Budgeting for Long Term Travel

Accommodation Deals - Sponsored

Cheap Flights - Sponsored

Google Sponsored Ads

Contact Us to Advertise

This post is an account of my methods when budgeting for long term travel. I don’t expect anyone would copy it exactly but perhaps my method can help you prioritize what you spend your money on.

I have two systems when budgeting for long term travel. A standing budget and a rolling budget.

A standing budget is when I save up the money I need before going. It is easy to budget for long term travel (or short term) with this method as it is always $50/day usd. This drawback is that it requires me to know how long the itinerary is. The big positive is having the luxury of certainty for money.

A rolling budget is when I calculate my budget on a monthly basis as I travel. It is dependent on my previous months profit and caps at $50/day usd. My monthly income fluctuates and is currently substantially less than $50/day but I figure that I will never actually starve. Worst case scenario I will have to live on the street until the new month starts (I’d rather travel like a bum than be a slave to society). Obviously this budget is a bit more adventurous but since I have started relying solely off website income I will use this budget more.

Regardless of the type of budget I use when budgeting for long term travel, at the end of each week I check my total spending and adjust my budget for the next week if I have overspent.

If I under-spend the leftover money gets “banked” meaning that it does not roll-over to the next month. Instead it gets put away into my “just-in-case” fund.

Any visas, air tickets or other pre-trip expenses are usually saved up for separately, although even when doing so I still usually stay under the $50/day budget.

Expenses in Order of Importance When Budgeting for Long Term Travel

Here are my expenses listed in order of personal importance. If I am going over-budget than I sacrifice things in the order of least important first – meaning that the first thing I sacrifice is sightseeing and the last is a private room.

Private room

I am a private person. I like to work, exercise, eat etc.
I will always go for the cheapest private room I can find, preferably with an on-suite. Free internet access is a must (if not in the room than at least a common area).
A private room in a hostel is often ideal because I get the atmosphere of a hostel but can retreat to my room if I want.

Private accommodation with internet is important to me.

Food

I usually eat pretty cheap street food, but I guess if I had to I could only eat from supermarkets, buy cheaper fruits etc. I wouldnt sacrifice health though, e.g. I would not just live off 2-minute noodles. Fresh fruit and veg is a must, chuck some garlic and ginger in there aswell.

Trying different foods is definitely up there with one of the top things I love about traveling.

Transport

It’s kind of hard to skimp on transport when I prefer walking or public transport anyway. The main thing here would be long distances, but I do not skimp on long distance journeys… I have a certain level of comfort I don’t mind “splashing” out for (such as having a toilet on board if the journey is more than a few hours, or a sleeping berth if it is overnight – also, I prefer trains to.. pretty much everything). So if need to save on transport the option is simple… I just stay put for a while, assuming staying put is cheaper than what I am paying for accommodation.

Indecently, staying put is what happens when I “run out of money”. I can rent something long term for cheaper with a kitchen and just work to build up cash reserves.

Trains are my preferred mode of transport.

Sightseeing

Sightseeing is the first thing I am willing to not pay for. There’s always plenty of free stuff to see, and those things usually have less people around also. In fact, something has to be pretty special for me to even consider paying more than $10usd to have a look.

Machu Pichu definitely qualifies as something I don’t mind shelling out cash for.

Extra Spending Money

This is a non-issue for me. I just put it in because I know people will be like “what about general spending money?”. I don’t buy souvenirs or other stuff I don’t need. Occasionally I send some postcards out but that doesn’t cost much. Things I do buy are only because my existing one is broken or lost i.e. it is replacing something from my packing list and I wouldn’t be able to skimp on it anyway.

What Things Do You Consider When Budgeting for Long Term Travel?

The post Budgeting for Long Term Travel appeared first on Survive Travel.