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Compliments of the internet age, resources to find affordable (and even free) travel options exist these days in droves. Everything we need in order see the world is ours for cheaper than it ever has been before, yet still, very few people decide to drop everything and go.

So when money is no longer an obstacle to experiencing the world, what’s stopping people? A lot of the time it comes down to internal resistance; you either want it badly enough or you don’t.

One of the biggest obstacles to traveling more is actually deciding to go. It’s making that internal commitment and putting a practical plan into place to achieve the goal. Because it’s one thing to talk about how nice it would be to travel more, but most people lack action. And they lack action because it’s more comfortable to procrastinate than it is to make the decision to change your life and potentially jump into the unknown.

The following are 7 great ways you can travel more, though to actually benefit from these tips, you first have to be open to actually giving them a go.

7 Ways You Can Travel More

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Work Abroad / Find a Job Which Sends You Overseas

Two of the big obstacles in the way of traveling more are (1) money; and (2) career. So why not find a job which sends you overseas? Or even better yet, why not get a job overseas and work abroad?

There literally thousands of opportunities which will allow you to make money while continuing to travel the world. You could teach English overseas, work in hotels, find a cruise ship job, work on a farm, become a flight attendant, find construction work, become an Au Pair, surf instructor, bartender, massage therapist … the list goes on.

And then there’s the potential to work online and become location independent (blogs, graphic design, become a freelance photographer, social media manager / influencer). If you’re not picky, there are plenty of jobs out there which will allow you to travel while you work. If you’re worried about coming back to your career, find an opportunity overseas which will look good on your resume when you return.

Use the Sharing Economy

If you’re willing to take advantage of the sharing economy, most of the time you can travel for free! There are now so many platforms which connect travelers with locals for free accommodation, meals, rideshare, you name it! Here is an idea of how to get by without spending any money at all:

Accommodation: CouchSurf, land a house-sitting job, home exchange, volunteer, certain work exchanges.

Transport: Hitchhike, bike, or walk. Also: free flights with travel points.

Food: Go to markets at closing time and get the unsellable stuff, ask restaurant owners for extras, table dive, barter or trade labor.

Clothing & other necessities: Barter or scavenge.

The above platforms/strategies will not only save you money, but will put you in contact with locals and allow you the opportunity to experience local life. Win/win!

Hitch-hiking for free transport

Sacrifice

No matter what your dream, making it happen will always take sacrifice. Saving money takes sacrifice. Traveling the world takes sacrifice.

Some of these are fairly insignificant, and easy to de-prioritize. Others are a little more difficult to endure, and will often be the primary obstacle preventing others from traveling. My best advice is to sit down and weigh up whether your goals are worth the price, and what you’re willing to pay to get there.

Are you willing to stop meeting friends for dinner and instead invite them over for a homecooked meal? Are you willing to give up your $5 morning coffee? What about selling your car and riding your bike to work every day? Or not buying new clothes. Do you really need a new iPhone every time an upgrade is released? Like most great things in life, the ability to travel more comes down to what you’re willing to sacrifice.

Coffee

Use Online Travel Agencies

Use online travel agencies to find the best discounts on hotel accommodation and flights. Jumping over to an online travel agency like Traveloka allows you to make a quick and easy comparison of airline and hotel accommodation prices at a glance.

But it’s not just fares, it’s having access to schedules, too. Using online travel agencies you can run flexible date searches, put together multi-airline itineraries, and package your hotel and air fare for half what the flight would have cost alone.

They’re open 24/7 so you don’t have to drive for mile or wait until opening hours to speak to an expert, you can get information on public holidays, weekends, and after hours, and it’s easy to check out what people say about them.

Decide to Travel Full Time

If you’re willing to leave everything behind to travel full time, full time travel can be less expensive than living at home. You might not believe me, but it’s true.

“Traveling 365 days every year is less expensive than traveling just five or ten or fifteen days per year. And the reason for that is simple: living at home requires a huge amount of overhead that doesn’t exist on the road.”

You will no longer be spending money on rent/mortgage, car payments, homeowners insurance, property taxes, home furnishings, home maintenance, TV, internet, work clothes, gym memberships, vacations etc. All of those expenses get cut for the cost of living on the road.

Traveling full time gives you the luxury of traveling slowly, and this always equates to cheaper travel. You can buy groceries instead of eating out. You can sign a cheap short term lease as opposed to paying nightly rates at a hotel. And you get to see more of a country than you otherwise would.

