Camping Versus Hotel Accomodation

Travelling is a very wonderful experience. However, sometime you are met with choices that need careful consideration.  Like, should you choose camping as opposed to hotel accommodation?

Which of the two is cheap?

Most travelers will prefer hotel accommodation as oppose to camping. This is because in many travel destinations, camping facilities are not aggressively marketed.  The prices in many camping facilities are often cheaper. However, these camps are meant to give you an experience that you will never have when staying in a hotel. You may not have a TV or a Wifi connection, but you get a comfortable bed, nice prepared food, security and a chance to spend a night under the beautiful stars in a secure tent.

Some tour operators recommend camping to their clients because of its cheap prices, uniqueness and a chance to do more.  The average cheap hotel price is $80-100 per night. The average camping price is $5-10 per night. Camping will save you up to 50% of accommodation budget compared to hotel accommodation.

Most people spend more on accommodation as compared to other activities. Their entire travelling budget revolves around getting a cheap hotel. They will deny themselves some important experiences just to save money for their accommodation.

What if they opt for camping?

They will save enough money to be able to enjoy other experiences. If you cannot enjoy your holiday, then you are the same as that person who never travelled. The best way to enjoy if you are on a budget is to cut cost as much as you can. One of the ways is by choosing  camping instead of hotel accommodation.

 

Exchanging Currencies while travelling

If I was travelling 10 years back the best way to carry money in exchange would have been a traveller’s check. But with volatile exchange rates and technological advances traveler’s’ checks have been relegated as old method. However the question of exchanging currency remains. How to answer, well there are many ways.

• Use ATM for day-to-day funds – If you have a VISA or MasterCard debit card with you, day-to-day cash can be withdrawn from ATM. The cheapest option is the ATM for day-to-day funds with the ever-expanding ATM network worldwide. Never use a credit card to withdraw cash as I have already told you the last time.
• For large amounts look for Bank – WIthdrawing large amounts of cash from ATM can be costly even with the 1% to 3% fees. ATM also have withdrawal limits. So best way is to visit a partner bank where you will be able to withdraw money.
• Credit Cards for large purchases – Yes the credit card scores over cash. It is handy and works everywhere. Making large purchases is prudent with credit cards.
• Never exchange at no fee Bureau – No fee bureau charges gives exchange rates that are really low. You will lose a lot of money at these centers. They are big No for exchanging money. Better places are over the counter exchanges at airports.
• Traveler’s checks for emergency – Yeah even now the travelers’ checks are the best bet in emergency. But use only in emergency.

Do not use credit card to withdraw cash

Withdrawing cash from a credit card is a common mistake done while travelling. I used to have a credit card. I was so used to using it that I even did the cardinal sin of withdrawing money from it. I never knew the high daily interest rates on cash withdrawn from a credit card. My debt really became huge in matter of months. I kept paying minimum amount. This was another sin I committed.

I want to share this so that nobody else, at least those who will read this post will ever withdraw using credit card. Now let me come to the positive part of the story. If you have actually unknowingly withdrawn cash and cannot pay it back, you should call the bank and get it changed into a Loan. Yes it is possible and you will not be paying the hefty interest too. Just a bit of paper work and you are done.

Loans can be had even through a credit card. It is not known really. Banks are ready to pay loans to their regular customers and the credit that you have on your card can be used to do that. It is simple and quick way of getting a loan. You will really like the speed of payment. As in other loans you will get a monthly installment. It is a great way to pay off debts, when you cannot have all the money at once. Is it not? But you should use this option only in emergency as the interest rates are a bit higher than regular loans.

 

Planning ahead to Save while travelling

I love travelling to different places but it takes a heavy toll on my bank balance. last year I researched and found out ways to save while travelling and now I can travel five places with the money I earlier used to spend at one place. Here are a few tricks to save money while travelling.

