Top tips to save for long-term travel 

Tip 1. Don’t plan your trip – plan what to sell.

Sometimes it’s far too easy to get carried away making plans and daydreaming about where you want to go when you finally have the money and time to travel.

Well you have decided that you want to travel right?

Then get on with discovering want you can get rid of. Start in the spare room and clean out that wardrobe full of stuff that you just don’t use, put it on Ebay and turn it into a travel fund  and DON’T use this money for anything else. Buy a small moneybox and for each thing you sell put the money in the tin. For anyone who pays you via paypal set up a separate account called travel fund, something that you physically have to go to the bank to withdraw the funds.

Put all your kitchen appliances in a box – take out what you need when you need it. After one moth if it’s still in the box sell it.

 Tip 2. Make friends using Couch Surfing & similar sites

Why would you do this? Simple it’s called networking. Finding like minded travelers helps you build friendships in foreign places that someday you may plan to visit. It’s also a great way to discover new cultures in the comfort of you own home

 Tip 3. Sell your car, or downsize

Do you still owe on your car? Sell it and buy a cheaper one. This is always a hard decision to make

 Tip 4. Sell your house

If you thought selling the car was hard, try this cost saving exercise.

 Tip 5. Pay yourself $20 per week

Yup that’s your play money, lunch money and basically all you need on a week to week budget. I hear you saying that’s ridiculous, it’s too low. Well we pay each other this amount and look were we are and your not. it’s that simple folks. We say it because it’s hard, but trust us it works. It’s about creating strong budgeting skills and knowing the value of what you earn.

 Tip 6. Set a budget – and stick to it!

Yup that’s your play money, lunch money and basically all you need on a week to week budget. I hear you saying that’s ridiculous, it’s to low. Well we pay each other this amount and look were we are and your not. it’s that simple folks. We say it because it’s hard, but trust us it works. It’s about creating strong budgeting skills and knowing the value of what you earn.

Tip 7. Research – Research- Research! 

This is so easy because it involves spending no money, yet each valuable piece of information has the potential to save you money during your travels.

Change your surfing habits and get in sync with what you are planning to do.

Stop surfing the net for games and movies to download and start to focus more on travel related topics. hook into Face book, Twitter and other social media and surround yourself in new online friends to share information and travel tips.

Now that you have this skill sorted, use to daily

  Tip 8. Replace new with old

Hang on read this one CAREFULLY – this means that from any budget that you have set aside for clothing, remember this golden rule

“For each new piece of clothing you buy, one old piece of clothing MUST BE REMOVED!”

By doing this you won’t be increasing a lot of stuff you will eventually have to get rid of.

  Tip 9. Go digital with all you can

Scan all you can into your computer, you can’t carry your paintings from your home in your travel luggage, but if to take a picture on your phone or can remove the picture fro the frame and get it scanned you now had an image that you can do so much more with. Who knows maybe that old picture frame is worth a bit of money. You’re traveling right? So there is no need to spend too much time on focusing on the past.

 Tip 10. Reward yourself

Don’t be so tight that you can’t, once a month recap on your spending and give yourself a little reward that’s also needed to be budgeted for. Your budget should include a small amount for a reward. It might be set as monthly of even every six months but don’t go blowing the budget by telling yourself you “need this reward”. It’s a mind trap and we don’t want you to fall back into old habits.

If you have a tip on how to save for traveling, let us  know about it by leaving a comment.

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