Study Abroad

Traveling the world while studying full-time probably doesn’t sound the least bit realistic, but for those wanting to complete their studies while dabbling in a bit of international travel, the good news is that achieving this is absolutely possible.

With so many colleges and universities now offering flexible online degrees, combining higher education with a desire to travel the world is becoming more and more doable, and an increasing number of students are finding it easy to study and be location-independent while completing their courses.

Though if you’re studying onsite, why not diversify your degree and study abroad. Even if you can’t invest 6 – 12 months in an overseas exchange, many universities run short, intensive units during semester breaks which will allow you to travel and earn credit towards your degree.

Depending on your country, the Government might even have grants available to help you financially. Visit the student exchange office at your university for more info.

Volunteer

Volunteering around the globe is an awesome way to travel, and one serious perk is that if you find free or low cost placements, it can save you a lot of money on the road, keeping you travelling for longer.

Many of these kinds of placements that you find through websites such as HelpX or Workaway work on a subscription basis. You pay around $20 for a one- or two-year subscription, then flick through the worldwide opportunities and email the placements directly once you have chosen them.

The World Wide Organization of Organic Farms (WWOOF) is another great platform, where you can travel to many different countries and work on organic farms. WWOOF-ers work for around 4-6 hours per day in exchange for food and accommodation, and then have the rest of the time to explore the destination.

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Megan is an Australian Journalist who has been travelling and blogging since 2007, with the main aim of inspiring others to embark on their own worldwide adventure. Her husband Mike is an American travel photographer, and together they have made the world their home.

Committed to bringing you the best in adventure travel from all around the globe, there is no mountain too high, and no fete too extreme! They haven’t been everywhere, but it’s on their list.

Follow their journey on Facebook, TwitterYouTube, Pinterest and Instagram.

Photo credits: Featured photo by Steven Gerner. Passport in bag photo by by Kevin Spencer. Study abroad girls by CollegeDegrees360.

    36 Comments

  1. This tips are great! I can’t agree more with sacrifice! It was really hard for me at first coming from a job where I got paid to buy new clothes and shoes for a company, naturally I wanted to wear all the new clothes as well! It seems silly, but once I broke the habit of shopping for all the latest trends, it became really easy to sacrifice things like Starbucks, eating out everyday for lunch, and going out for drinks with friends! I was able to rack up a pretty big savings in a few months! I’ve never heard of Traveloka, I will check it out! Thanks for sharing!

    • Thanks Megan! I think that sacrificing the things we’re so used to having is definitely hard in the beginning, though over time I’ve found we adapt, and before long you can’t even remember what all the fuss was about :D!

  2. Spot on with the sharing economy. I’ve used Couchsurfing for years and met some amazing people through the site, while it has saved me a fair few pennies along the way. It also has allowed me to see a city from a local perspective, rather than as a tourist.
    Hopefully I’ll start travelling full time at some point in the future, the career still has its clutches on me :)

    • I hope that for you too Tom :) Glad to hear you’ve been utilizing the sharing economy – couch-surfing really is amazing for gaining that local perspective, and extending the budget that little bit further too! Happy travels!

  3. You are right, it really is possible to travel for most people, if they make it a priority. I drive a 13 year old car (in Texas, Public transport isn’t really an option) and don’t go shopping often. But I go on 3-4 trips a year. I’d take that over a fancy car any time.

    • Absolutely agree with you Maria – we have just set up a permanent base in Australia, and this is the first time in 5 years that Mike and I have each had a car. We saved so much money sharing one between the two of us in previous years, and while we had to adapt our schedules a little to fit around each other, the extra cash we had for travel was absolutely worth it :)

  4. I’m with Maria… more travel instead of fancy car, house or clothes. It’s all about priorities and putting your money aside for what matters.

    • Absolutely Tonya – I don’t remember the clothes I wore 2-3 years ago. But I sure remember the trips I’ve taken and experiences overseas :)

  5. Studying abroad was like my gateway to traveling. But I would definitely have to agree with sacrifice! That also means prioritizing it over anything else. A little selfish, but that’s how I manage to travel so much nowadays!

    • Prioritizing travel should never be seen as selfish – if it’s what you want to do, and you do everything you can to make that happen, all the more power to you :) Happy travels!

  6. Thanks for this great list – it’s the push and inspiration I needed.

    • You’re welcome Callie! Glad we could help start the brainstorming!

