How to save money for travel: the ultimate guide

Hostelworld Blog | Posted on October 11, 2018 |

I am a total and utter money geek. In fact, people under 35 don’t usually talk much about pensions, savings accounts, government bonds… but I swear I’m not as boring as I look! I also love travelling the world with my girlfriend, with whom I have been to over 25 countries, trying to earn and save as much money as possible during the less than three months a year we spend in the UK, our home country. Many people think that raising enough money to travel the world is difficult, but luckily for you, today I’m going to give you my top tips on how to save enough money to travel as much as you want and more.

1. how much money do you need to travel?

First things first: you need to be very clear about how much money you need to save to travel.

where would I like to travel to (and what do I want to do while I’m there)?

You don’t need to go into too much detail, but it’s important to have a general idea of what kind of trip you want to take. If you want to climb Machu Picchu, for example, then you’ll probably have to spend a lot more than if you’re travelling to a couple of cities where you’re just going to visit museums and other places of interest. Distance is also going to play a role: a trip to Los Angeles followed by Australia is going to cost you a lot more than a trip through Indonesia and Thailand. So keep all this in mind first.

📷: Christine Roy

how long will I be travelling for?

2 weeks? a month? am I going to take a gap year? Without a doubt, one of the biggest variables in your travel budget is the length of time you plan to travel. The longer you plan to travel, the more it will cost you.

am I willing to work part of the time while I travel?

have you considered the possibility of working and travelling at the same time? It’s a great way to increase your income while developing new skills and exploring a new culture. Don’t forget to consider the option of working or volunteering to help you make some money or to offset some of your expenses.

2. Set aside money for separate travel

Once you have decided how much money to set aside for travel, you should keep those savings separate from your day-to-day accounts so that, as far as possible, you are not tempted to spend them.

Seeing 1000 euros in your bank account is a great thing. It makes you think:

“I can buy that 20 euro dress without a problem. Plus it’s on sale… and on top of that I save about 90 euros on the original price”

Instead of thinking..

“OK, I have 1000 euros in the bank but actually 800 euros are for my wonderful trip to South America. So in reality I only have 200 euros and with that I still have to pay for Gema’s farewell present, the council tax and, of course, eat…”

You can opt for a traditional piggy bank or check with your bank about the possibility of opening a savings account (you might even get a small amount of interest on the money you save). In any case, make sure you keep track of the amount of money you are saving in order to successfully achieve the financial goals of your trip.

📷: Sharon McCutcheon

3. Set yourself a maximum budget

These days we’re lucky enough to have hundreds of free mobile and online apps to help us keep track of how much money we’re spending and on what. Google the best apps that suit your lifestyle and use them to find out how much money you are currently spending and how you can cut back. For example;

If last month you spent 80 euros on clothes, this month make it 0 euros!
If last month you spent 70 euros in the supermarket, take the opportunity to throw out the freezer and what you already have accumulated on the kitchen shelves, and go only to buy fresh fruit and vegetables. You will save around 50 euros that month.
If you recently spent 50 euros on eating out, start taking advantage of offers and combos and increase your grocery budget by 10 euros. You can buy bread to take sandwiches to work and save around 40 euros.

📷: Peter Stanic

4. Cancel or renegotiate your monthly debts

Now that we know how we spend our money, let’s take a look at those pesky direct debits we get every month. First of all, cancel everything you don’t need or use. And yes, I’m talking about that gym you joined in January and soon forgot about.

Next: let’s see how we can renegotiate those monthly direct debits you can’t live without.

Your mobile contract

Check the total amount you have to pay per month under your mobile contract. Does it correspond to the amount you are billed per month? If not, ask why.

The next thing you can do is check when your contract expires. If it has already expired, switch directly to a prepaid card and save up to 35 euros per month.

Also check your features and see which ones you use the most (and which ones you never use), then go and talk to your service provider and try to get them to switch you to a plan that better meets your needs. With a bit of luck you will save money.

And don’t forget to use online price comparators to see if you can save some money by switching companies. With your next trip in mind, you can look for companies that offer discounts or better rates abroad.

Netflix

Check how much you’re paying per month. Currently the basic Netflix plan costs 7.99 euros, so if you’re paying more than that, you’ve got extra screens you probably don’t need. Log in to your Netflix account and change that plan to the basic plan.

Bank accounts

do you pay anything for your bank account, maybe 10 or 15 euros a month for a range of premium benefits? You’d better take a look at those benefits and see if you really need them. In some cases they can be a significant saving (mine, for example, includes international mobile phone insurance and premium travel insurance). However, others include extras such as coverage in case your account runs out of money or things you probably don’t need while travelling the world.

If you do need a premium account with these services, then consider looking at other options on an online comparison site to see if you can find the same thing for less money. Remember that 10 euros a month more in your bank account is 120 euros more at the end of the year, and if it is 15 euros, it would be 180 euros in a year.

So if you find international mobile phone insurance that covers you annually for 50 euros and international travel insurance for 40 euros, at the end of the year the saving is 30 to 90 euros.

5. Sell everything you don’t need

If you’ve just finished university, you’re probably surrounded by textbooks that you don’t need at all (thank goodness!). Remember that you can sell them online through websites like eBay or exchange them for cash through mobile apps like Wallapop.

In case you are planning to travel for a longer period of time, you can do the same with many other possessions that you won’t need during your trip. Not only will this save you storage space (or having to listen to your parents complain about your junk taking up an entire room!), but it will also take a load off your mind and give you some much-needed cash, which will come in handy.

6. Take on extra shifts at work (or get a job)

If you already have a job, great! You can try doing extra shifts as much as possible. Tell your boss that you want to save some extra money and that the next time they need help with something or someone misses work because they are unwell, they will consider you and call you in.

In case you don’t have a job yet, then go out and look for a part-time or fixed-term job (depending on how long you want to go away for).

In any case, whether you are looking for work or want to earn extra money to supplement your current job, there is also the possibility of doing one of the following jobs at around 10 euros per hour:

Doing online surveys
Working as a TV extra
Working as a “mystery or incognito client”

📷: Tim Wright

And now that you know my guide on how to save money for travelling, don’t hesitate to contact me if you want to learn more things or know more tricks on how to save money for your trips, or write me a comment below to solve any doubt you may have about the article.

About the author

Cora Harrison is a personal finance geek who writes about her life at TheMiniMillionaire.com and her travels with her girlfriend at InsideOurSuitcase.com. You’ll find her editing her latest YouTube video or sharing a new story on Instagram.