Hi there,
While on a trip to Costa Rica, a friend asked me how I did to travel and if I got offers from a specific website. I think there is no magic recipe for cheap travel.
I have a friend who finds flights at a good price (he traveled from Spain to New York for 100 euros) but he lives on Airbnb rentals that he makes with his apartment, and he does not work or must keep a schedule. So, he can take advantage of any last-minute deals.
That’s an advantage I didn’t have at the time, so I wasn’t going to get any great deals. Even so, booking in advance for low season, you will find affordable prices.
Then there is the way of traveling of each person. I travel with a backpack and look for cheap hotels that are clean and have private bathrooms. There are people who go to a shared room with a shared bathroom, and it is cheaper.
Also, lately I travel with my boyfriend, and we are both tough, we try to do everything on our own, we walk many kilometers and always use public transport. Traveling with someone who is just like you is also important.
From Sicily I decided not to have lunch in restaurants because it wastes a lot of time. We always carry fruit and water in our backpack just in case and we can also eat something quick at a street stall and continue the route.
As I was saying to my friend, this is something that is impossible to do with small children. Children are a great disadvantage when traveling. Because either you stay in a hotel and pay for an all-inclusive resort, or you are very limited when it comes to travel and time to visit.
I don’t buy souvenirs or bring gifts to anyone. Experiences are my best souvenir. Also, I try to do everything without tours or guides. In Mexico it is something that we were able to do without problems because public transport works well. In Costa Rica it is very limiting because public transport works poorly; I think they do it on purpose to get more money from tourists with tours, shuttles, and car rentals (all very expensive).
It is also good to travel with enough time and ask the locals. Travel slowly to explore and find out where people in the area go. In Drake Bay, for example, we went to a phenomenal river; this is a place that surely no tourist knew. If you travel by public transport, you are more likely to have people recommend things to you without any interest in selling anything.
In short, I believe that everyone should organize their trips according to their priorities; there are people who value tranquility more, others food, others adventure. There are many ways to save during your trip so you can travel longer with less money. In addition, your skills improve as you travel because you learn tricks and internalize knowledge that helps you save. You also learn from mistakes and do not fall into the same for the next trip.