Updated: 11/12/20 | November 12th, 2020
One of the most common questions I get asked about my ability to travel long-term is how I can afford to travel so much? Am I rich? Did mom and dad pay? Do I have a rich uncle? Did I win the lottery?
Before I was able to transform this blog into a business, I spent years traveling the world by doing one thing: I kept track of my spending.
That’s it.
It’s simple and boring.
At the end of the day, just like there’s no secret to travel, there’s also no real secret to making your money last on the road either.
The way to make your money last is to be smart and realistic about your budget and to do your research.
It’s boring, but it’s true.
When I first started traveling, I pinched every penny and saved money every chance I got. While I sometimes lavishly spent money like it was going out of style, I made up for it on other days by staying in and cooking pasta.
In short, I balanced my budget.
I kept a journal of what I spent so I could track my spending and be sure I was staying on budget. (I love when I see travelers keeping a spending journal to track their budget. Those are the travelers who end up staying on budget!)
While on the road (just like at home), there will be unforeseen circumstances that chip into your savings, like missed flights, a lost camera, or a change in plans that leaves you having to pay extra for accommodation. You can’t avoid these sorts of things, but you can plan for them. You can be prepared, know your budget, and make sure you can afford your travels.
Here are five ways to make sure you never run out of money for your trip:
Step 1: Know what you want to spend money on
When I travel, I don’t budget a lot of money for accommodation, tours, or even transportation. I find the cheapest accommodation around and I walk everywhere I can. If I need a ride, I’ll take public transportation or hitchhike!
But I will spend a lot of money on food and drinks.
Why?
Because that’s what I want to do! I didn’t pinch pennies back home and avoid going out so I could fly to Australia and spend my nights watching Netflix, nor did I head to France just to cook meals in a hostel every night.
No, not me. I came to live! I came to eat and drink in the culture! I want to go out.
And I’m willing to sleep in massive dorms, on a floor, or walk seven miles to ensure I have the funds to make that happen.
If you can eat all your meals in a hostel kitchen then a small food budget is for you. If you plan on Couchsurfing every night of the week, then you don’t need to account for accommodations. If you are flying to Europe and know you love to drink wine, you should expect that you’ll probably buy some wine.
Be realistic about what you want to do with your travels and budget accordingly.
Step 2: Research and plan before you go
When you know yourself and what you want to spend money on, it’s easy to create a robust budget that will cover you for the duration of your trip. This is where pre-trip research comes in.
Will you be taking any tours or cooking classes?
Going bungee jumping or dancing the night away at a club?
Once you know your interests (at least a bit), you can set your budget.
When I started planning my trip in 2005, there wasn’t a lot of travel information online. I spent a lot of time reading guidebooks and searching for any information I could find about prices. I pieced together an intricate spreadsheet of how much I would spend each day in various places based on how much I could save and what I found online.
These days, you don’t need to go that crazy when you plan your trip, because there is so much information available online about prices. You can literally Google the price for anything you want!
If you want to make your money last, you need to know exactly how much you think you’ll spend.
Too often I see travelers get blindsided by unexpected costs, breaking their budget to pieces. Sure, something will always happen that you don’t predict, but people mostly get blindsided by stuff they should have anticipated.
“Wow! That tour is so expensive. I blew my budget!” “I didn’t expect drinks would cost so much!” “This place is more expensive than I thought.”
I just shake my head when I hear these comments, because these are people who clearly didn’t do any planning.
Don’t be like these people. Do your research, plan ahead, and avoid the pitfalls that will send you home far sooner (and far poorer) than you want.
Step 3: Create your ideal budget
Create a budget for what you think travel will cost. Write down all the things you want to do, where you want to do them, and how much they will cost. Account for your food, insurance, transportation, flights, accommodation, booze, activities, and anything else you think will be relevant.
If you need help budgeting or don’t know how much something will cost, ask someone from our online travel forum — somebody will definitely be able to help!
Step 4: Match your expectations to your economic reality
I cut a lot from my ideal budget and itinerary based on how much I knew I was going to actually save for my trip. If I wanted to do things that totaled $10,000 USD but was only going to save $7,000 USD, then I had to make cuts to match my financial reality.
Here are some good articles on saving money to help you get started:
- 22 Ways to Save Money Before You Travel
- How to Avoid Bank Fees on the Road
- 18 Steps to Planning Your Perfect Trip
- How to Eat Cheap Around the World
- How to Use the Sharing Economy to Travel on a Budget
Step 5: Keep track of all your expenses
Finally, after you have created your realistic budget and set out on the road, you need to track all of your expenses. The people who have to go home early are always the ones that have no idea how much money they are spending on the road.
By tracking every expense — from hostel dorms to that snack you bought — you can see if you’re on track or if you’re overspending (in which case you can correct your spending).