• Airline Tickets – Plan 90 days ahead and you can get really economic tickets for flight. Getting a round trip ticket is a good option.
• Light Luggage – Keeping luggage light will help you to save on luggage costs while travelling and also you would not require help.
• Carry old clothes – If you plan to buy new clothes while travelling just carry the real old ones. You can substitute them and the luggage remains light.
• Eat more lunch and less dinner – Lunches cost less than dinner(This is my research). Just keep dinner light and you can save a lot.
• Rent small cars – Always rent small cars. You would not believe the difference in savings. Just try it on your next trip.
• Exchange at Government exchanges – Currency exchanges can be really expensive with private dealers. Spend some time to go to a government exchange center and exchange. You will save a good amount.
• Travel in off-season – In tourist season everything is really expensive. IT does not make a difference if you travel in off-season. You will save on hotels, travel and much more.

The War Against Costly Travel

There was a time when we also used to believe that travelling required a huge salary and lots of money stashed away. Thank goodness we came to our senses because with adventure on our minds, we’ve managed to turn our adventures into a reality and on a shoestring budget too.

Ok, granted you won’t be staying in luxury hotels, but if you’re prepared to live modestly, the world is your oyster.

I remember when we started this idea of cheap travel – we opted for seeing something of our own country first, just to get the hang of things. Travel can be cheap – you just have to do research. For instance airfare and everything else is far more expensive between December and Feb so time your budget travel carefully.

Australia is gigantic so we concentrated on just seeing one region for starters. We bought a discount card –iVenture – which allowed us free entry to lots of attractions. We were busy exploring Brisbane in Queensland at the time and I remember seeing a good part of the city on a river cruise.

I remember the  fun of hopping aboard the CityHopper which allows you to explore Brisbane free of charge with ferries running every 30 minutes from morning till late night. This is just a small example of finding ways to explore the world on a budget, but you’ll have to keep checking back here for super ideas to start getting around a bit and making your life far more exciting.

Cash saving tips

Crisp currency in your wallet feels good right.We tend to spent all cash we have in our pockets. This is true for all age groups. So how to develop a passion for saving cash.

Save cash

Following some simple tricks can help you save amount of cash you would have never imagined.

• Keep a separate account for savings – We generally operate more than one bank account. Reserve one account for all savings that you do. It will help in a big way to save cash.
• Save the savings – When you are shopping for clothes and have $100 budget, but get the stuff for $80 due to discount, then make it a habit to deposit the extra into a different bank account. This is the one you opened for saving purpose only.
• Inculcate the piggy bank habit – My father always gave his change to me for my piggy bank. You can also imbibe this habit in order to save the change.
• Make saving a competition – Make saving a fun habit. Keep a competition of who can save more and reward the person who saves more. This will make saving a fun thing to do and not a pain in the neck.
• Invest the saved amount periodically – The savings that you have in your account should not be left there. It will depreciate. Take out 50 percent of that money and invest. Rest 50 percent will take care of emergency.
• Be clear about preferences – Always spend on necessities first and buy luxury items only when you have enough investments.

Want to save some quick cash? These simple actions taken at the right time will go a long way to save cash. You will never be out of cash.

How to find hotels when you are a single woman traveller

If you are a single woman traveller, one of your biggest concerns will be your residence. You will have to spend more time than usual looking for the right kind of hotels, depending on the places you are visiting. If you are visiting countries that are known to be unsafe for women, you would have to figure out which areas would be safer for you. Areas closer to the city centre, and areas that have a larger concentration of foreign travellers would be the best bet for you in such countries.

If you are travelling to countries that are considered safe for women, it would still be wise for you to do your homework and find out more about the locality that you are staying in. Off late, Couchsurfing and Air BNB has become an option for many people who want to stay in places for free, or people who want to live in houses instead of hotels. If you have opted for this residence, you should talk to the person letting you into their home and see if you do get along with them. You should check for reviews written by other people about this person, to see if there is anything suspicious about them too.

These are movements that will let you figure out the ideal place to stay.

