12 Surprisingly genius ideas for you to travel on a budget

Traveling is one of my all-time favorite things to do! I love visiting new places and having new adventures. There are soooo many super awesome places I want to see, but things can add up really quick!

I have found there are plenty of tricks that can help save hundreds or even thousands on any vacation! These are absolutely the best ideas that will help you travel on a budget. 

I know some of you might not believe me, but there are sooo many ways to help you travel cheaply. So many people have a bad mindset that traveling is super expensive and requires a lot of money. Honestly, you can absolutely have your dream vacation while not spending a ridiculous amount!!

Don’t believe me!!? If you read all about my Italy & Spain trip, you know I had a great time and you will not believe how much I spent for 15 days. I spent a total of $1,500!!! This includes food, flights, hotels, transportation, activities, ECT!

I know 1,500K is a lot of money! But it is an absolutely great prize for a 2-week trip to Europe. W stayed in amazing hotels, with incredible locations, and ate in really nice restaurants.

I am not an expert when it comes to traveling, but I definitely want to save as much money as I can while still having an absolutely incredible time. These tips for travel on a budget will help you save so much!

1| Set a budget

The very first thing you have to do when traveling on a budget is to create one!!

Not only will this make sure you don’t spend a lot of money, but it will also make you evaluate the areas where you might be overspending.

There are soo many ways to create a budget, but the very first step is to start researching flights and hotels for your destination. If you are not sure where you want to go, create a spreadsheet with different places and start adding costs to it. The biggest expenses are Hotel + flights. So start looking at different options to make sure you are not only creating a cheap budget but also a realistic one!

Once I have an idea of how much the trip will cost me, I start narrowing down my searches to try to save money.

You will also need to keep in mind, how much money you have to spend. I usually like to see how much it would cost me and then I take it from there.

2| Use travel perks

I am sure many of you have one of those credit cards that have a lot of discounts or points. A great way to travel on a budget is to utilize them for your trip. Personally, I have an airline credit card and I redeem miles for every purchase.

Granted, some of these might be a bit more expensive than a normal card. But the perks can be really good! When I first traveled to Spain, I was able to use miles and did not have to pay a dime!! Always a good alternative, but remember to be smart and don’t get a lot of credit cards that can hurt your credit or increase your debt.

3| Plan Ahead

This step is the very most important there is!!

I am a huge planner, so this part comes naturally. But I need everyone to get in planning mode to save MONEY!

When traveling on a budget, you will need to book all your flights and hotels ahead of time. This can save you hundreds of dollars!! Last-minute deals are not always the greatest and you will end up spending more money in the long run!

If you are thinking about going on a trip, start looking online and turn on notifications for the flights. Make sure you monitor and get the best deal!

4| Be flexible with travel days

Expenses vary on the time of year you are traveling. If you are planning your trip for the summer, it might be harder to travel cheaply. Try going on vacation during off-seasons, I always try to avoid June-August vacations. The prices will DOUBLE!!

You can also play around with the days. Flights tend to be cheaper on weekdays rather than weekends. I once saved $150 for traveling on a THURSDAY! Instead of a Friday.

When working on your budget, try looking at different dates! It might surprise you how much it changes.

5| Travel with friends

We all know hotels are one of the biggest expenses. Having to split all the hotel costs with 2 or 3 friends will really help you travel on a budget. The more people you travel with, the cheaper the trip might become.

This is also a great alternative for road trip vacays! Having to spend on a car rental or gas can add up.

6| Investigate travel deals/alternative flights

At this point, you have looked into different travel days and have gathered all the different flight possibilities. But something many people do not think about is booking a flight to another city and later traveling via train or other flight until you reach your final destination.

When I traveled to Italy. We found out it was $430 cheaper to travel to Barcelona instead of Rome. We went ahead and booked the flight, and then bought an additional $27 flight from Barcelona to Rome. In total, we saved $403!! It absolutely blows my mind how much money I saved and It only added 2 hours of layover.

Other options can also be via train. I find it cheaper to sometimes travel via train in Europe when trying to get to smaller towns. This only works if you find everything ahead of time, so make sure you book all connections when you purchase your flights.

7| stay in cheap accommodations

Don’t compromise location vs money. Cheaper is not always better when you need to commute 1h from the hotel. But there are sooo many good places to stay that have a kick-ass location. You can always check Airbnb or stay at a friend’s house.

I typically stay away from the BIG CHAIN hotels. While they offer a lot of perks, they tend to be super-pricey. My trick to traveling cheap is to find different “boutique” hotels. These are really small B&B that offer a more personal touch but do not have an extravagant hotel feel. These are always a lot cheaper and a great way to travel on a budget.

While it might be harder to find reviews on these hotels, I always recommend reading people’s experiences and checking LOCATION!!

8| stay in the center of the city + public transportation

There is nothing more time-consuming or expensive than transportation. ALWAYS try to avoid renting a car or ubering!!

It will be easier to spend a bit more money staying in a good area near a metro, rather than staying at a cheaper hotel that is just really far and harder to find your way. Big cities, especially in Europe have a great public transportation system. Always try to use them and avoid spending money!!

9| Plan your activities ahead

If you are going to a beach destination, you will pretty much be relaxing the whole time. But if you are planning a “sightseeing” or “adventurous” vacation, you will end up spending more money.

If you are going to a museum, it will be cheaper to find the entrance tickets online on the website. Avoid the guided tours and try to get as many discounts as possible.

10| Avoid some touristy areas

This one might be obvious, but whenever you are traveling! NEVER eat at a tourist site. I have spent sooo much unnecessary money having lunch when I could’ve spent half the price if I just walked a bit further. These places always hype the prices and try to have you spend more.

A great way to avoid this situation is to find different restaurants on your way to the next location or even plan ahead and find great places to eat. The same goes for water, make sure you always carry a water bottle if not you will end up paying triple the actual cost.

11 | find free things to do in each city

One of the best tricks to traveling on a budget is to find free activities to do!

There are always parks, museums, playgrounds, beaches, street art, etc. That is COMPLETELY FREE!

I have had the best times at national parks and walking around the city. You will be sooo surprised how many things you will be able to do for FREE.

I always like to pick ones that are more relaxing, like having a picnic in the park or walking by the beach. Each City/Town will have a lot to offer and simply going online will help you find awesome locations.

12| Don’t overpack/don’t check luggage.

Rather learn how to pack… Taking a carry-on bag has always been essential for me when traveling. Airlines always try to charge you a ridiculous amount of money to check a bag. Especially if you are planning on going to multiple destinations, small luggage will be easier to manage and will make sure you do not spend any unnecessary expenses on luggage.

Traveling is one of my favorite things to do and I have found sooo many great places to see for you to travel on a budget. Do not stop yourself from traveling thinking “I cannot afford that”, you will be surprised how much there is to do and see without spending a lot. Travel cheap is always the right way to do things! And if you cannot afford it right now, use these techniques to see how much money you will need to start SAVING!