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Here are some creative ways on how to save money for traveling without eating Ramen noodles everyday…
One of the most frequent questions I get asked when I tell people about how much I travel is, how do you afford it? While I’m still working on finding a Latin sugar mama, I’ve had to get creative in the meantime. Here are five ways I’ve managed to make/save money for traveling:
1. Pay for everything in cash and save your change
A great way to see the dollars stack up is to start paying for everything in cold hard cash. When doing so, you will most likely receive coins back for change which a lot of people just disregard as actual money and just consider it a pocket janglin’ annoyance.
Take a jar and put all of your loose change into it at the end of the day. Don’t touch it until it’s full and then go to a bank that lets you exchange it for cash or a bank check and, boom, you’ll have a couple hundred bucks saved in no time. I have an account at TD Bank and they have something called the “Penny Arcade” that you can just dump your loose change into and it will count it, no rolling needed! The only problem is the machine is geared for kids and is obnoxiously loud and embarrassing when dictating how to work it in a little girls voice. Oh well, win some you lose some.
2. Save half of whatever you eat at a restaurant
Notice how this tip is not called “Eat at home”. I’m a single dude, and buying the right ingredients to make anything taste decent ends up costing more money than just going to a reasonably priced restaurant and saving half my meal for lunch the next day. This will also keep you much “healthier” as you will be practicing mindfulness in not forcing yourself to eat everything on the plate. It will also leave a few extra calories for that greasy street food you’ll most definitely be eating after a night out in your destination of choice.
3. Don’t go to Starbucks every day!
This is more of a personal problem for me, but by not going to Starbucks or another coffee shop every day and making my morning coffee at home, I end up saving about a $100 a month! A couple months of practicing caffeine self-control will end up turning into a plane ticket. If you buy a bag of Starbucks coffee at the supermarket, not only will you get the same product, but if you save the bag and bring it to any actual Starbucks, they will give you a free cup of coffee!
4. Rent your apartment while you travel.
This is something I frequently do and, most times it ends up paying for my whole trip! Luckily I live where people vacation (South Beach) and there are always travelers looking for more affordable options than staying at a hotel. I use AirBnb.com to list my apartment and I receive lots of requests to stay at my place, especially for special occasions like New Years, the Ultra Music Festival, etc. Sometimes, I can get as much as $200 a night. Some people are creeped out by renting their place, but Airbnb offers $50,000 worth of insurance and I have a set of sheets just for when I rent out my place. If a tree fucked in your bed and you didn’t hear it, did it really fuck?
5. Freelance
While some people refuse to work more than they already do, most of us can squeeze a Saturday or Sunday in here and there and not feel like we’re being deprived. If you’re open to working a bit more on weekends, freelancing could be a perfect fit. Whether it’s something new, fun, or pays well, freelancing offers non-committed gigs that can fill your time without feeling like a burden. For instance, one day you could be helping out at events or promotions, and the next, you might find yourself working as a gardener or clearing driveways with a Worx leaf blower. Check out the “Gigs” section on your local Craigslist page—there are countless opportunities for event staff and other short-term roles that pay between $15-30/hr.
I’m pretty involved in the promotional marketing industry, and if you’d like to read a bit more about how it all works, shoot me an email at Jeremy at TheWorldOrBust.com and I’ll send you an e-book I wrote about the industry (for free) and some great tips on how to find promo jobs.
I got plenty more weasely little tips for you, but for the chance that you might make it back to my blog, I’ll save them for a later time 😉
Do you have any great personal tips on how to save money for traveling?