Tipping Etiquette

The subject of international tipping etiquette is a minefield. Trying to figure out who to tip is never straightforward, and neither is trying to figure out the exact amount as it varies dramatically from country to country. Take Australia as an example, unlike the USA where you are required to tip around 15-20%, if you choose to tip here you are only expected to go up to 10% and usually only if you think the service warrants it. Suddenly that low-cost sit down meal in Washington doesn’t seem so cheap now, does it? As a budget traveller eating out can really eat into your funds, not to mention other services such as taxis, hairdressers, hotel staff and tour guides. It really pays for a budget-minded traveller to carefully research this issue before arriving at a destination….or maybe before choosing a destination!

One of the main things to do is make sure you carry around enough local currency in small denominations so that you can tip fairly, but not risk overdoing it because all you had on you was $10 bill when $3 would suffice. Taxi drivers often do expect tips but rather than being a precise amount, people round up the fare or tell the driver to keep the change. Hotels can work out significantly more expensive than pensions and hostels when you consider you need to tip porters and cleaning staff, usually €3-5 is appropriate in Europe. Really, your best bet is to use a country specific tipping guide and then do more in depth research about your destination. We wasted a lot of money when travelling initially by playing it safe and tipping everywhere, but sometimes the countries where tipping isn’t expected are where the staff need it most (usually developing countries) so we don’t necessarily regret it. However, be careful because in some countries, such as Japan, tipping can be considered an insulting gesture, and in New Zealand it isn’t so much insulting as it is weird! Whereas in the USA it is definitely offensive to not tip. If in doubt observe what the locals do or ask them what is acceptable.

Packing light

Over the years we’ve really come to learn that packing light is not only better for your budget but also better for your mental health! How can packing light help your budget? Well, it means you can take all your baggage in the cabin, which saves budget airline fees, but it also means you can take local transport like motorbikes, tuktuks and minibuses or even walk to your accommodation without shelling out for private transfers or taxis. Plus do you really want to be lugging around a huge suitacase/backpack in sweltering tropical heat or wading through snow in arctic temperatures? Believe us, we know from experience, having made some ridiculous mistakes ourselves early on…Sarah was particularly guilty of this, in the early days it took a good few trips for the message to sink in that you really don’t need a hair straightener and five pairs of shoes!

So if haircare and footwear is off packing list, what should be on it? It really depends on where you’re travelling to and what kind of trip you’re packing for (business, weekend, round the world, trekking, etc), and it will take a little more planning if going to both hot and cold places in a single trip. There are lots of sites to help you with packing advice so do a Google search for your specific type of trip to start with and heed the advice of travel experts. Certain things always hold true: pack the minimum when it comes to toiletries, the world’s a small place and you can probably buy whatever you need at your destination, roll clothes instead of folding, it saves on space and you’ll get less creases, fill whatever space is available so stuff socks and other items into those hiking boots,and invest in airless bags to save space. Happy packing!

Eating cheaply on the road

One of the great joys of travel is sampling the local cuisine, and luckily for you it’s possible to do without breaking the bank. I’m assuming that if you are a true blue budget traveller, you’ll be camping or staying in hostels – in which case make sure your accommodation has a kitchen or cooking facilities. Then head to the local supermarket, checking out the local shops and markets can be fun and interesting when you first arrive at a destination, so stock up and you could save yourself big bucks in the long-run. However, after the initial culinary discoveries (European cheese!) self-catering can get old fast, I mean did you really travel half way around the world to spend it in a hostel kitchen? Exactly, and that’s when it’s time to hit the streets. Invariably every place in the world has some kind of local street food, whether it’s currywurst in Berlin or pad thai in Bangkok, follow the locals and chow down on some filling and good value grub.

Another money-saving tip is to make sure you take advantage of perks where you can. So there’s no such thing as a free lunch in this world, but there are inclusive breakfasts at hostels and hotels. Fill up and you may not need lunch. While exploring your new locale make sure to head where the locals go and avoid eateries in tourist areas, main squares and classy-looking streets, instead head off the beaten track and discover some local gems. Also be forewarned that if a popular cafe has been in Lonely Planet it’s likely to become complacent and overpriced. One final bit of advice: buy some snacks before you go to the airport, most of them are ridiculously expensive and you never know if your flight is going to be delayed.