14 Travel Tips: How to Spend Less While Traveling

Q: Does traveling make you happier?

Yes, we have explored 46 countries together and find we are the happiest when we're exploring this amazing world!

A chaotic scene of bamboo river boats in Yangshuo, China. There are rainbow umbrellas on half of the boats, along with simple chairs holding orange life vests. If you want to travel more spend less, then take local transportation.

Wondering how to spend less while traveling? Well, you’re in the right place!

From the beaches of Thailand to the castles of Bavaria and the ruins of Machu Picchu, we have explored more than 40 countries.

Along the way, we became experts in how to spend less on travel.

Saving money before and during your travels can impact how long you travel, what destinations you can explore, and which activities participate in.

In this post, we show you how to spend less money while traveling.

Whether you are traveling for 2 weeks, 2 months, or 2 years, we are going to help you stretch your money further while exploring the world.

Here are 14 helpful tips to help you travel more and spend less. Let’s do this!

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14 Tips: How to Spend Less While Traveling

Gorgeous turquoise water and karst mountains of Railay Beach in Thailand. A lady wearing a black and white bathing suit with a red skirt & hat standing & smiling with hands on her hips. Creating a budget helps us spend less money while travelling.

1. Stick to a Budget

You’ve heard this before, but it’s true. You need to make yourself a budget and stick to it!

Set a realistic budget for yourself. You don’t want to spend more money than you have.

Think long-term… if you overspend, you will limit your next travel adventure!

That may be an exaggeration, but that mindset works for us.

We always create a budget spreadsheet to track our day-to-day spending while traveling. (and you can grab our FREE Travel Budget Spreadsheet at the end of this section.👇)

Our daily expense limit will change based on our destination. Traveling for a few weeks in Thailand will be cheaper than spending 2 Weeks in Puglia.

Plus, we find ways to save money when booking travel. This includes all accommodations and transportation costs, like flights and car rentals.

Nevertheless, whether your budget is big or small, the best way to travel more and spend less is to stick to a budget.

Beautiful Neo-Gothic castle in Lednice, Czech Republic. Robyn and her sister are standing in front of the green grass and colorful red and pink flowers. A great tip to travel more spend less is to travel with a companion to lower overall costs.

2. Travel with a Companion

Splitting the cost of anything travel related is going to be cheaper than paying the bill yourself.

Traveling with a companion is one of the best ways to spend less on travel.

When you travel with a friend or family member, you can split the cost of accommodations and transportation, like car rentals or taxis. This significantly reduces how much money you spend while on your trip.

Plus, you get to share your once-in-a-lifetime travel experiences with someone you love!

Every few years, my sister travels with us. She has explored the beaches of Mexico, the cute towns in Puglia, and the castles of the Czech Republic with us.

We love this… not only can we share our biggest passion with her, but we get to travel more and spend less while doing it!

Although this is not always possible, or preferred, for every traveler, it is something to keep in mind when planning your trip.

WestJet airplane dinner in premium economy. The main meal on the food tray is beef with mashed potatoes, carrots and peas in gravy. There is a desert in the top right corner opposite fruit salad, and a bun in a wrapper. If you want to travel for less, bring food on your flight.

3. Bring Snacks for the Flight

Any food purchased at the airport or on a flight is ridiculously overpriced. Therefore, it is a good idea to pack a lunch or snack to eat during your flight.

We prefer to pack homemade sandwiches, granola bars, and chocolate in our carry-on. This reduces the need to purchase overpriced food at the airport.

Most international flights provide a meal or two depending on the length of the flight.

✅HELPFUL TIP: This is especially important if you live with a chronic illness, or struggle to survive long-distance flights.

The quality (and quantity) of in-flight meals vary from airline to airline, and from economy to first class. We always recommend checking with your airline to see if your flight qualifies for a meal.

And since you can’t bring liquids through airport security, you will need to purchase a drink before your flight. As we all know, beverage prices can be astronomical.

Thankfully, many international airports have installed water stations. This means you can spend less money while traveling by bringing a reusable water bottle to reduce spending at the airport.

Our Airbnb apartment in Bratislava, Slovakia. The image shows a stocked kitchen with tan tiles on the wall and a door leading to a patio. Staying in an Airbnb or VRBO helps us spend less while traveling.

4. Stay in a VRBO or Airbnb

One of the biggest costs while traveling is accommodations. The more popular the destination, the more expensive the hotels.

Plus, if you travel during the high season, then expect to pay even higher rates at hotels.

