Finances for Budget Travel
Read the entire story of how we got this trip off the ground.
Personal Finance and Budgeting Money for Travel: How to Save Money for World Travel, and Traveling Budget
We get asked all the time; How did we save enough money to travel for
years on end? How do we get money Down the Road? What is our
budget? |
I think when people read that we are traveling for several years they want
to know how we can afford it. First, we do not have a trust fund
or an inheritance. Many people out traveling do and therefore people
often assume that we do. The best short answer is that we did not have
kids. We do not have anything against kids, we just did not have any.
In a lot of ways the way we saved up for this trip is similar to the way
that you would save up for university tuition for two kids. We have
met many people who have raised kids and still saved up enough money to
travel for years.
Read the entire story of how we got this trip off the ground.
While we both worked, we lived well below our
means. We lived on less than 25% of our monthly income and just did without
the extras. While other couples with similar incomes were buying new
cars and splurging on weekend getaways we were buying mutual funds. We
never had a car payment. Before we sold it, Cindie drove the same
truck for nine years. Car payments and travel do not mix. We
have since sold all our vehicles including an old
1976 RV that we lived in and do not own motor vehicles any more.
We do not pay auto insurance either.
We do not pay rent. I guess that the hotels and
camp grounds, that we pay for could count as rent, but what I mean is that
we do not pay for a place in the USA while we are traveling. You would
be surprised how many people do. We own a house in Arizona but rent it
through a property manager and even receive a small profit. We
use this profit to pay down our mortgage and replace worn, broken, or lost
equipment.
We have never had debt except the house. We paid
student loans off as quickly as we could and never borrowed again. If
you are in debt and want to travel for an extended time the first thing that
you must do is get out of debt.
All of these facts aside I think the biggest secret to
extended travel is being able to think and plan five years in advance.
I can remember three years before departing on our trip telling everyone on
a bicycle club ride that we would be leaving on a multi-year bicycle tour.
They looked at me like I was crazy. If you have five years you can
save for extended travel or anything else you want if you have a decent job
or find a way to live rent free. We did it with a combination of both.
Another good piece of advise, for saving money, is to
ditch the car if you can. Even without monthly payments, cars can be
expensive. Gas, oil, and when the dumb thing breaks down it can eat up
your travel funds. I did not always follow my own advise here but if
you live near you place of work you should think about it. Bicycle
commuting is easier than it sounds, drastically improves your health, and
gives you a real sense of independence. Touring bikes make great
commuting bikes.
Below we have outlined our budgets we used in the
countries we have visited. Prices are stated in US dollars to avoid
the confusion of fluctuating currency exchange rates. Please remember
that we traveled on a shoe string and constantly asked ourselves if we
needed what we were buying and stayed on our daily budget. These
numbers may not work for your style of travel or prices can change
drastically in foreign countries.
Read the entire story of how we got this trip off the ground.
Budget
for Arizona
(March 30, 2002 - May 13, 2002)
US$21 = day
US$150 = week
US$924 = 44 days
============= We left with several
weeks of food and free camped most nights.
lunch = US$8 - US$15/for two
Camp ground = US$10 - US$12/night
Hotel = US$30 - US$40/night Rode
608 miles/979 kilometers
Budget for
Mexico
(May
13, 2002 - November 7, 2002)
US$28 = day
US$200 = week (About 2000 Pesos)
US$867 = month
US$2494 = 89 days
==========================
We free camped some (33%) and stayed in hotels
the rest of the time.
Current Mexican Paso
Exchange Rate
lunch = US$6 - US$9/for two
Hotel = US$8 - US$15/night Graph of the
Exchange Rate
Mexican Pesos per USA Dollar
During the Six Months While We Were in Mexico
Rode 1,616 miles/2,602 kilometers
Budget for
Guatemala
(November 7, 2002 - January 7, 2002)
US$19 = day
US$133 = week (About 1000 Quetzals)
US$576 = month
US$1,159 = 61 days
============================= The exchange rate during the two months
while we were there.
US$1 = 7.5 Guatemalan Quetzals
Current Guatemalan Quetzal
Exchange Ratet
We free camped some (15%) and stayed in hotels the rest of the time.
lunch = US$4 - US$8/for two
Hotel = US$3 - US$9/night
Rode 260 miles/418 km
Budget for
Honduras
(January 7, 2003 -
February 1, 2003)
US$23 = day
US$168 = week (About 1000 Lempiras)
US$576 = 24 days
============================= The exchange rate during the
24 days
while we were there.
