I’m broke, I swear

I’m broke, I swear. A fact I have assured many of my friends who, after seeing my somewhat obnoxious Instagram stories from my latest travel escapades, have questioned how I managed to squeeze yet another trip into the slightest window of opportunity. Unfortunately though, flights do cost money, and Ryanair would charge you for the air on board if they could. That being said, after almost four years of taking as many trips as possible, I learned to squeeze a lot of incredible experiences into a relatively affordable bill. Trust me though, it’s a steep learning curve. The caption of the Instagram post for my first trip in college was “we were millionaires for 48hrs”. Wow, was it fun, but boy, did my bank account hate me afterwards.

One of the best strategies I’ve used to plan trips is to go on Ryanair’s site and randomly choose destinations for the time frame I’m free to travel. Picking the destination based on flight cost is a great way to save money right off the bat. This, however, only works if you want to travel for travel’s sake, with no preference on destination. Honestly, letting the prices choose the destination is one of the best things I’ve done. I ended up in Berlin in the October reading week of my senior freshman year because it was the cheapest flight I could find, and I fell in love. It’s now one of my favourite places I’ve visited. It doesn’t work everytime, especially if you’re going further than the grace of Ryanair, but I always think it’s worth checking out what unexpected destinations reveal themselves on ryanair.com. That being said, in order to actually save money, the affordability of the destination also makes a difference. If you’re heading to London for five days on a 30 euro round trip you might spend the same amount overall as a trip to Warsaw on a 100 euro round trip. 

That brings me to accommodation. Forget Ryanair, Hostelworld might be my favourite website of all time. Hostels are probably the most affordable option for solo travellers or groups of two or three. Larger friend groups heading out together may be able to find a cost-effective AirBnb, but the rest of us are relegated to sleeping in shared quarters with total strangers. Ok, that makes them sound bad. I actually love hostels – and the affordable prices are not their biggest selling point. I know a lot of people are nervous of them, and I’ll admit, it took a couple trips for me to acclimate to sleeping in a less than private room, but I can honestly say they’ve been an integral part of my travels. I’ve met some of the most incredible people in hostels and made amazing connections, if only for a couple days. Plus, they come in all shapes and sizes, and with all-female dorms for those so inclined. Feeling like socialising? Party hostels won’t let you down, or at the very least they’ll have an on-site bar. Feeling like partying in a different city with total strangers is a little overwhelming? There are hostels with proper quiet hours which are respected. Bonus if you get free breakfast. Any time there’s a free buffet breakfast at the hostel, I always pack a lunch from the available goodies as well. Is it taking advantage? I like to think of it as saving the planet by reducing potential food waste. 

Food is an easy way to save money while travelling. I had a walking tour guide in Prague tell me that the way to truly visit a place is to walk the streets, speak a little bit of the language, and eat a little bit of the food; and while it’s essential to try a least some of the local food, eating out at restaurants for every meal can drain funds pretty fast. On the other hand, grocery shopping for at least one meal a day can save a lot of money, especially in countries with cheaper groceries than Ireland – which is basically all of continental Europe. 

That being said, if eating out at restaurants is your thing, that’s totally fine. Different people have different travel styles. Some people cook spaghetti in hostel kitchens and others take advantage of dining out in a foreign city. Besides food, a great way to save money is walking tours. Free walking tours are a great way to get to know a city without having to spend a significant amount of money. Whereas entrance into the Milan Duomo Cathedral costs 30 euro, a free walking tour only requires a small tip for the volunteer tour guide at the end of the walk. If you find walking tours boring, I get it. I did a lot of walking tours in Prague and Krakow, while interrailing, but lost momentum on my cultural endeavours when I got to the clubs of Budapest. Walking in the heat of summer, deathly hungover, while a total stranger talks about architecture and history is an experience I never wish to repeat. Walking, however, is my favourite way to experience a city. It’s totally free, and in my opinion, the best way to really get the feel of a place. 

While walking works great in the “old towns” and pedestrianised sections of cities, it’s not a feasible form of travel in larger places like Paris and Berlin. Navigating public transport is a great, cost-effective way to get around – depending on the city. Different destinations have various levels of public transport, but there is almost always a train or bus that departs from the airport. Depending on your comfort level and the safety of the city, public transportation can appear daunting. In Morocco, I scared my cousin when I got him to take the bus to the airport to save money. Packed like sardines, far closer quarters than anything Dublin bus drivers would allow, a man was pulled off the bus by the police for causing a disturbance by not paying the bus driver. When there are arguments happening in a different language, it can be intimidating, if not overwhelming. However, minimising taxis is an easy way to limit financial expenditure.

No matter how you decide to travel, one of the sure-fire ways to control how much you spend is to track purchases. I use the app Tripcoin when I travel, which allows me to set a budget and input purchases under various categories such as groceries, activities, etc. It also allows you to input whatever currency you are spending in and converts it to a currency you feel comfortable tracking. The statistics tab also tracks average expense per category, total per category, daily averages, and more. Manually entering each purchase can be a hassle, but if you’re an organisation freak like me, then it’s worth it. 

All in all, budget travelling is not that hard. It’s about being mindful. Some days are more dear, some nights drain your budget, but some days, if planned right, could have little to no expenses. Either way, in my totally unbiased opinion, every costly minute is worth it. The reason my best friend and I are so close is because she caught me booking flights to Venice in first year and jumped at the opportunity to join. There is nothing more bonding than sitting in an airport for hours or taking a 10 hour bus ride together. Travelling creates connections, and those are priceless.