How to Travel On a Budget
It’s hard being a broke college student but wanting to travel the world while you’re still young! I often get asked how I’ve been able to afford my recent trips such as a week long trip in Paris, a 2.5 week trip to Spain, Portugal, and Morocco, and my upcoming trip, London and Amsterdam for the holidays. I definitely work my a$$ off to pay for these trips because I am really passionate about seeing the world, however, I have found some tips and tricks that have helped me along the way.
A majority of the cost of trips comes from paying for the flights and accommodations. Websites like Expedia, TripAdvisor, Booking.com, and Airbnb are often discussed when planning trips, so I included some apps and websites that don’t always have the spotlight, check it out below!
Airfare Steals and Hotel Deals
Student Universe is a website that provides insane deals to students around the world. Even if you are not a student, if you are 26 and under you can get access to these amazing deals as well! I have had really great experience with this website so far..it’s my go to when looking for airfare and hotels!
Skyscanner is another great website that will search other sites and find the best price for the days you would like to travel. Even if you aren’t sure where you would like to travel, you can search everywhere and Skyscanner will find the best deals for that month.
Airfarewatchdog tracks the best deals that airlines have to offer. They also have a twitter page which tweets alerts for different flights. This can be insanelyyyy tempting and make me want to book a flight everyday! lol!
Skiplagged is new to me but I already love it! I am using it to plan a possible spring break trip, but I am unsure where I want to go. No fear! Skiplagged is here!! This easy to use app and website allows you to plug in your departure airport and dates, then it does the rest! The app/website shows travel deals for an endless amount of destinations. Definitely a “must!”
I have never used Omio before, however I have explored it and it definitely provides major deals that seem unbelievable. Omio focuses on transportation including flights, buses, and trains; this would come in handy if you planned on backpacking through Europe!
Although I have not booked through Hopper before, I have tracked certain flights with the app before. Hopper notifies you when a flight price goes up or down and tells you when the best time to buy the flight is. Very essential travel app!
Since you have your flight and hotel information now…its time for the fun part: excursions and things to do!!! This is always my favorite part of the trip because it gets me 10x more excited than I already was. However, trying to find the best price for the best quality excursions can be fairly hard so make sure you check reviews, compare prices, and check what is included in the cost. That being said, here are some apps and websites that can help with planning your itinerary.
Finding Things to Do
GetYourGuide is one of my top, if not my most, used traveling app for finding things to do. They will sometimes have sales which lowers prices even MORE! So many excursions and attractions to choose from, it almost makes it hard to pick.
Viator has also helped me plan a good amount of my trips because the website is super easy to navigate and helps me find just what I’m looking for. GetYourGuide and Viator are the two apps I need to have when figuring out my travel plans.
TripAdvisor is my go to for everything, so why would I even leave it out now?? I love trip advisor because you can ask other people questions about the things you are interested in doing and you get responses you can count on.
I haven’t used Klook before, but I have heard it is similar to GetYourGuide and Viator, so I will be trying it out! Let me know how you like it!
Now that most of the trip is covered, there isn’t much more to touch on. However, small details also can make or break a trip! Throughout the last couple of years of traveling, I have learned some valuable tips and tricks that can make traveling easier.
Tips and Tricks
When visiting a new city or country, try to plan at least one thing to do per day while being there. This helps to see the things that are most recommended while also being able to go with the flow. When I visited Portugal, Morocco, and Spain with my friends, we were all a mix between intense planner (me) and go with the flow, so this ensured that we would be able to meet halfway.
Check out websites that give student discounts such as StudentBeans and Unidays. Even though some discounts are only 10%, they add up and can help to pay for a meal or part of the hotel.
Everyone thinks it won’t happen to them, but print out a copy of your ID or passport and put it in the bottom of your suitcase incase your bags get lost or stolen. This happens more than you would think, so please, please, please be smart!!
If you travel to other countries, their wall adapters are different so this worldwide adapter helps you in any situation. I highly recommend buying one, you can still even get use out of it in your home country!
Create a maps page on Google Maps to plan out your stay! To access, go to Google Maps, select “Menu", scroll down and select “Your Places,” to the right it will say “Maps,” and once you click on that you will have the option to create a new map. Here is an example:
While there are many tips and tricks, it is mainly just a learning process. There may be breakdowns and problems, but it all helps to build you into a better traveler! I hope this post inspired you to book a flight or taught you something new! Comment your tips and tricks below and we can all learn from each other!
xoxo
