Travel budget planning – these 9 tips will help you save money on your next trip!

Do you love to travel and would love to see even more of the world? Then you'll need to plan your travel budget. When it comes to your travel budget, planning and preparation are absolutely essential.

Having traveled extensively around the world as students and now spent over three years traveling with children and a dog, we've gained a wealth of experience that we'd like to share. With what we know now, we can save quite a bit of money .

For all major cost categories, start by asking yourself: Where can I, and more importantly, where do I want to save money, and what do I need to consider when planning my trips? In our opinion, it's crucial to feel comfortable on your trip, and everyone has different standards. Some travelers place particular value on a large double room with a private bathroom and an attached restaurant, while others prefer to spend their money on activities and stay in an 8-bed dorm with a shared bathroom or even in a tent. It's always nice to try something new, but with only 30 days of vacation a year, we know from experience that even passionate travelers are only willing to make a few compromises. The more you know what's important to you and where your priorities lie, the easier it is to save money in other areas.

As a travel group, it's worthwhile to discuss priorities and compromises BEFORE the planned trip. This way you can avoid bad moods on the road.

The following information and questions will help you determine which type of trip best suits you and your travel group. The checklist will help you keep track of your travel costs and reduce them as much as possible. Hidden costs will be revealed and can be avoided.

First, get an overview of the major cost categories and prioritize which ones are most important to you:

• Arrival
• Accommodation
• Catering
• Local transport
• Activities

What is your travel budget?

To roughly estimate whether a trip fits your budget, you need to set a rough amount and a timeframe. This can vary greatly, and usually, two things are mutually exclusive: time and money. We experienced this ourselves: as students, we had plenty of time to travel during semester breaks, but little money. That changed completely when we started our jobs. Suddenly, we had a larger travel budget available, but only 30 days of vacation per year. Often, travel priorities shift at that point. It's important to think about your priorities and how you want to travel beforehand.

As a general rule: the shorter the trip, the more expensive it is in comparison, and spontaneous trips are often more expensive than planned trips.

TIP 1: Set a travel budget and write down what is important to you.

Where would you like to travel to?

There are countries that are particularly affordable to travel to and others that are considered "expensive" from the outset. Of course, it also depends on how and when you want to travel. It's worth clarifying beforehand which price range the major cost categories, such as accommodation, transport, activities, and food, fall into. Often, there are ways to save on certain travel costs by customizing your itinerary. For example, our trip to Oman: hotels are very expensive, but camping in the wilderness is permitted and very popular with Omanis themselves. Or consider Iceland: eating out is very expensive. If your budget is lower, you could cook for yourself.

Hidden costs that you should definitely check before your trip include foreign transaction fees charged by your bank or credit card. Outside of Germany, even small amounts can often be paid by card, so you might not see the fees until your statement later.

It's also important to clarify beforehand whether you have health insurance coverage in your chosen travel destination. The best way to find out is to contact your health insurance provider and inquire about the country and the duration of your trip.

2. TIP : Consider whether you want to travel to a more expensive country or on a low budget.

How would you like to travel?

You've decided on your travel budget and which country you want to visit? Now you need to plan your journey:

For some countries, flying is essential. Since this often represents a significant portion of the cost, you should pay close attention to this aspect. Google Flights offers a great feature for monitoring flight prices over an extended period. These days, bargains on flights close to the departure date are rare. It's worthwhile to keep an eye on flight prices and, if possible, choose a time when prices are lower. Flights are usually more expensive around Christmas and during school holidays. If you want to save money, you can also look at less comfortable routes with multiple layovers. While this may be questionable from an environmental perspective, flights with even seemingly pointless layovers are often cheaper.

For some time now, baggage is no longer necessarily included in the flight price and is added as an extra cost. This can quickly add up to a significant sum, especially on trips with multiple flights. It's definitely much cheaper to travel with only hand luggage. To minimize the amount of luggage you take on your trip and limit yourself to hand luggage, take a look at our packing list.

3. TIP: Monitor flight prices and book during the lowest possible price period. Travel with hand luggage if possible.

When would you like to travel?

Once you have chosen a travel destination and checked initial prices for the major cost categories, be sure to check online to see if there are any public holidays, vacations, or special events.

Chinese New Year isn't just a big celebration in China; in Vietnam, for example, people travel to visit their families or take a two-week vacation. Trains are fully booked, and accommodations are more expensive than usual. Some countries, like Australia, don't set a limit on the increase in accommodation prices. This means that on New Year's Eve in Sydney, apartments for two people not only sell out quickly but also cost significantly more.

4. TIP : Research national holidays, school breaks, or events in your destination country. Generally speaking, everything is more expensive around Christmas and school holidays. If you're not tied to school holidays, you can save a considerable amount of money by traveling outside of these periods.

Where do you want to sleep?

