Hey there, fellow travelers! Today, we’re in Vienna, Austria and we’re talking travel expenses. I’m going to share the biggest costs of traveling, and share some tips for staying within your travel budget. A lot of people ask us how we afford all of our travels, or they assume we are wealthy because of how much we travel. But that’s not true; I’m a university professor. We can afford to travel because I know where to look for deals and when to jump on travel sales. You don’t have to be rich to travel. With these travel budget tips, you can keep your travel expenses in check.
Lodging Costs
Lodging will be one of your biggest travel expenses, so everyone tries to save a bit of money on lodging. A lot of travelers will book a hotel on the outskirts of town in order to save money on lodging, but they forget to weigh in the cost of commuting back and forth to your hotel every day. Whether you take taxis, Uber or the subway, getting to and from the suburbs every day can end up costing more than you save by staying there in the first place.
Instead, I look for a hotel with a good location and I book early. The earlier you book, the better deals you can usually get. If you are staying in one place for more than a few nights, you can usually get a deal with the hotel, or even look into apartment rentals, which are a great way to save money on eating out while traveling. With a good centrally located hotel, you won’t need to move around as much and you can see a lot on day trips from your location.
Flights
Depending on your destination, flights will most likely be your biggest travel expense. Just like with hotels, booking early is your best bet for saving money on flights. You’ll find the best airfares six months in advance of your trip. We use CheapTickets.com and Expedia to watch flights and then check the airline’s direct website as well. We’ll book with whichever site gives us the lowest price.
When you are traveling throughout Europe, remember you don’t have to fly home from the same city you flew into. The flight may be slightly more to fly home from another city, but once you figure in the cost of a train to get back to the first city, you’re going to save money and time.
Pay attention to the airports you are flying into as well. Some of Europe’s low-cost carriers fly into airports that are an hour or more from the city center, so you may end up spending more on a taxi from the airport than you spent on your flight. Make sure you factor in all costs before hitting the “buy” button on that super cheap flight.
Watch: Six Reasons You Never Get Cheap Airfare
Food
Eating is another big expense while traveling. Part of the fun of traveling abroad is experiencing local cuisine, so you don’t want to skip out on trying new food. We have a few tips that we follow to save money without missing out on local cuisine.
- Stay at a hotel that offers free breakfast
- Eat your main meal at lunch and take advantage of lunch specials.
- Eating a big breakfast and a later lunch will tide you over better for a light snack in the evening
- Use supermarkets for dinner; trying local snacks, or bread and cheese, is always fun!
Tourist Sights
Another expense while traveling is admission to the tourist sights you want to visit. Tours, museums, palaces all come with their own admission fees. There are some sights you can enjoy for free, without paying to go inside. We enjoyed a picnic below the Eiffel Tower, rather than paying to go up in the tower. It helps to do your research ahead of time and prioritize the sights you want to visit. You may also find that some museums have a free day, so you can plan around those to save some money. Some cities have a CityPass that bundles several attractions into one ticket, which may be a way to save money if you plan to hit a lot of the popular tourist sights.
Souvenirs
We all want souvenirs to remember our trips, but these can really add up. Most souvenirs are cheap, but if you buy a couple at every stop, you’ll end up spending a lot of money on little trinkets that end up in the Goodwill pile six months down the road. Rather than buying keychains or magnets, we buy art from local artists that we hang on the walls at our home. It lasts a lot longer, and we always have art to look at and reminisce about our travels.
Read: What Not to Buy When You Travel
Transportation
Getting around can be another big expense for your vacation. Trains can actually be quite expensive in some countries, and very affordable in other countries. Eurail passes are very expensive and only save you money if you’re visiting several countries throughout Europe. If you’re just visiting Italy, the trains are very affordable, so a Eurail pass would be a waste of money. You have to do some advance planning and research in order to figure out what is the best approach for you. If you’re staying in one place a long time, you can look into discount cards for public transportation. There are also student discounts and senior citizen discounts. Again, planning ahead can save you a lot of money. The National trains in Germany and Austria, for example, have fares up to 50% less if you purchase them in advance. You can save a ton of money on transportation just by booking in advance online. (Students get a great discount on Eurail, and that’s why so many get the pass, but if you’re over 26, it’s expensive!)
Watch: Biggest Travel Budget Busters
City Selection
The cities you choose to visit can have a huge impact on your travel expenses. If you want your travel budget to go farther, you might want to hold off on visiting Scandinavia, London or Switzerland. Those places are all amazing, but also super expensive. It’s all a matter of priorities; just realize that a few nights in London could cost more than an entire week in Portugal. This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t visit these places, but you might want to balance them out during your trip and hit one expensive country and two affordable ones, rather than three super expensive destinations.
The best way to save money while traveling is to do your research. Travelers who wait until the last minute to figure everything out are going to pay a premium for their lack of planning. With so many options for lodging, transportation, and sightseeing, you really have to sit down and map out your plans and figure out where you can save money. If you have money-saving tips for travelers, leave them in the comments! For more travel tips and advice, check out these blog posts and videos:
