The idea
How this would even work? Isn’t traveling all about spending money that you were able to save throughout the year? Isn’t it enjoyable only when you are able to allow yourself every indulgence that comes your way? It doesn’t have to be. If your purpose is to discover new places and immerse yourself in new cultures – I will be more than happy to share my insights about traveling on a minimal budget.
Read more: How to travel on minimal budgetLive like a local
This new approach to traveling has been gaining more and more popularity. The idea is simple – it encourages you instead of looking for hotel enclaves, with all the services behind the hotel walls, to find all the services for yourself separately. And it doesn’t stop on that! Following the idea, you are supposed to find accommodation next to the local community, shop in local grocery stores and cook with local products, trying to befriend the local people, allowing them to show you the destination.
A tourist always wants to spend money
Why should following the local life help you with your financial situation? Apart from the nonnegotiable fact that it will enrich you culturally, it looks like a more difficult approach to holidays – it requires time spent in planning and research before setting foot in the destination. And we are talking about holidays!
However, try to think about your own hometown. You probably don’t visit the most touristic cafés and restaurants. Why? Not only may they serve less authentic food (the chefs satisfy the guests expectations about local food), but more importantly the same products two blocks away would cost you half the price! This is the case in most of the developed tourism destinations, and is based on the tourist’s ignorance about local prices and practices. The business owners also presume that the tourists have loads of money and are willing spend it. Usually they are not wrong! But if you want to minimize your travel costs, following local people will help you greatly.
Give back to the community
A great way to avoid the costs of accommodation and food is by volunteering in the local community. You can find plenty of hosts online that are searching for volunteers for a fixed period of time. The tasks vary. They may need help with watching over a farm, you might be asked for helping with renovation works and some of the hosts are looking for babysitters, who will speak their native language to their children. Whatever do you choose, those places typically provide accommodation and food for free and sometimes they pay you a small allowance!
My experience
On my first travel to Finland, the great majority of my modest means were taken by the transportation. I needed plane, train and bus tickets, to get to Inari, the first place I have ever visited in Finland. I chose this place for one reason. I have seen an announcement on helpstay, one of the platforms that connects host and volunteers, that I can get free accommodation and food for a month, if I help in a small guesthouse. At first, the offer seemed surrealistic to me. Somebody was willing to pay for my holidays in exchange for a couple of hours per day on non-demanding work!
When I arrived one of the summer days, I was greeted by my host. She was a Sami person that had her guesthouse business in the centre of Inari. She showed me to my room and explained my responsibilities. I was to prepare and serve homemade breakfast, clean the rooms and give away the keys to the new guests. The rooms needed to be cleaned by 15:00, but almost always there were not enough rooms to clean to take that long. I was working approximately 6 hours per day.
My memories from that period include plenty of time in the nature, meeting loads of new people and learning about Sami culture. The work was a marginal part of my days, but I enjoyed it because it allowed me to connect with the locals (other workers) and people from different cultures (guests). For a month-long holiday, filled with memorable experiences, the only cost was the travel tickets. Little over 200 euros doesn’t seem like much!
How to start your adventure
So where do I sign up?! You have convinced me, I want to try myself now! – Don’t worry, it is really simple to find your perfect place. The easiest and fastest way are websites connecting hosts and volunteers around the world. Previously mentioned helpstay or workaway will both work fine. This kind of websites are free to browse, but they usually charge a fee to be able to message the hosts. If you are really short on budget, though, you can google the host yourself after having seen the announcement, to be able to communicate for free.
Another approach is to try help organizations, natural parks or associations. Offering your help and expertise can guarantee you a place to stay and help to form new friendships!
Have you already tried an alternative way of traveling? I would love to hear about your experience! Share your memories and tips with the others in the comment section.