.
