Budget Travel For Beginners, Part I

I (Gen here, hi!) was speaking to a friend about travel a few weeks ago and he remarked that though he knew how much he was willing to spend on his upcoming trip to Europe, he didn’t really know how to budget for travel. This statement was followed by a request: “You need to write a trip budgeting blog post.”

Needless to say, we agreed (sidenote: sorry it took so long)! Luckily enough, we had already started work on this beast of a post about budget travel. Given the sheer amount of information regarding this topic, Kyla and I have decided to team up on this post and tackle it with the full force of the Northern Wander Women. We’ve also decided to split it up into 2 separate parts to make sure your eyeballs don’t dry out while attempting to read through it all at once.

Budgeting for a trip is very much like budgeting for your everyday life. Not everyone tends to do it, but it is super helpful. In the first part of this post series, we’ll look at ways to reduce the cost of travel so you can jam pack your trip while making the most of your budget. Once you’ve decided on your maximum budget, you can estimate each individual expense to determine what and how much you can afford to do. It’s helpful to do this preparation in advance to help minimize each expense. Some estimates will be very precise while others will be more of an estimated amount that should reflect your regular (non-travel) expenses. Lastly, we’ll put everything together into a budget that breaks down each expense on your trip. The second part of the post will focus on budgeting and saving techniques. In the end, it isn’t just the thought that counts, but the effort to keep it up too!

The point of this post is that it all boils down to more planning = more savings. Though spontaneous trips can be wonderful, they typically end up being more costly as expenses become harder to keep track of.

Without further ado, let’s get down to budgeting to defeat the bank account blues.

1  Decide on your maximum allowable budget

First thing is to establish how much you are willing/able to spend on a trip. Some people will want to travel on the cheap, and others won’t mind going all out. It depends on the location you’re planning on going to, how much time you have before going on your trip, and how many people you’re going with. Some places are cheaper to visit than others. Thailand is a cheap place to visit as opposed to Italy, for instance (getting there might be more expensive, but we’ll get to that in a second).

With the help of the budgeting techniques that will be presented in Part II of this post, you can figure out how much you can save in a few months, a year, or however long you choose. That combined with existing savings will determine how much you can spend on a trip, of course. Personally, I aim to spend up to $2500, maximum, on an international trip that lasts around two weeks.

2  Minimize Major Expenses

Plane Tickets

Plane tickets are generally the largest expense you make on a trip (assuming you need to fly to where you’re going). They can range anywhere from couple hundred to over a few thousand dollars, depending on departure point and destination. In no particular order, here’s a list of ways to reduce your flight cost so you can fly out of an airport without having all your money also fly out of your bank account.

• Sign up for email notifications from budget airlines, and hop on deals as they come in so you can hop on that plane.
• Compare flight costs between airlines religiously. A favoured tool to do this is the Google ITA matrix; just enter your departure point, destination, desired travel dates and voilà, Google scours the web and returns a collection of available airlines and prices for your desired trip, sorted from lowest cost to highest.
• Be flexible in your travel dates. This way, you can pick the cheapest days to travel, jump on deals that had limited time offers, or take advantage of rare short-lived mistake fares (that’s exactly what it sounds like, when an airline employee forgets to type an extra zero or misplaces a period or is just generally really bad at math).
• A good way to keep track of low and mistake fares is with the use of a third party, namely Scott’s Cheap Flights. Rather than checking all the airlines or the ITA matrix yourself every. single. day. you can sign up for this free service that emails you flight deals daily.  Scott’s the man. Find out more here.
• Fly budget airlines. Budget airlines typically have low ticket prices, but then get you by charging ludicrous amounts for checked luggage, on-board entertainment, and food. Learn how to pack carry-on only (if you need help, check out this post), bring your own snacks like a few apples and your music/movies on your phone or a good old fashioned book to keep yourself full and busy during your flight, at no extra cost.
• Travel off-season. This goes without saying, plane tickets are cheaper when demand is lower. Remember that economics course you took that talked about supply and demand? Yeah, me neither.
• It’s whispered within the circles of travel bloggers that the cheapest time to book is on a Tuesday at 3 pm, 6 weeks before your planned departure.
• Delete your cookies (then reward yourself with a cookie. Or two). Apparently some airlines' websites will jack prices with each new visit to their website from your computer. Delete the cookies and get the lowest prices back before booking.
• If you don’t live in a city with an international airport and you’re flying international, (if possible) drive to the nearest international airport and park there rather than fly domestic. This is typically the cheaper option, though it depends on how long you have to pay for park & fly. Or, if you have awesome friends that live near the airport, they might let you park your car at their place. Make sure you bring them back something nice.
• Don’t pay for extra leg space in the plane. It’s not worth it, just get up and walk around. If you can manage without an aisle seat, window seat, or a seat beside your travel buddy, don’t reserve a seat either while booking. If you don’t mind, this extra-cost step can be skipped and you’ll be assigned a random seat. Alternately, you usually have to check into a flight 24 prior, at which point you may have the option of selecting or changing your seat at no extra cost, if the airplane is not already full.
• Pick somewhere cheap to travel to.