So our next tip on how to travel for less is to stay in a VRBO (vacation rental) instead of a hotel. And, if possible, split the cost with your travel companion!

Benefits of a VRBO
👉cheaper than hotel rooms
👉offer weekly/monthly discounts
👉provide more space to relax
👉get an insider’s view of city living

During our amazing trip to Malta, we stayed in a one-bedroom apartment with parking and a pool. It costs $349 USD for 5 days, which was significantly cheaper than nearby hotels.

While driving in Mexico for 6 months, we stayed in long-term rentals so we could travel more and spend less money. We did this in:
▪️ Tulum
▪️ Cholula
▪️ Pachuca
▪️ Queretaro
▪️ Ajijic
▪️ Puerta Vallarta

🏡We recommend VRBO when we travel
✔️ fewer fees & better service
✔️2+ million listings in 190 countries
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Morning market in Laos with women seated next to huge buckets of overflowing colorful peppers, limes, lettuce and other vegetables. A great tip to travel more spend less is to shop at local markets.

5. Shop at Local Markets

Enjoying local cuisine in a new destination is part of the travel experience.

But preparing at least one meal yourself can help stretch your money even further. This is one of our favorite ways to spend less while traveling.

What better way to immerse yourself in the culture than shopping at a local market or grocery store?

Wandering up and down the aisles with puzzled looks on your face while trying to decipher a label is half the fun! We guarantee you will see foods, products, and ingredients that you have never even heard of.

We love that you can pick fresh fruit, vegetables, meats, and homemade bread at your local market.

Take this opportunity to try cooking a local dish for yourself! Or attend a cooking class with GetYourGuide or Viator, then recreate the dish yourself!

Gavin preparing dinner at our apartment in Ajijic. He is standing by the stove ready to add oil to a pot full of fresh vegetables. There is a sofa in the background and our dog on his bed. Cooking for ourselves is one way we spend less while traveling.

6. Cook Your Own Meals

Depending on the destination, food can be one of the more costly items on any traveler’s budget.

You can reduce those costs by eating breakfast at your accommodations, shopping locally, preparing a lunch to go, or sampling local street food.

Once we started keeping a detailed budget of our travel costs, it shocked us how much we spent eating out. It was ridiculous!

Most of the time, we couldn’t bring home the leftovers because we were staying in a hotel.

After that, we started packing Tupperware containers in our luggage.

So now, when we stay in a VRBO, we can make breakfast for ourselves and pack a lunch for the day.

Not only do we spend less while traveling, but we can prepare a healthy lunch to go along with that cheap bottle of wine from the bodega. (You didn’t expect us to give up everything, did you?!)

Now, when we decide to indulge in the local cuisine, our wallet is happier too!

The pantry in our Ajijic apartment stocked with Nature Valley Granola Bars, Kraft Peanut Butter and Quaker Oats. Another great way to spend less on travel is to pack a few essential foods in your luggage.

7. Pack a Few Food Favorites

When we travel for extended periods, we pack some of our favorite food items in our luggage.

This helps us travel more and spend less money. Plus, these foods are very filling and often difficult to find in our destination.

Oatmeal

Expect to see a big bag of healthy oatmeal in our luggage.

Oatmeal is loaded with vitamins, fiber, and antioxidants. Plus, it is very filling and an easy-to-prepare breakfast.

Peanut Butter

In the past, one of us overconfidently says… “I’m sure they have peanut butter in…”, only to be disappointed. We have learned this lesson multiple times.

Now, for any long-haul trip, a tub of peanut butter comes with us.

Peanut butter is high in protein, versatile, and oh, so delicious! We add a spoonful to our morning oatmeal before hitting the sights.

Granola Bars

Perfect for on-the-go! Granola bars are healthy, easy to carry, and reduce the chances of me becoming hangry Robyn, so a win for everyone!

Carrying snacks of any kind helps you travel more and spend less. Instead, that money can go towards a museum visit or unique activity!

Gavin washing our laundry in the sink of our Pachuca apartment. There are wooden shelves behind him with cans of food. To travel more spend less, we do our own laundry.

Beautiful, delicate textiles from a market in Thailand. Each scarf or textile has a different design and uses bright pinks, blues and turquoise colors.

8. Do Your Own Laundry

Nope, this isn’t glamorous, but it’s the truth. If you’re looking for another great tip on how to travel for less, then prepare ready to get your hands dirty!

