| | | | | 8. Think about shortening your visit to destinations that |
| Well you won’t be traveling to Monaco and staying | | | | are expensive and increasing your length of stay in |
| at a five star resort on a budget, will you? Maybe so! | | | | cheaper places. |
| Mostly, traveling on a budget means finding the | | | | 9. Where possible use your credit card. The exchange |
| cheapest price for the experience you want. | | | | rate is better. |
| | | | | 10. When staying in a hotel, avoid paying for |
| When traveling on a budget it’s best to keep in | | | | ‘extras’. Don’t touch anything from the |
| mind the following points: | | | | honor bar. Don’t watch the in-house movies and |
| 1. Travel in the off-peak seasons. You can save up to | | | | don’t use the hotel phone. And try not to use room |
| as much as fifty per cent off air flights and | | | | service too much! |
| accommodation costs if you plan to travel in low | | | | |
| season times. | | | | On the world scene there are some great places to |
| 2. Stay away from popular tourist spots (unless they | | | | travel on a budget for under thirty dollars a day. In Asia |
| are on your ‘must-see’ list). If you can go off | | | | you can try India, Laos, China, Cambodia, Mongolia, |
| the beaten track with your destinations, things can be | | | | Pakistan, Thailand, Sumatra and Burma. In Central and |
| cheaper to see and do and your cultural experiences | | | | South America you can visit El Salvador, Bolivia and |
| will be richer. | | | | Ecuador. If you are after a budget experience in the |
| 3. Try camping. Not only is it the cheapest form of | | | | Pacific, try Fiji or New Zealand. Over in Africa there |
| accommodation it’s a great way to get up close | | | | are some great budget destinations such as Kenya, |
| and personal to nature. It’s the best way to see | | | | Egypt, Morocco, Malawi, Tanzania, Zimbabwe and |
| National Parks and Heritage listed areas. | | | | Ghana. Don’t forget the Middle East where places |
| 4. Look for special travel offers (or packages). But | | | | like Iran, Syria and Turkey provide excellent value for |
| make sure you check everything that they include - | | | | money and wonderful experiences for the budget |
| and don’t include. | | | | traveler. |
| 5. Invest in a travel pass where you are able. Most | | | | |
| developed countries have a rail or bus transport | | | | There is no ‘best place’ to travel on a budget. |
| system where you can obtain day, week or monthly | | | | Just be prepared to look around, avoid the pitfalls of |
| passes that will get you around cheaply. | | | | unwanted costs in package deals or hotel bookings. If |
| 6. Get a work permit if you aim to gain employment | | | | you want to travel and your budget doesn’t meet |
| while traveling overseas. Working can help subsidize | | | | your expectations, be flexible and see if there is |
| places that aren’t so cheap, such as Europe and | | | | somewhere cheaper you might like to experience. You |
| Australia. | | | | could be pleasantly surprised with your stay in India or |
| 7. Look for good exchange rates on the dollar. This | | | | Iran, when you thought you wanted to go to Tahiti. |
| may help you decide which country to travel to. | | | | |