This is the most important thing you can do to make your money last!
If you only do one thing, track your spending! Sure, you have to remember to do it, and it’s easy to forget, but actively doing this will ensure you become a better budget traveler, and soon it will become a habit.
You can keep track of it all in a journal (I use a Moleskine notebook) or use an app like:
I suggest tracking your expenses for a few weeks at home before your trip to get in the habit. That way, when you’re on the road, it won’t feel like a chore. Here are some free budgeting templates you can use to get started.
Your budget will only last as long as you planned it to last. If you plan your budget well, it will last until the end of your trip. No matter what you do, write down your expenses!!! Keeping track of your expenses will allow you to make adjustments as you go and ensure that your travel money lasts as long as you want.
Do I ever go over budget?
Of course. But I make up for it on other days. Because it’s a lot easier to make up an extra drink than a tour to Great Barrier Reef or constantly going over your accommodation budget.
By planning and tracking like a financial ninja, those things are not likely to happen. That means more days on the road, more adventures, and more awesome travel experiences.
The better you know yourself and create a budget based on that, the longer your money will last when you travel!
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Book Your Trip: Logistical Tips and Tricks
Book Your Flight
Find a cheap flight by using Skyscanner or Momondo. They are my two favorite search engines because they search websites and airlines around the globe so you always know no stone is left unturned.
Book Your Accommodation
You can book your hostel with Hostelworld. If you want to stay somewhere other than a hostel, use Booking.com as they consistently return the cheapest rates for guesthouses and cheap hotels.
Don’t Forget Travel Insurance
Travel insurance will protect you against illness, injury, theft, and cancellations. It’s comprehensive protection in case anything goes wrong. I never go on a trip without it as I’ve had to use it many times in the past. I’ve been using World Nomads for ten years. My favorite companies that offer the best service and value are:
- World Nomads (for everyone below 70)
- Insure My Trip (for those over 70)
- Medjet (for additional repatriation coverage)
Need to book your trip?
Check out my resource page for the best companies to use when you travel. I list all the ones I use when I travel. The are the best in class and you can’t go wrong using them on your trip.
Gillian
Also – keep track of what you’re spending!! We track our spending daily (or every couple of days) to be sure we know whether we’re ‘up’ or ‘down’, then we can make up the difference by either living a little more frugally or maybe splurging a bit. It’s not that hard, once you get into the habit, to mark every expense in a book, or keep every reciept. Time spent setting up a quick spreadsheet can make it very easy to track once on the road.
Deasy Anderson
Great idea, thanks.
Deasy Anderson
Christy
Oh that is a good reminder for some trips I have coming up. Thanks!
Stevo
Great tips, Matt. It’s easier to budget if you have a rough idea of how much things cost in the country you’re planning to visit. Research!
Want to eat and drink? Check the travel boards about a country’s current prices (if you can get past the smarmy know-it-alls). I was stunned in Thailand at the price of beer, even from a 7-11. It was an overly dry three weeks.
Serena
I’m aiming to go travelling around South East Asia towards the end of the year (though only for about 3 weeks) to see if I like it and whilst I’ve been looking into the cost of things, I wasn’t quite sure how to budget…thanks for the tips!
Dawn
These are all great tips Matt. People write to us, too, about the budget, and want to know exactly how much they need to save. And it is not that easy! Where you want to go, what you want to do, and what your priorities are dictate that budget. But figuring it out right will allow you to travel as long as you want. Can’t stress enough about planning the unexpected-I had to fly home in the middle of our trip (unexpected) but b/c of good budget planning and travel insurance, it did not affect anything other than our timeline. And we’re still going….
Tanya
When I moved to Paris I figured out exactly how many euros I could spend per week for my entire stay without running out of cash. Having a figure in mind every week was incredibly helpful. I stayed on budget, and even had enough left over to extend my trip by six weeks!
Wonderwilm
costs and therefore budgets all depend on what part of the world your travelling in. What tips have you got to find out costs and hence budget before you go? Stevo suggested using travel boards, any particular recommends ?
LaraDunston
For holidays, a daily budget is definitely the answer. That way, if you splurge one day, you can live cheaply for a couple of days, and vice versa. I don’t see the point in going away if you can’t do what you enjoy. It’s better to save for longer so you can have the kind of trip you want to have.
For long term travel, the answer is to work. My husband and I are travel writers. We never think about how much we spend. If we spend too much, we simply think – we better do a story on this place, or this restaurant or whatever, to make up for it. But I always talk to waitresses in restaurants, the guy behind the bar, the bloke on the reception desk, and it’s amazing to find out how many people are foreign – all over the world – and they’re living and working in a place for a few months, six months, a year or more. They’re getting to know a culture and language and people in a way holiday-makers can’t, they’re exploring the place when they’re not working, doing trips on weekends, and then doing extended travel in between jobs. If I wasn’t a travel writer, that’s what I’d be doing.