We travelled to Iceland when WOW Air first launched new North American flights and was offering a promotional deal: $99 flights to Iceland!

Guestimate: Assume $500-$700 for flights to Europe (from Canada) or under $1,200 to faraway places like Australia.

Getting Around Once There

Another major expense is due to the need to get around to attractions and activities during your trip. There are many options when it comes to travelling locally, be it trains, planes, or automobiles, each with advantages and disadvantages. Here, we’ll just focus on the costs associated with each and how to reduce them

• If you’re visiting a massive country like Canada or Australia in a short period of time, and you want to get from one end to the other, flying is probably the most convenient option. The tips listed above also apply to domestic flights. It may also help to search for domestic flights in another country using the country’s specific web page (such as airnewzealand.nz rather than airnewzealand.ca).
• Car rental is my personal favourite way to get around, mainly because it suits our travel style best. This option is obviously the most convenient for the cost if you can fill your car with travel mates (within reason; don’t go stuffing your buddy in the trunk like clowns at a circus, thanks). Splitting the cost of the rental, insurance, and gas between 3-5 people is a great way to manage the expense. Some things to be mindful of for car rentals that might car-jack up the prices:
• Some countries have unusual age restrictions. For instance, in Ireland, it is particularly difficult to rent a car if you’re under 25 (see this post on driving in Ireland). The mandatory insurance fees can almost double the cost of the car rental if you’re not careful.
• In some countries, there will be additional insurance available for location-specific issues that you’ll want to purchase. For example, in Iceland, you should buy the extra sand-and-ash protection. See this post on driving in Iceland.
• It may be cheaper to get your own car insurance rather than purchase the insurance available with the car company. For instance, my credit card is a travel credit card which includes coverage for the car rental-related damages.

• Public transit is a cheaper way to get around, at the expense of a bit of convenience. In large centers, using the bus or subway is a no-brainer. Taking trains across Europe and Asia is also a relatively convenient option. Some places have deals on group passes, packages, student deals, etc… so make sure you look for those.
• Stay in the same area. If you’re visiting a large city and you’ve only got a few days, just stick around and save some money! There’s always so much to see, guaranteed you won’t get bored and you’ll gain a deeper understanding of the place you’re visiting and its culture.
• Harness your (wo)manpower. Bike, walk, trek.... so many places have infrastructure in place to promote trekking, cycling tours, pilgrimages (such as the Trans-Canada Trail or El Camino de Santiago in Spain). Bike rental stations are gaining popularity in many large cities.
• Hitchhike. Though definitely not recommended everywhere and for every traveller, some places culturally promote hitchhiking and, like in Iceland, are the safest in which to hitchhike.

Guestimate:

Car rental - $200-$500 depending on the number of people, and length of trip

Trains: check out this awesome map https://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/transportation/trains/cost-maps

Food

Without a doubt, the best way to save on food during a trip is to self-cater for most to all meals.

Whip out those pocket calculators ya nerds, it’s time for a bit of math. By doing groceries, it’ll cost between $5 to $10 a day to feed yourself. Conversely, eating out for three meals at an average of $12 a meal will cost you $36 a day. Over the span of, say, a 10 day trip, self-catering will save you around $260 to $310. In general, doing groceries and meal prepping will save you a few hundred dollars.

Just because you don’t eat out doesn’t mean you can’t eat well, either. There’s no need to make PB & J sandwiches at every meal -- just make sure you have access to cooking implements where you stay (like at a hostel). Especially for beginners, it helps to lay out ideas for a meal plan beforehand but it’s by no means necessary. As a bonus, hostel kitchens are great places to meet fellow travellers.

It’s also good, and fun, to check out farmer’s markets or stands for cheap fresh produce, particularly if you’re travelling through farm country.

Finally, even if you choose to self-cater, eat out as much as your budget allows! Whether you choose to eat out once a week or you have a set list of restaurants you must try, it’s great to spend some of your travel budget on experiencing local staples and atmosphere!

Just because you self-cater while travelling doesn’t mean you can’t eat some fancy and delicious meals, nor does it mean you need to spend lots of time prepping. Make sandwiches in the car, like our friend Steph, here. Photo creds: honorary wander woman Jasmina

Guestimate: 5*number of days + 30*number of times allowed to eat out (with drinks)

Accommodations

Slum it.

I kid, I kid; there’s plenty of ways to save on lodging without resorting to loitering.

• Stay at hostels. Most modern day hostels are clean and safe, and even offer single bedrooms, if you prefer privacy. Always take precautions not to have your things stolen, and you’ll have a great stay. They are among my favourite places to stay because they are great places to make connections.
• You can pretty much always find some mind bogglingly sweet deals on fantastic places with Airbnb. We’ve been able to rent entire apartments that sleep 5 people for less than a hotel room for two. Plus you typically get access to cooking appliances, occasionally washing machines for laundry (BONUS), sometimes the hosts provide snacks or breakfasts (YESSSSS).
• Again travelling in large groups makes splitting costs better - in Reykjavik, 8 of us rented a massive, gorgeous house for at $50 each for two nights
• Couch surf, if you’re comfortable doing that. There’s an app or two for that.
• Travel with a work-for-accommodations program. You work or do chores for a few hours a day and get to stay on someone’s property in exchange. Plus, you get to meet some local people who can give you insider info. Similarly, there are services that allow you to housesit/care for family pets in exchange for accommodation (TrustedHousesitters.com).
• Book on the fly and snap up last minute flash sales (booking.com).

• Make the most of your connections. Stay with friends and family, extended family, your neighbour’s uncle’s cousin. At least, get them involved in your planning, they may be able to help you get local deals or contacts.

Guestimate: $50*number of nights

Activities

Activities can be a huge expense depending on your destinations and travel preferences. For example, activities in Iceland cost next to nothing if you are interested mostly in self-guided outdoor activities away from Reykjavik. However, if you prefer to treat yourself to spas, organized tours, and stick around the Golden Circle, the cost of your trip to Iceland will be dramatically higher.

• Prioritize things you absolutely want to do. It helps to make a list of must dos for each general location, followed by optional activities based on available funds and time.

• Exploring a new city does not cost a lot, and there’s always a ton to do. The foremost activity is just to walk around and take in the vibe of the place. Talk to people. Window shop. Browse markets (bonus, if there are free samples!). Keep an eye out for free open houses/exhibits at museums, galleries, and universities.
• Get a breath of fresh air and head out to explore the local natural scenery. Hike to the top of a dormant volcano; hiking is typically free (sometimes there’s a parking fee but see the following point). Rent a bike for cheap and do some cycling along the shore of the ocean. Nature’s the biggest, cheapest source of entertainment and discovery!

