Here at Meet us on the Road we’re experts of travelling on the cheap! We’ve travelled all over the world and always aim to spend as close to 15 euros / dollars / pounds per day (or sometimes even less). How do we do this? Read on for our top money saving travel tips and tricks so you too can travel the world on a budget and experience the most that travel has to offer. But first…
Why travel the world on a budget?
Travelling the world on a budget like this isn’t just to save money (although that’s one very big positive). It’s also to experience places and things that you otherwise wouldn’t in a normal travel itinerary. Using non-standard methods of transportation such as hitchhiking, and staying at other peoples houses using apps such as Couchsurfing, you discover a new side of travel. Not one of beaches and luxury hotels, but of people, stories and alternative points of view. Eating in local restaurants where there is no English language menu, or visiting towns completely off the tourist map you will see a new side of travelling.
How to fly for the cheapest price
This is one area that most people know well, but there are some tricks and tips to finding cheaper than usual flights. In terms of time, 3 months from departure is usually the sweet spot for the best prices. Flying mid-week is usually cheaper than Friday to Sunday, and often unappealing times of day are the best deals.
Jack’s Flight Club sends out weekly newsletters with some insanely cheap deals on flights, but really requires spontaneity and flexibility to make the most of. For more information on Jack’s Flight Club, click here.
One other website is Kiwi.com, which checks for the cheapest price for you from multiple other websites, similar to a comparison website. That way you can be sure you are getting the cheapest price. Check flight times and prices here on Kiwi.com.
Another tip is to use a VPN like NordVPN to check flight prices as if you were booking from another country. NordVPN allows you to change the location you appear to come from when using the internet, and often cheaper countries have better deals on flights than those in say Western Europe or the USA. VPNs have other benefits too when travelling, read more below!
Finding the best hotel deals
When it comes to hotels there are a few big players that dominate the market. Booking.com is the biggest, and often the cheapest in our testing, consistently delivering the cheapest price for the same hotel based on other websites. This is improved further with their loyalty VIP program; the more you use them the more money you save in the long term. Check out hotels on Booking.com here.
In Asia, the best website to use is Agoda (which is actually owned by Booking.com). Agoda has the most listings and usually the best prices for the same accommodations when travelling in Asia. Check out hotels on Agoda here.
For hostels, Hostelworld is the best app to use. It usually has the biggest selection of hostels to choose from and often the cheapest prices too. You can check out Hostelworld here.
Before booking anything on the above apps, you should always check the accommodation out on Google maps. This has two purposes; Firstly to ensure the reviews in the app match that on Google, and secondly because Google maps will often show you the price to stay at that accommodation compared across multiple sites. You can use this to compare and confirm that the booking app you are using is indeed the cheapest.
How to sleep for free
Believe it or not, this is very possible. During our 9 month trip in Asia we stayed in many different peoples houses, completely for free.
Couchsurfing is an app designed to put you in contact with locals that offer to host you for free. Alternatively, you can offer up your home to people looking for a place to stay. This give and take is the ethos that Couchsurfing exists by, hoping that you can offer the same service back to fellow travellers after being hosted by someone.
We’ve stayed with a number of Couchsurfing hosts, from government officials in luxury flats in Kuala Lumpur, a history teacher in Bangkok to a single mother with children in Singapore. Each one a totally unique and amazing experience!
One other option is using a website like Workaway.info. Workaway allows you to work abroad and help out local projects and businesses. Often these places will offer free accommodation and / or free food in exchange for the work that you help them with. We’ve found placements ranging from organic farms in Laos to free hotel accommodation for tech savvy travellers to help with their website and social media.
Saving money on public transport
This is one area where a lot of people waste money whilst travelling. It’s all too easy to pick up your phone and call an Uber (or the local equivalent), but these costs really add up especially over a long trip. There are a few tips and tricks to saving money and getting the best price.
The first and most obvious one is using Google maps public transport option. Google maps often has bus information for cities now, all over the world. Buses are always cheaper than taxis!
If you need to travel a relatively long distance you can check out sleeper trains and buses, which are often much cheaper than flights. We’ve used both sleeper buses and trains in the past and they’re usually a great way to travel and spend a night at the same time. For example, you can fly from Bangkok to Chiang Mai in Thailand for around $50 in 2 hours, but a sleeper train or bus can be bought for as little as $10-15! This also saves on a night in a hotel as you will sleep during the journey, hopefully arriving well rested the next day.
When travelling there are a few apps we use to check the price and times of buses, trains and other public transport options. The first one is 12go Asia, which works all over the continent of Asia and has the most up to date timetables and best deals on bus and train tickets. It is also often much cheaper than using local travel agents who charge a steep commission. Check out 12go Asia here for more information.
Note: A point worth making here is that whilst these websites are cheaper than using local tour offices usually, the cheapest way to book these methods of transport like trains and buses is to go in person to the bus / train station. However, this can be time consuming, especially to arrive and find the bus / train fully booked. Personally we prefer to book online to avoid any disappointment, but you can save even more money booking in person.’
One final option is renting a car. In some parts of the world public transport options can be expensive or non existent. We found this out for ourselves in Morocco. Some of the most popular places aren’t reachable via buses or trains, and most people resort to expensive guided tours, or hiring a private driver. This is needlessly expensive! Renting a car whilst abroad is often way cheaper than you expect it to be! Using a car rental comparison website such as DiscoverCars.com you can compare the prices of local car rental companies before you arrive and find the cheapest. Check out DiscoverCars.com here for more information.
How to travel around for free
One word. Hitchhiking! There are some countries where this is more feasible than others, but in general we love hitchhiking, and recommend it to anyone that wants to travel around a country for free, and have some unique experiences in the process.
Once you get over the initial embarrassment of standing on the side of the road with your thumb out, you quickly realise what a great idea hitchhiking is. We hitchhiked over 2000 km in Thailand in 2023, all without spending a penny on buses or trains. During our time we were taken to dinner by people that picked us up, offered us a free place to sleep, invited us to parties and events and even offered money! (we refused money of course!). More than a means of free transportation, hitchhiking is a way to meet people and have unique experiences. Read all about our hitchhiking adventure in Thailand here.
How to stay connected for cheap
Staying connected whilst travelling can be one place where costs add up. Most people will purchase a tourist SIM card at the airport in the country whilst they arrive, but this is often the most expensive option! In general, buying a SIM card from a local shop or telecom provider is much cheaper than buying one of the “Tourist SIM cards” at the airport when you arrive. These tourist SIM cards are often priced considerably higher than ones that locals use, and target people arriving on flights who haven’t had the chance to check out the local prices yet. We recommend avoiding these and heading into the nearest town or city before trying to purchase a SIM card.
One alternative to this is to use a travel E-SIM card. These are virtual SIM cards you can purchase online in advance before you arrive, and activate automatically without the need to put in a physical SIM card into your phone. Only have 1 SIM card slot? You can use a travel E-SIM alongside your physical SIM card from back home to use both at the same time. Some providers also offer E-SIM cards that work in multiple countries, so you can purchase 1 E-SIM for your entire multi-country trip. We use Airalo to get a travel E-SIM when we travel, and recommend it to anyone wanting to stay connected back home. Check out Airalo E-SIM cards here for more information.
One other way to stay connected is to use a VPN like NordVPN. We use NordVPN whilst travelling to stay connected to streaming services and websites from our home countries. NordVPN can make your phone or laptop think it is connected to the internet in another country, so you can still access services like Netflix or Spotify whilst you are abroad. No more missing out on that TV series you’ve been watching because it’s not available in the country you are currently travelling in! Check our NordVPN here for more information.
How to eat for cheap
In general, eating where the locals eat is always the cheapest option. Often these places don’t have menus in English, or aren’t on google maps. The best thing to do is walk around the local areas away from the tourist hot spots, and look for local restaurants that are busy!
One other place to eat for cheap is night markets. Popular all over Asia, and a lot of other parts of the world, these night markets are a buzz of activity and a hot spot for locals picking up cheap eats. In places such as Thailand, you can have a hot bowl of noodles for as little as $1!
Street food is abundant around the world and often considerably cheaper than eating in a restaurant. For those of you worrying about food hygiene, choose a place that is popular and busy, and always ensure the food is piping hot when it is served to you. This can help to avoid any nasty food related illnesses that can be passed from food sitting lukewarm for too long. We ate street food nearly every day in India, and the prices are unbelievably cheap! You can expect to pay anywhere from 10 cents up to $2 depending on what you choose and where you are in the world.
Conclusion: Is travelling the world on a budget for me?
These are the methods we use to travel while saving money. Over the years of travelling they have really come in handy, we have saved a lot of money and had the opportunity to fully immerse ourselves in the local cultures. We hope that our tips will help you to spend less on your future trips and have the same fantastic adventures! If you have any questions or other suggestions, don’t hesitate to leave us a comment below!