Prav
Hi I am traveling at the moment and would love to get into travel writing …can you give me advice on how to get published and where to start …thanks
Paddy
Make your budget stretch by talking to locals and find out where the cheap eats / drinks are – avoid eating / drinking at tourist traps – traveel by public transport but not taxis – cost of living index – research – research – research!
Rob
When I first read this I thought this was obvious stuff, then I realised I don’t actually do things like this myself.
I don’t have a daily budget and I like to eat, drink, do the odd tour, catch a movie at the cinema, couchsurf and meet other travellers in hostels, everything whilst on the road. But I do keep an eye on my finances very carefully and do a rough long term plan.
I could have an action packed day every day, but would probably be heading home now if that’s was the case. 6/7 days a week I’ll be just walking round taking photo’s and not spending anything except for food and accomodation if appropriate.
Maybe it’s just my mentality/personality, but I just stay frugal and alert of where my money is going with a bit of inital groundwork to get the best prices on things. I’m staying in Australia at the moment for Oz$10 (US$7) a day with food, internet and accomodation included and it’s fairly easy to earn that here.
Katrina
Hiya! Where in Oz are living when you can get by on $10 a day with food and accomodation? My boyfriend and I are actually going to be in Oz in Sept/Oct time and it would be great to know as we are trying to budget!
Jim
It also helps to have a good idea of how much you should be spending on what on a per day basis. If you know you have $X per day for food, then you should adjust your daily spending to account for the days you overspend or underspend.
Brian H.
Your suggestions on budgeting work well in a non-traveling life too. But I’d much rather be abroad and use your suggestion than sitting here in Texas. Cheers.
Mike
Matt is right here. I’ve met too many people who have had to cut their trip short because they were running out to money. Some people like to live that way, but I do not, as I usually have some sort of end goal in mind before I leave.
Use your guides. Most guides will tell you what type of daily budget you can expect. While this gets more difficult in places like Europe. In Asia, for example, you can expect to spend under 15 dollars per day for food and accommodation. We walk everywhere, we don’t take tours for the most part, and we take public transportation. I wrote an article about a year ago, How to Travel for a Year.
It would also be a great idea to get some sort of teaching certification if you plan on traveling for an extended period of time. When you run out of money, stopping to teach English is easy to come by in most non-English speaking countries.
Steve
Sometimes having someone else manage your trip can help you save money. I travel to Paris a lot. When I used to go years ago, I didn’t have the knowledge to find the most economical hotels, where to eat, or how to tour. For instance, I used to take a taxi from the airport to the city and I used to pay separately for each admission into a museum. Now I know about less expensive ways to do things. I think I spend less on my Paris vacations now than I did 10 years ago.
There are tour operators like Rick Steves who will do everything for you, but they get somewhat expensive. There are smaller tour operators that you can find, if you look, who will give you more bang for your buck.
Pamela
Well, talking about budgeting is all well and good, but when the money runs out and you have zero or less, you can’t budget that. You just can’t do anything anymore. And when you go to places where the people you meet either don’t want to help you or would love to but can’t because they’re in the same situation as you, you are all just screwed. That’s what happened to me in England. I was probably the only one there for a maths teaching job, but everyone else I met, in their shelters and soup kitchens, had also come there for a job and then not gotten it when they got there. But the British don’t tell you the truth up front about why not and you just keep trying, that’s all they tell you to do. Just keep applying everywhere and “it takes time.” Then you wind up totally skint, on the streets, and then really unemployable and screwed because no matter what your qualifications are, British society being what it is, no one is going to hire you if you wind up homeless – figuring that’s the logical way to get you OFF their streets. Logic doesn’t factor into it. But they don’t tell you that before you show up.
My point is, budgeting your money is fine. But when you came there expecting a job and only had so much in your account, and when you get turned down for the job when they see you in person (as opposed to the telephone interview that got you the offer in the first place), and can’t get anything else either, you can’t budget zero. You just can’t.
shenandoah
do you have some kind of income? I understand about the part of being realistic on budgeting, but how do you get an income when your out traveling? do you work? or did you saved up alot of money way before you decided to travel?
Mariano
One thing i always find very surprising is how much effort travellers put on saving money while on the road, spend less and so on…….
In MANY cases, if they put 50% of the effort in saving , into doing something lucrative, they would have 100% more and 100% more time to spend the extra money they earned….