US$1 = 14.5 Honduran Lempiras
Current Honduran
Lempiras Exchange Rate
We free camped some (37.5%) and stayed in hotels the rest of the time.
lunch = US$4 - US$8/for two
Hotel = US$6 - US$15/night
Rode 349 miles/562 kilometers
Budget for
Nicaragua
(February 1- 20, 2003)
US$25 = day
US$175 = week (About 2500 Cordobas)
US$500 = 20 days (includes a trip to the
dentist for Tim and Cindie)
============================= The exchange rate during the
20 days
while we were there.
US$1 = 14.5 Nicaraguan Cordobas
Current Nicaraguan Cordobas
Exchange Rate
We free camped some (0%) and stayed in hotels the rest of the time.
lunch = US$3 - US$7/for two
Hotel = US$2.50 - US$9/night
Rode 290 miles/467 kilometers
Budget for
Costa Rica
(February 20, 2003
- April 11, 2003)
US$36= day
US$252= week (About 2500 Colones)
US$1800 = 50 days
============================= The exchange rate during the
50 days
while we were there.
US$1 =480-495 Costa Rican Colones
Current Costa
Rican Colones Exchange Rate
We camped some (40%) and stayed in hotels the rest of the time.
lunch = US$4 - US$10/for two
Hotel/Campground = US$2.00 - US$15/night
Rode 285 miles/458 kilometers
Budget for
Panama
(April 11 - 17, 2003)
Panama uses the US dollar as its official
currency US$ 35.72= day
US$ 250= week
US$ 250= 7 days
Budget for
Ecuador
(June 4- Aug 4, 2003)
Ecuador uses the US dollar as its
official currency US$25 = day
US$175 = week
US$500 = 20 days (includes bus tickets,
new sun glasses, and one very expensive room (US$29) in Loja.
============================= We free camped some (25%) and stayed in hotels the rest of the time.
lunch = US$2 - US$3/for two
Hotel = US$6 - US$14/night
Rode 432 miles/695 kilometers
Budget for
Peru
(August 5 - October 31, 2003) US$20.50 = day
US$145 = week
US$1800 = 88 days.
============================= We free camped some (8%) and stayed in hotels the rest of the time.
Lodging is cheap in Peru plus we felt safer inside a hotel room. We
also bought new equipment, replaced our stove, new cables for the bikes,
waterproofing for tent and Gore-Tex. Our friend Karen brought it down
to Cusco, thanks.
lunch = US$2 - US$3/for two
Hotel = US$1 - US$9/night
Rode 1,289 miles/2,062 kilometers
Exchange Rate for Peruvian Soles
Budget for
Bolivia
(October 31 - December 9, 2003) US$20.50 = day
US$143 = week
US$800 = 39 days.
============================= We free camped some (23%) and stayed in hotels the rest of the time.
Camping was much easier in Bolivia. We had one very expensive room near Lake
Titicaca, US$35 for the night, it was not worth the extra cost. We bought
souvenirs in La Paz and sent them back to the states. We also bought
more water than usual, in some places the water was just not filterable.
lunch = US$2 - US$3/for two
Hotel = US$1 - US$9/night
Rode 496 (197 on dirt) miles/827 (329 on dirt) kilometers
Exchange Rate for Bolivian Bolivianos
Budget for
NW Argentina
(December 9, 2003-January 9,
2004) US$26.10 = day
US$182.70 = week
US$800 = 43 days.
============================= We free camped some (%) and stayed in hotels the rest of the time.
Camping was much easier in Bolivia. We bought
souvenirs in La Paz and sent them back to the states. We also bought
more water than usual, in some places the water was just not filterable.
lunch = US$ - US$/for two
Hotel = US$ - US$/night
Rode 1,018 (102 on dirt) miles/ 1,642(165 on dirt) kilometers
Exchange Rate for Argentinean Peso
Budget for
Chile
(January, 23, 2004 - February
19, 2004) US$31 = day
US$217 = week
US$870 = 28 days.
============================= We free camped some (10%) and stayed in hotels
and campgrounds the rest of the time.
We were stuck in the town of Cunco while we waited for a new hub to be sent
to us from the US. This took a week. We also stayed at a room at
a hot spring for $25 a night.
lunch = US$6 - US$9/for two
Campground - Hotel = US$6.83 - US$38/night
Rode 294 (170 on dirt) miles/ 490 (284 on dirt) kilometers
Exchange Rate for Chilean Peso
|
.jpg)