Having the hotel wash your dirty clothes can cost a pretty penny. And who wants to waste time at the laundry mat while traveling?

We usually do our laundry while on the road. This helps us travel more and spend less money and time.

Sometimes we get lucky and book a VRBO or Airbnb with a washer and dryer. But most of the time, we pack laundry detergent and wash our clothes once a week.

We try to help the environment by filling old containers with detergent. We try to pack enough detergent in our luggage to last the trip.

👉Read our 18 tips to Help You Pack Better here!

Gavin standing with our dog Leonardo in front of Bruno's Roadside BBQ Rib stand in Ajijic, Mexico. There is a large black BBQ and small table with a red and white tablecloth under a yellow tent. A great tip to travel more and spend less is to eat where the locals do.

Delicious stack of ribs from Bruno's Roadside BBQ Rib stand in Ajijic, Mexico. Eating local food helps to reduce cost and allow you to spend less money while traveling.

9. Eat Where the Locals Eat

Eating at local restaurants or markets can be significantly cheaper than a restaurant frequented by tourists.

Tourist hot spots are designed for and catered to tourists. This is reflected in the type of food they serve and the higher prices that go with that.

While staying in the charming town of Ajijic, Mexico for a month, we chose to shop the local produce and sample local restaurants.

Buying local food helps to support the community, too… something we try to do when we travel.

However, Ajijic is a retirement haven for North Americans, and many of the restaurants cater to foreigners. Imported foods, like Costco chips, and Western dishes meant higher prices.

If you want to spend less money while traveling, then stick to markets and restaurants that are frequented by locals.

✅HELPFUL TIP: Look for local restaurants in your destination that are packed with locals. That usually means the food is fresh and delicious!

We also recommend joining a food tour with a local guide to sample traditional dishes you have never heard of!

👉Check out food tours with GetYourGuide. Or try EatWith, where you can enjoy a unique culinary experience with a local in their home!

Gavin taking a sip from a bottle of wine on a small dock in Venice, Italy. The sun is setting creating a beautiful pink sky. The water is super blue and he is silhouetted. Buying wine at a local shop is cheaper than in a restaurant, and a great way to travel for less.

10. Buy Your Own Liquor

Depending on your destination, alcohol can be quite pricey. But there are a couple of ways to spend less on liquor when you travel.

Shop Duty–Free

If you are flying international, buy a bottle of your favorite liquor at the airport Duty–Free shop.

Duty–free items are tax–free and generally cheaper than what you would find in your local liquor store. Compare prices before you shop.

✅HELPFUL TIP: Make sure you know how many liters of liquor you are allowed to bring into the country you are visiting.

Buy from a Local Shop

A great way to travel more and spend less is to buy your alcohol from a local shop instead of a restaurant.

Some countries allow people to drink in public parks, like Germany or Greece. When we visited the island of Sifnos, we drank on the beach.

If drinking in public is legal in your destination, then buying a bottle of wine at the local store will be cheaper than ordering from a beach club or cafe.

⛔We ALWAYS recommend you investigate local drinking laws and customs in the country you plan to visit before your trip.

Buy Locally–made Alcohol

Liquor that is locally–made can be significantly cheaper than imported products. This applies to wine, beer, and sometimes, liqueur.

Plus, sampling locally–made food and drinks is part of the travel experience!

Join a Tasting Tour

You can sample a variety of local beers or wines in your destination, by joining a local wine or beer tasting tour.

Check out local tours on GetYourGuide or Viator for more info!

Gavin on a traditional cable car in San Francisco. There are 2 other cable cars in the distance. He is wearing jeans and a blue coats because it is spring. Taking public transportation is a great way to spend less on travel.

11. Walk or Take Public Transport

Walking is the cheapest form of transport. So if you can do it, this will help you travel more and spend less.

But if you travel with chronic pain or fatigue like me, then taking public transportation is the next best thing.

Like the Netherlands, most European countries have efficient, reliable public transport. They are clean, comfortable, and budget-friendly.

In our experience, there is always at least one form of transport that connects the international airport directly to the city center.

Whether it’s a bus, cable car, metro, or train, taking public transport helps you save money while traveling.

Plus, it is better for the environment and offers a more authentic, local travel experience.

Years ago, we took a local bus to Monteverde in Costa Rica for $3 CAD. Although chickens were on our bus, it was an incredibly cheap way to spend less on travel costs.

The night bus we took from Guilin to Yangshuo in China cost us $4 CAD.

