Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Id be asking when one has the time to travel. Im looking for work and my wife is working mandatory 12s 5 days a week and saturdays 3 times a month. Even then whenever we save up for one thing another item tears up (transmission, washer/dryer, animal gets sick, etc) so we have to spend the money on that.
Oh yeah, that reminds me--when we got back from our RTW, I got rid of the dryer. Turns out that only in America. . . so I hang things around in the basement and it has not been a burden at all. My girls might have a different take on that though but it also guards against that college kid, only comes over to do laundry, type of thing. She still visits frequently enough so it's ok.
One thing we don't do a whole lot of is eat out. You can save a lot of money by cooking your own dinner from scratch, and it's healthier too.
We don't take more than 2-4 trips a year, but with our kids living across the Atlantic, traveling is the only way I can see them (not that I mind going to Paris or Madrid.)
Some of my travel is work related so I can use the opportunity to see tourist attractions as well. Sometimes I am able to get discounted tickets and mainly I travel to locations where I have someone that I can stay with (so I am not paying for lodging).
Realistically you can save $100's by travelling through different airports and off-off-peak scheduling. Look for lowest price starting from different airports and create your own travel on how to get to that airport. Its yime consuming but its doable.
Personally I travel for business and I re-route my return flights. I pay back the company I work for the difference in charges.
Travel is cheaper than staying home. I just take a year off work, terminate all my affairs, and head for the airport. Then look for a job when I feel like heading back home.
Assuming rent and utilities to cost $1,000 a month, that's $30 a day, which will get you a decent hotel room anywhere except western Europe. In the third world, it's easy to do it for half of that. Ground transportation almost anywhere in the world will be cheaper than maintaining a car in the USA, probably cheaper than just the insurance. You will eat, wherever you are, so that is not a factor.
You just have to decide where your priorities are, and whether you can save enough of your wages to live for 6 months or a year without income. If you need to order a delivered pizza a couple of nights a week and drive a new car and buy store-bought clothes to lounge around the house on your day off, and watch a 48-inch TV and carry a iThing around with you everywhere, it's not going to happen.
You can live in Pakistan or Indonesia or Bolivia or Tanzania for $4,000 a year, with healthy nutrition and safe and comfortable accommodations, and sightseeing transportation. How long would it take you to cut out your frills and save $5,000 (includes plane fare)? That's like 2 or 3 years of cable and cellphone. Do you want that, or a year at an exotic beach?
And here it is...I've always said MOST people can afford to cut 500 bucks a month, and/or more, from their budget. Work some overtime or pick up an extra part time job and you can easily have 10K or more in the bank, at the end of the year.
10K can get you very far. Even if you don't do the "budget" European tour and want to live fairly decently. You can easily get in a month or more.
A few of my preferences:
Rent an apartment, not a motel; you can rent an apartment in Paris, Rome, or London from 2-3K a month (cheaper if you look and don't mind budget apartments)
If you MUST stay in a motel, make sure it has a breakfast buffet. Stuff yourself for breakfast and take some meat/cheese with you. Pick up some bread and a coke, lunch is cheap. Cheap dinners can be found anywhere.
There are MANY places in Europe where you can go for free. You have research dates/times. The British Museum in London is free to enter, year round. The Louvre in Paris has free entry days, etc.
Buy a "travel pass." Most major cities have them. Once you purchase The London Pass, Paris Museum Pass, etc, you can use ALL public transportation without incurring any further fee's. I buy one months before I leave.
You MUST plan in advance. I am going to South America next month. I paid for the trip 9 months ago. I'm also going to Europe for 2 weeks in November. I paid for this trip 6 months ago. I am planning a trip to London in May. I shall buy my plane tickets upon my return from South America and then, every month purchase what else I need.
Most importantly, as others have stated: You MUST make it your priority! Do you NEED to eat out every night? When you go out with friends, how about drinking water instead of costly alcohol drinks? Take public transportation to work and/or walk. Brown bag your lunch. Take the money you saved and stroll down the Champs Elysees.
I love to travel, whether on my own, in a group, or with a friend or family member. It is one of my passions. I still am of working age so I can't go on more than 2-3 trips/year, even though I would like to go more often.
I make a decent income and have no dependents. I am also not a materialistic person; I am fine with driving an older car that is paid for, and I don't spend much on high-end items like clothes and accessories. The money goes towards travel instead. I will splurge on travel since it is probably my only luxury spend.
Location: The western periphery of Terra Australis
24,544 posts, read 56,068,476 times
Reputation: 11862
You have to prioritize for travel, assuming you have that luxury.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