I know, many times saving and spending less, it´s part of the travelling adventure and fun , but sometimes for sure not:)
Specially nowdays that you can do so many thing with a laptop and an internet connection……
cheers,nice web site
kk
Pamela – sounds like you have had a rough trott.
however i would argue that you can budget for that (jobs not coming t fruition, and money runnig out. I would suggest everyone also budget for the unexpected, ie. a wad of cash tucked away for 2 months of being unemployed until jobs taken up. or what i call my financial backupplan (ie. fly out in emergency situation, get robbed of every cent, etc etc)
i tuck my finacial emergency plan away onto another card. so i always know that i have $x000 remaining. then when i need to crack into that i know i am on my last legs!
not having a go at you, just offering advice for other people who are at the planning stage
Michael Figueiredo
Hi Matt,
I want your life! I love to travel too and have always wanted to just take off and travel around the world indefinitely. The most I’ve been able to do in recent years is 3 1/2 weeks… Your philosophy about budgeting your money is spot-on. You definitely need to be smart with your money, and most importantly “live” and take in the culture.
chris
If you’re in need of funds would you be able to get a temporary job with a tour group, such as checking on this before departing or if knowing schedules of the groups connecting with them when they pass through an area?
NomadicMatt
Tour companies don’t really hire temp workers. They want employees who will stay awhile as they need to be trained and licensed by the government.
Henry Williams
Great post I often run into situations where I end spending a great amount of money that I didnt plan to spend
Kevin Post
Great, informative article Matt! The only thing I partially disagree with is “If you love outdoor activities, over budget because they cost a lot.” Going out drinking in almost any city costs more than being in the outdoors.
If you ever travel with me I’ll prove you wrong 😉
1. Aside from a menial national park entrance fee from time to time the forests and the mountains never ask for money while I set up my tent.
2. The crag and rock face never charge me while I set up my rope and anchors for a climb.
3. The high calorie high protein dehydrated food I made for a two day trail-run cost a lot less than eating dinner at a restaurant.
Sure, climbing Aconcagua will set you back due to the permits required to summit it and taking a reputable mountaineering course will set you back hundreds if not thousands of dollars. But aside from those exceptions nature is practically free.
NomadicMatt
By outdoor activities, I don’t mean going backpacking/hiking through the woods! 🙂
Miguel
Great points to cover. I Agree with them all! I guess “working” during long term travel also helps! I’ld like to also ad another interesting and possible point! BARTERING. You can barter. This is exactlly what me and and my Girlfriend are doing in “OutTheStudio.wordpress.com”. We barter our design services in exchange for accomodation, food, heavy discounts etc. But you can also barter a few weeks in a remote jungle isalnd bungalow in exchange for work in a guesthouse. All I can say is : GET CREATIVE! The possibilities are endless!
David
I am really bad for over spending, i just cant deny myself sometimes…..Especially when i’m out for the night! But when i look at my bank account and i see the money is running low i can very quickly pull it together. This is why when i organised my RTW trip i had my Mum deposit my budget into my current account (600euro/month). That way i just didn’t have the money and i would have to wait a week or two before the next installment. Worked well!
kevinn g
sounds good, I was on budget until I went to the Red Light District of Amsterdam, all that candy.
Emily
OH….not to mention I broke my surfboard in Bali..ended up buying a new one..of course that’s another unplanned expense 🙂
Sam
If you really really want to travel on budget, then don’t buy a thing you don’t need – regardless whether on trips or while at home.
Bring you own food. If you’re really good at this, you can survive for 5-7 days without buying a single piece of food. But of course, you’d also want to taste the local delicacies.
Shachar
Another got way is to travel with a tent, there are place that it is possible to use them in a backyard for free.
Russ
I took my dad and nephew on a week long expensive Disney cruise/park trip. From extensive investigation I knew how much it would cost including excursions. I simply set up an allotment from my pay into my credit that would generate that amount. Then I had to live on what was left so out went the restaurants, vending machines, coffees, cable, drinks, and mall visits. In came rice & beans, PB & J, tuna, water, eating all those weird things in the back of the kitchen cupboards, walking or riding my bike to work, cutting my own hair, wearing older clothes, visiting the library and enjoying long walks. I had more than enough for the trip by the time it came.
Recently went a beach resort area, but stayed in my tent (off season rates are cheap), cleaned up at their shower house, breakfast was oatmeal and coffee from hot water over my backpacking stove, had nice dinners at the early bird rates around 4pm, and was able to stay a whole week versus the 2 days a hotel would have cost.
Pete deMatteo
We just got back from Cap Haitien, Haiti. We loved it but since we didn’t know about how desperate everyone was and how expensive everything was, we really spent a bundle. It seems best to get your taxis through the hotel management and to realize that there’s only one ATM in the city which usually doesn’t function, calling for money transfers at local banks, which is an ordeal, to say the least.