Travelling on a small budget is mostly a planning skill. Writer Raven Fon set off with little money, leaned on flight-comparison sites, hospitality networks and work exchanges, and came back with five lessons about courage, kindness and patience. Here is how her approach works in practice, and what it can teach any traveller who has more curiosity than cash.

Backpacker graphic for a guide to travelling on a small budget

Build a realistic travel budget

Start by splitting the trip into two numbers: the cost of getting there and the daily cost of being there. The second number is the one that decides how long you can stay. Accommodation, food, local transport and entry tickets add up quickly, while a cheap ticket to an expensive city can cost more overall than a pricier flight to a destination where a room and a meal are cheap.

A simple framework works for most trips:

  • Documents first. Passports, visas and travel insurance come before anything else. If you have never held a passport, the fee alone can be a real expense, so check the current figure on your government's official site, such as the US State Department fee page.
  • A fixed daily allowance. Decide what you can spend per day on a bed, food and getting around, then choose destinations that fit it.
  • A reserve. Keep money aside for a missed connection, an extra night or the trip home.
  • One splurge. Pick the single experience you would hate to miss and build cheaper days around it.

Shorter distances help too. A train or long-distance bus to a neighbouring region often beats a flight once airport transfers and baggage fees are counted, and you see the landscape on the way.

Find cheap flights with comparison sites

Raven Fon searched for fares on Skyscanner and Momondo, two of the best-known metasearch engines. Skyscanner was founded in Edinburgh in 2002 by Gareth Williams, Barry Smith and Bonamy Grimes and has belonged to Trip.com Group since 2016. Momondo launched in Copenhagen in 2006 and is now part of Booking Holdings, run through KAYAK.

Both let you search a whole month or "everywhere" from your home airport, which is the real trick for budget travel: let the cheapest dates and destinations choose you. Before booking, compare the full itinerary. A low fare that lands at a distant secondary airport at 2 a.m., or that charges separately for every bag, can end up costing more than it saves. For a light-hearted example of how strange search results can get, see Skyscanner's reply to a "47-year layover" search result.

Couchsurfing and Workaway for cheap accommodation

Accommodation is usually the biggest daily cost, and Fon cut it with two platforms that work in very different ways.

Couchsurfing connects travellers with locals who offer a spare bed or sofa for a few nights. The idea came from Casey Fenton, who in 1999 found a cheap flight from Boston to Iceland, emailed about 1,500 University of Iceland students asking for a place to stay and received dozens of offers. The website launched in 2004. Hosts do not charge for the stay, but since May 2020 members pay a subscription to use the platform.

Workaway is a work exchange. Hosts such as farms, guesthouses, schools and families offer a bed and usually meals in return for help, typically around five hours a day. Travellers pay an annual membership, roughly $49 for one person or $59 for a couple at the time of writing, and agree tasks, hours and days off directly with each host. Read the reviews, confirm the details in writing and check whether the country's visa rules allow the arrangement for your nationality.

For free ways to fill the days once you arrive, our list of 31 things to do instead of spending money has plenty of ideas.

Raven Fon's five lessons from budget travel

Fon's essay is less about saving money than about what travelling lightly taught her. Her five lessons translate well to any trip.

  1. Step outside the comfort zone. Travelling alone, finding your way in an unfamiliar transport system or speaking a few words of a new language builds confidence quickly. Small challenges taken one at a time are enough.
  2. Strangers are often kind. Hosts, fellow travellers and people giving directions became the most memorable part of her journey. Openness, combined with good judgement, brings conversations and invitations that money cannot buy.
  3. Stop, breathe, focus, try again. Missed buses and lost bookings happen to everyone. Her rule is to pause before reacting, work out the next practical step and carry on.
  4. Put the phone down and look around. Time in nature, or simply walking a city without constantly photographing it, gave her a sense of place that a screen cannot.
  5. Love with a backbone. Generosity works best with clear boundaries. Be warm with hosts and new friends, and still say no when a request or plan does not suit you.

Practical tips for travelling on a small budget

  • Travel in the shoulder season, when flights and rooms cost less and popular places are quieter.
  • Stay longer in fewer places. Every move costs money and a day of travel.
  • Eat where locals eat, shop at markets and keep a refillable water bottle.
  • Use city passes and free museum days where they exist.
  • Carry a small emergency fund and a backup card in a separate place.

Plan the money carefully and the trip itself can stay open to chance encounters, which is exactly where Fon found her best lessons.

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