  7. Saving money is an important aspect for a traveler. I have literally not purchased any unnecessary items or shopped on a whim since an year or so. Whenever I go out, I always keep a tab of expenses and always cooking meals at home (infact hired a cook – her one month salary equals one meal in a nice restaurant – so its a huge money and time saver)

    • Nice work on the cook! That’s great value if you can save that money on going out to eat :) We’re the same – we very rarely spend money on unnecessary purchases, and put it all into travel experiences instead. These experiences are what we’ll look back on and remember in our old age after all!

  8. I love all of these tips! But the top one for me is that travel takes sacrifice. Being disciplined to save for your dreams and prioritizing your travel goals is necessary. I hope this post inspires more people to get out there and see this wonderful planet!

    • Thanks Vicki – I hope it inspires others to get out there and see the world too :)

  9. Great tips, I’ve done a few of those already and love to enjoy the travel space especially when it is feasible

    • Thanks Noel :) Glad you’re already utilizing many of the tips :)

  10. Great post. I’ve done two of these – teaching abroad and studying abroad and they were the two best experiences I have ever had. I wouldn’t change it for anything! I would definitely like to go abroad for a lengthy time again and would definitely consider some of your other opportunities you mentioned like volunteering.

    • Thanks Sophie :) So glad to hear you enjoyed your time teaching and studying abroad – my student exchange experiences were the best experience I’ve had too!

      Definitely have a look into different options for international volunteering – there are some fantastic initiatives and projects out there, and it’s such a wonderful experience too :) Happy travels!

  11. Great tips Megan! The one thing that stood out to me though was Sacrifice. I agree with this because I know a lot of people who always complain to me that they cant travel but at the same time they keep buying unnecessary things that prevent them from doing so. It’s all about balance and sacrifice.

    • Thanks Janna! I’m with you on that about sacrifice – when I was working as a waitress in the US, the girls I worked with would say how jealous they were that I had the money to travel. I was like “we make the same money”!!

  12. Some great tips. I’m working on having a more flexible work schedule so I can travel more whether it’s mid-week or working remotely. Thanks for sharing.

    • Thanks Megan – a flexible work schedule is definitely an asset for those who love to travel – wishing you all the best!

  13. I think it’s really all about priorities. Like you said, are you willing to give up that $5 cup of coffee? This post is a great reminder that anyone can travel if they really want to.

    • Absolutely Vicky :) Most of the time it does all come down to what you want more, and what you’re willing to do to get it.

  14. My favorite way to cut down expenses and travel more is to volunteer. I highly recommend workaway. They have people from all over the world looking for volunteers.

    • Right there with you Ben – there are such a broad range of opportunities volunteering internationally, especially with workaway, that there’s something to suit every interest and skill :)

  15. Amazing tips for anyone trying to fulfill their wanderlust :)

    • Thanks Steph!

  16. Hi Megan. It’s easier said than done. I want to study abroad so much but my parents are not ready to pay for expenses. There are not enough scholarships available and I hate it. I want to do it because I won’t have the same luxury once I get a job or get married.

    • Sorry to hear that :( Perhaps as an alternative you could look at potential volunteer placements you could apply for during semester breaks – save up during the year and then travel to volunteer while school is out.

      You can get some great volunteer placements which don’t charge a placement fee, so would be cheaper than enrolling in an overseas course, and even though it’s not studying per say, you’re still learning, still meeting fabulous people and having a wonderful experience all the same.

      I hope something comes through for you XX

  17. I agree that the sacrifice you make for travel is so worth it. I retired a few years ago after a long career with little time or energy to travel. Making up for it now! I’m a 60 year old female with a very modest income but managed to spend a month in Italy in 2016. Going to Paris for two weeks in March 2017. I rarely eat out, share a bottle of wine at home, and RARELY buy a $5.00 cup of coffee. My clothes closet has only what I need. I feel I live a very rich life.

    • Fantastic Linda! Italy is one of my favorite countries, a month there would have been amazing. And Paris is lovely, I’m sure you’ll have a fantastic time.

      It does come down to prioritizing those experiences over everything else … I always tell myself Im not going to remember today’s cup of coffee in 10 years time!

  18. Great ideas about how to travel more. I wish that I could travel more. I will be looking into these ideas for sure. Thank you so much for the suggestions. I love reading your blog. Such an inspiration.

    • Thanks Amber, so glad you enjoyed the post :) Happy travels!

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