Million dollar view. Actual cost, $0.

• Parking is often the only cost involved for many things, if you’re self-driving. Find free parking far away from tourist attractions and walk or hitchhike or cartwheel your way to it.
• Avoid organized tours unless it’s necessary or something you absolutely want. For example, visiting the megalithic site Newgrange in Ireland or visiting Hobbiton in Matamata, New Zealand require you to join a tour. If you want a history lesson while you visit, do your own reading beforehand and be the honorary tour guide for your travel mates (assuming they are willing to listen to you drone on about the neanderthals or 15th century painting techniques or traditional cooking methods of the Cook Islands).

Sometimes organized tours are necessary to see some attractions like Newgrange or Hobbiton

Guestimate: varies hugely from place to place and person to person. Research the cost of all your must-dos and add them together.

Souvenirs

Ah souvenirs, a seemingly quintessential part of any trip. Remember to get a t-shirt for your friend, a fridge magnet for your parents, a mug for your boss…

a keychain for your neighbour, a flag for your second cousin twice removed, a bandana for your boyfriend’s sister’s dog. Getting souvenirs can quickly get out of hand (like your money, aha) so here are a few tips.

• Don’t get any. I’m not kidding, trust me. Trinkets don’t make the trip! (If you need an excuse to not bring anything back, your carry-on likely doesn’t have much free space to pile new things in it… just sayin’.)
• Fine, fine, if you have to get souvenirs, get them in smaller stores. Avoid buying them at tourist traps, information centers, gift stores at attractions, or souvenir shops (or the airport). Buying local is a better deal, plus you’re supporting local businesses.
• Bring back a memento you picked up rather than a postcard you purchased. Take a shell from a beach, a stone from a mountain you climbed, something that won’t disturb the local ecosystem, of course. Maybe it’s just me, but something you found on your way means more than something you bought; there’s more of a story behind it. For instance, on our walk to the first pool in Iceland, I came across this heart-shaped rock. “Aw Iceland loves me,” I said and looking at it reminds me of the picturesque misty rock-strewn green valley we were walking through at the time.
• Pictures are cheaper than postcards -- make your own!

Guestimate: again, varies from person to person. Allow $5-$10 per person for whom you need to bring back a souvenir + whatever you want to spend on yourself/loved ones who deserve special treatment.

Drinks

In our experience, all remaining money you have available for your trip will be sunk into the alcohol fund. One way to reduce your spending on booze is to buy duty free upon arrival into the country, pre-drink in your hostel, then head out on the town. Set yourself a budget for the night, nurse your drinks, and stick to your budget!

Guestimate:

In english: drinking is expensive.

3  Putting it all together

Here’s a generic budget example for a trip. The first step to working out this table is to calculate the totals of mandatory expenses which include:

• Flight cost
• Cost of getting around
• Accomodations
• Food

The rest must be distributed between eating out/drinking, activities, and souvenirs. First, budget out the must-do activities. Then figure out how many times you want to eat out and subtract that. With the remaining money, make a decision on how you will allocate it to optional activities and souvenirs.

4  The Fourth and Final Tip

Keep track of expenses on the fly to stick to your budget during your trip and figure out which of your optional activities you can afford to do. For this, spreadsheets are your friends. Yes, yes, I know this is coming from an engineering grad but trust me, there’s a reason efficiency-obsessed engineers have such a love of spreadsheets. My favourite way to keep track of expenses is to use the Google sheets app on my phone (I’m sure there are other cloud-based spreadsheet apps available and pick the one you prefer). Particularly when travelling in groups, it’s simple to just enter shared expenses and who covered the cost as they come up. Then it’s an easy task, once home, to do a bit of math and figure out who owes who and how much. Just add a column to the right of your budget when you subtract from “Totals” as you make purchases.

Stay tuned for Part II of this post in the next few weeks where Kyla will give you some tips and tricks to help you save up for your next big trip!

Gen & Kyla