How to travel on a tight budget. Photo / Rathish Gandhi on Unsplash
Nomadic Matt, a budget travel expert, shares tips on how to see the world on $130 a day.
Inflation has hit all parts of the travel world, including Nomadic Matt.
For decades, the thrifty globe-trotter says, he has been able to stick to a roughly US$50-a-day ($88) budget, an accomplishment he charts on his blog and in a 2013 book on the subject. With rising costs, however, he has had to raise the ceiling by US$25 ($44), less than what some people spend on a week of lattes, but enough to warrant an updated title and a slew of new content for the fourth edition of his bestseller.
The coronavirus pandemic and the past few years of economic upheaval have changed travel, Matt Kepnes, 43, told The Washington Post. “New ways of travelling have appeared; old ways have disappeared. Companies went under; new companies now exist.”
In How to Travel the World on $75 a Day, which comes out next month, he provides modern-day nomads with “the tools to figure out how to navigate the high-inflation, high-cost travel world”.
The US$75 ($132) covers all expenses, including international flights, ground transportation, lodging, food and activities. The proliferation of points and mileage programmes, budget airlines, cash-back offers and other cost-cutting strategies can offset many of the big-ticket items, he explained.
READ MORE: How to visit Paris on a budget
“I think travelling the world is still doable on a budget,” he said.
The book is directed at long-term travellers, but his tips will resonate with anyone who wants to get away without alarming their financial adviser. Here are some key takeaways.
Most people’s everyday lives don’t involve eating out three times a day, packing multiple activities into a short time span and racing around town from sunup to nightfall. That nonstop busyness can deplete more than your energy reserves.
Take it down a notch by practising some of your at-home habits in your new destination. Use public transportation. Go to the supermarket. Hang out in the park. Read a book in a cafe.
“You end up saving a bunch of money because you’re avoiding the tourist stuff,” he said. “It will also induct you into the local lifestyle.”
That wad of local currency you withdrew from a bank’s ATM might come with a small ransom: a foreign transaction fee.
To avoid extraneous fees, Kepnes recommends the Global ATM Alliance, a network of international banks that allow cardholders to tap into affiliates’ ATMs for no additional cost.
Though not part of the alliance, the Charles Schwab Bank card is his top pick for a multitude of reasons.
For one, he doesn’t pay a fee for using the debit card abroad. If a foreign bank exacts a charge, Charles Schwab will reimburse him for that amount. The bank will also send a replacement card anywhere in the world for US$15 ($27), a perk he took advantage of when he lost his card and needed cash in Sri Lanka.
On a trip in 2011, Kepnes made a terrifying discovery: The roughly US$10,000 ($17,702) in his bank account was gone. While flying from London to Bangkok, someone in Russia cleaned him out after stealing his debit card information.
The bank eventually reimbursed him for the sum, but he no longer takes chances. He sets a withdrawal limit of US$1000 ($1769) a day, which he said is more than enough for his expenses.
“Should your ATM card get swiped or duplicated, the damage they can do before the card gets blocked is very small,” he said.
Kepnes might cut corners on lodging and meals, but he won’t skip travel insurance, even on seemingly risk-free trips.
“You never know what’s going to happen to you: A flight is delayed, stuff gets stolen, you’re wandering around Barcelona and get hit by a bus,” he said. “The future calamity will cost way more than the outlay of the insurance.”
He says insurance came to the rescue when he slipped on rocks in Italy and broke his camera; when his bag was stolen in South Africa; when he popped an eardrum in Thailand; and when he was stabbed by a mugger in Colombia.
“Being in Colombia, it was like 60 bucks,” he said of the medical expenses, “but it was 60 bucks I didn’t have to worry about.”
Kepnes, who started his budget travel journey as a 20-something backpacker, has not aged out of communal lodgings.
He still stays in hostels – “they’re much cheaper than a budget hotel” – and saves even more these days with the HostelPass, which offers discounts on European properties. For destinations without hostels or for more private accommodations, he recommends renting a guest room in a home or apartment.
“This was how Airbnb and other apartment-rental services were truly intended,” he said wistfully.
A handful of lodging platforms require an annual membership or subscription fee, such as Couchsurfing and Warmshowers. New free services and communities have cropped up to fill the void, including Travel Ladies, an app that caters to solo female adventurers. On Facebook, try Girls Love Travel, Find a Travel Buddy and Solo Trips & Travelers.
“There’s been a rise in Facebook groups that allow you to meet locals and other travellers on your trip, and you can stay with them for free,” he said.
Before crawling into a stranger’s spare bed, he investigates the potential host’s “digital footprint”. He checks their LinkedIn, Instagram and other social media accounts, which should be active, verified and public.
“If everything is private, I will just say no, because I can’t tell if you’re a real person,” he said.
For your first in-person meeting, rendezvous in a public place. If your first impression is “ick,” then decline the offer and find alternative accommodations.
In touristy areas, such as New York’s Times Square, Barcelona’s Las Ramblas or Venice’s St. Mark’s Square, Kepnes will walk five blocks in any direction to find less expensive and more authentic dining options.
“It’s sort of this invisible wall,” he said, separating establishments that cater to tourists from ones that serve the local community. In that short distance, he said, “the menu will go from like six different languages to just the local language with local prices.”
If you choose only pricey destinations, such as the United Kingdom or Australia, you may have to deprive yourself of some experiences or increase your budget limit.
To avoid these sacrifices, Kepnes suggests crafting an itinerary that mixes pricier countries or cities with budget ones. If you’re planning a European vacation, for instance, the farther east you go, the more money you can save.
“Paris is going to be more expensive than Prague, and Prague is going to be more expensive than Sofia in Bulgaria,” he said.
In a single country, venture beyond the bold-named destinations.
“Don’t just go to the South of France or Paris or Bordeaux,” he said. “Go to the smaller cities and more rural places, where the prices will dramatically drop.”
Straighten your fanny pack and march into a municipal or regional tourism office. You will be surprised by what you find.
“People think of them as these places that just have touristy brochures and cheesy activities, but their staff are people who live in the city you’re visiting,” Kepnes said. “It is really just about asking the right questions.”
Inquire about discounts on attractions and activities, gratis events, and admission-free museums and cultural sites. Pepper the experts with questions about where they eat, not where you should eat.
“I don’t want to know about the most popular places,” he said. “I want to know where they go when they get off of work.”
This story originally featured in the Washington Post
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