Depending on the country, different travel styles and accommodation options are available. Whether it's a rooftop tent trip through Namibia, a bicycle tour through the Balkans, or a hike across the Alps with overnight stays in mountain huts – almost anything is possible these days. However, it's important to think about what kind of trip you want and what makes sense in the specific country beforehand.

Camping in a tent or campervan

One of the cheapest options is camping. In some countries, it's even permitted to camp for free in certain areas. In some regions of the world, this can be a bit of a thrill, or even dangerous. For example, it's possible to camp in Canada, but you should be aware that there are brown bears, grizzlies, and other wild animals that like to search campsites for food at night. A campervan holiday is very popular in these countries. It offers more comfort and safety, but renting a campervan is much more expensive, as is staying at a campsite.

Backpacking

Another very affordable way to travel is backpacking, which involves staying in hostels and youth hostels with a packed backpack. These are generally more budget-friendly than guesthouses, apartments, or hotels, as facilities like the kitchen, bathroom, and other common areas are shared with other travelers. If you're looking for or want to meet fellow travelers, this type of accommodation is very advantageous, as you'll most likely come into contact with other backpackers while cooking in the kitchen.

Hotels

Those who prefer a private bathroom or an attached restaurant with a pool should book a hotel. Prices in this segment vary considerably depending on the country, time of year, and standard of accommodation. Often, the prices offered through online portals like booking.com or agoda.com are cheaper than those offered directly by the hotel.

Apartments and holiday homes/holiday homes

Renting apartments has become highly professionalized. Numerous platforms offer rooms, well-equipped apartments, vacation rentals, and houses for rent. Airbnb is very popular worldwide, but there are often local online platforms in each country. If you want to book a specific accommodation, be sure to check several portals and compare prices. Service fees often vary between platforms, and there can be hidden costs.

5. TIP: Calculate your accommodation costs before your trip and check what type of accommodation is available and comfortable for you in your next destination country. It's worthwhile to try a new type of accommodation for a few nights now and then.

How do I want to provide food for myself and my fellow travelers?

Depending on your accommodation, you can save money on food. As soon as you can cook for yourself, your food costs and therefore your overall holiday expenses will decrease significantly. Generally speaking, cooking for yourself is still the cheapest option. While it's certainly affordable to eat on the street or in small local restaurants in some Asian countries, self-catering is more economical in most countries worldwide. Again, it comes down to how willing you are to compromise. We have friends for whom a holiday is only truly relaxing if they don't have to cook. With children, we've found it's easier if we have at least a small kitchenette available to prepare porridge in the morning.

6. TIP: Plan your meals in relation to your accommodation.

How long do you want to travel for?

For example, accommodation costs often decrease the longer you travel or plan to stay in one place. You could, for instance, arrange a monthly rental or look into house-sitting opportunities. In some countries, it's quite common for residents to offer their house or apartment when they're traveling. There are numerous platforms and Facebook groups where travelers make their homes available. These are usually for longer stays.

If you're planning a shorter vacation, be sure to check whether an extra day makes a difference. You can avoid weekly discounts or higher prices over a weekend and thus save money on your trip. One platform that lists both short- and long-term exchange offers, and where you can offer your own apartment, is homeexchange.com. For a fee, you can exchange your apartment or house with another person.

7. TIP: Check if a slightly longer stay in one place could potentially save you money and see if your destination country offers house-sitting opportunities. Consider whether you'd like to swap your own base for someone else's.

How large is the tour group?

Who do I want to travel with? How many of us are traveling? Sometimes it makes a big difference whether you're traveling as a couple, a group of four, or a group of five. In some countries, there are many small cars available for rent and few large ones. Often, the larger models are also more luxurious, so they have a higher base price. This means the overall price is higher, even though it can be shared among many people. The same applies to accommodations. Especially when several single beds are needed, it can be difficult in some countries, not only driving up the price but also severely limiting the options. With larger groups, it also becomes harder to reach a consensus when spontaneous decisions need to be made. On the other hand, traveling with a large group and creating shared memories is a fantastic experience.

8. TIP: Larger travel groups don't automatically mean lower costs! Check what group size is typical in your travel destination and divide the group wisely.

How willing am I, or we as travel partners, to make compromises?

Even if the desire to save money and travel more often is strong, a trip should be fun, and too many compromises, especially on vacation, can spoil the experience. Try to find a good middle ground and keep track of your expenses. On almost every trip, something doesn't quite go according to plan. The hotel room looks completely different than expected, or you might want to...

In this case, it's good to have some travel budget available.

9. TIP: Plan in a cost buffer and allow yourself not to have to make certain compromises on vacation.

With this information and these recommendations, you'll have an overview of your costs and have important questions answered before your trip. You can avoid overlooking hidden costs, and clarifying these questions will also create more harmony within your travel group.

Have fun planning and traveling! Best wishes from your

Lisa from UNFOLD