With one seat left, Gavin had to sit on the bus floor beside a huge hole where he watched the pavement zoom by underneath. Cheap and very memorable!

🚌Find the best bus route & fare for your trip!
➡️Book with Busbud now!

The stunning blue interior of the Basilica of Notre Dame in Montreal, Canada. The ceilings are a green blue and decorative wooden beams and benches fill the space. The alter is gothic style with blue background lighting. Most churches around the world are free to visit, and excellent way to spend less on travel.

12. Find Free Activities

Don’t think you need to spend money on activities to get the most out of a destination. There are always free sights and activities to enjoy in every city.

When we visited Malta, we found tons of amazing free things to do in Valletta, the capital city.

Think of the city you’re visiting as a living museum… each place has a unique history and story to tell.

Researching a place before you visit it. This will add meaning to the architecture, landscape, and culture you witness. Knowing a little before you go, adds to your experience.

We love art, so we always visit the main Cathedral or church in every city. It is like stepping back in time, you get to appreciate the architecture and art from that era.

Most churches are usually free, although some may ask for a donation.

Getting lost in a city or town is probably our favorite way to spend an afternoon. As slow travelers, this matches perfectly with our travel style.

We are also on an endless quest to find the best small towns around the world. Visiting the many beautiful towns was a highlight of our 2-week Netherlands trip.

Free Activity Ideas to Try
👉taking for a scenic drive
👉explore a famous neighborhood
👉enjoy a free concert or festival
👉relax in a park, lake, or beach
👉visit nearby churches
👉check out street art & murals

Gavin standing in front of a beautiful Monet painting in the Musee d'Orsay in Paris. The painting takes up the entire wall and showcases the waterlilies in purples, pinks and yellows. If you want to know how to travel for less, then visit a museum on the free day.

13. Visit a Museum for Free

Most world-famous museums charge an entrance fee to admire the best paintings and sculptures in the world. But did you know many offer a free day for tourists? It just takes a little research when planning your trip.

There are over 12 museums or galleries that are free to visit in the amazing city of Amsterdam!

In Paris, the most visited city in the world, these museums are free of charge on the first Sunday of each month.

Washington, D.C. is known as the capital of free museums. It is a fantastic city to explore with tons of free activities to enjoy… perfect for those wanting to spend less while traveling.

✅HELPFUL TIP: A free museum visit may come with a long line and crowds, especially in popular cities. Be prepared and plan ahead.

Robyn smiling and holding a beautiful large portrait painting with a local artist in Zimbabwe. They are in his workshop and you can see several other portraits leaning against the wall. Stick to one souvenir to help you spend less while traveling.

14. Limit Your Souvenirs

If you want to travel more, spend less, then limit the number of souvenirs you buy.

Yes, I get it. It may take superhuman strength to not buy every amazing souvenir from Malta or Thailand, but the more you resist, the more money you save!

No one wants to pay for extra weight or luggage at the airport on your return flight. That is insanely costly! An overweight bag can cost you around $100 USD.

Plus, the price of souvenirs can add up quickly. Before you purchase, take a moment and ask yourself… are you going to use “that item” or wear that shirt at home?

When we travel, we buy only one large souvenir from each country.

We love to support local artists and over the years, have collected beautiful paintings and sculptures from Greece, Cambodia, Vietnam, China, Italy, Egypt, and Zimbabwe.

And honestly, some of the best souvenirs we have are the unbelievable photos we took ourselves.

FAQ’s: How to Travel with Less Money

How can I spend less money when traveling?

Budget ahead, cook your own food, and stay in budget accommodations. Follow our guide!

Is it worth spending money on traveling?

Yes! We love it, and think everyone else would too!! It will help you in more ways than one.

What are the benefits of traveling cheaply?

Other than your pocketbook, it provides a more localized authentic experience and you can travel for longer!

Is it OK to splurge on vacation?

Of course, but you should budget appropriately to spend more.

How much money on average do you need to travel?

We like a mid-range budget of around $1000-2000 per person per week. You can do it cheaper or far more expensive.

Does traveling make you happier?

Yes, we have explored 46 countries together and find we are the happiest when we’re exploring this amazing world!

Gavin and our dog Leonardo standing in front of lush green mountains in Guatemala.

Final Thoughts: How to Travel More and Spend Less

Making small changes to your travel plans, like staying at an Airbnb, shopping at the local market, or taking public transportation, can help you spend less and stretch your money further!

So, on your next vacation, consider using our 14 travel tips to help you spend less while traveling.

Happy travels!