19.09.2018 • travelling on a shoestring

1. plan your trip in advance
before leaving for your next adventure you should plan your travel route. find out which places you want to visit & how you can connect them the best way. if you want to take part on guided tours or special trips don`t forget to make reservations !! furthermore you should book your return flight & hostels in popular locations before taking off to your journey.

2. travel in low season
travelling in low season means you have to deal with very humid climate. it might be pretty hot or pretty rainy sometimes BUT there are a lot more advantages compared to high season travelling. everything will be cheaper .. scooter, food, hostels .. everything !! there will be less people on popular places & you will get more special tour offers, room upgrades or all day happy hours !!

3. choose the right accomodation
backpacker hostels often offer dorms or private rooms with shared bathroom. breakfast is mostly included. furthermore they often have free bike rental, laundry service or even airport pick up .. check if you need any of these offers !! tipp: ask for room upgrades or special discounts. especially in big cities `airbnb´ might also be a possibility to find a good place to stay.

4. eat where the locals do
the best way to get to taste traditional food is to visit the local food courts or night markets. various food stands offer fresh, tasty & cheap dishes cooked in huge pots or grilled over the fire. a great experience for everyone who wants to get in touch with local traditions & local people themselves. furthermore the food is super tasty & much better than in most of the touristic restaurants !!

5. compare & negotiate the prices
if you want to do an organized tour you will be overwhelmed by the masses of `extra special cheap tour offers´. compare the different offers, inform yourself about the companies & find out what the price is including or not !! furthermore you should read reviews of other travellers or search for insider tipps on travel blogs to find the best tour offer for you. by the way it is common in most countries to negotiate the prices (except in restaurants or food stands) .. so don`t hesitate to do this !!

6. search for alternatives
this sounds very theoretical. but especially in questions of transportation this can help a lot when travelling on a shoestring. mostly public transports are much cheaper than taxis or private transports & even if there`s no public connection you can find alternatives: `Uber´ & `Grab´ taxis or tuktuks can be found almost everywhere & cost half of the price you would spend on a taxi. furthermore renting a scooter is always a good option .. especially if you like to visit a lot of different places this might be the best & cheapest way to go !!

7. organize your expenditure
the best way to get local currency is to withdraw money from ATMs .. changing money at exchange offices can be really expensive !! then you should have a plan about how much money you are going to spend in the country you visit. try to withdraw the amount you will need at once .. so you don`t have to pay ATM fees twice. furthermore i would always recommend to write down your expenditure & to sum it up in the end !!

8. enjoy the little things
there is a lot to see in our big world but remember you don`t have to do or see everything !! there is no need to visit every tourist attraction at one place. often the spontaneous & unorganized things are even the best ones !! how about drinking a can of beer at the beach instead of having a cocktail in an expensive lounge bar ? or what about going snorkeling in the reef instead of booking a whole diving trip ? try to enjoy the little things !!

9. make use of special offers
especially for students there are a lot of discounts. with the `Isic Student Card´ which can be claimed at any time & will be valid for one year you get free or cheaper entries all over the world !! but even for `non-students´ there is a huge amount of special tour offers & various discounts. just gain information & make use of these offers !!

 

1o. travel together
it is always easier when travelling together. you can take care of each other & help the other one in case of illness or injury. but it is also much cheaper !! you can share one room, one scooter, one beer (ok no !!) & this will be much cheaper for two people than for one single person. furthermore shared happiness is double happiness, isn`t it ? so take your travel buddy & there we go !!

hope you enjoyed my post !!