{"id":45,"date":"2011-11-18T03:00:00","date_gmt":"2011-11-18T08:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/jett.in\/post\/15337022227"},"modified":"2011-11-18T03:00:00","modified_gmt":"2011-11-18T08:00:00","slug":"budgetpart-of-the-30-days-of-indie-travel-projectim-a-pretty-cheap-traveler-i-mean-lets-face-it-if-youre-just-a-regular-joe-or-in-my-case-a-regular-jon-and-like-to-travel-as-much-as-i-do-you-cant-have","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/first2board.com\/wanderlusty\/2011\/11\/budgetpart-of-the-30-days-of-indie-travel-projectim-a-pretty-cheap-traveler-i-mean-lets-face-it-if-youre-just-a-regular-joe-or-in-my-case-a-regular-jon-and-like-to-travel-as-much-as-i-do-you-cant-have\/","title":{"rendered":"Budget"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/p>\n

part of the 30 Days of Indie Travel Project<\/a><\/p>\n

i\u2019m a pretty cheap traveler. i mean, let\u2019s face it. if you\u2019re just a regular joe (or, in my case, a regular jon) and like to travel as much as i do, you can\u2019t have champagne wishes and caviar dreams<\/a>.<\/p>\n

something i hardly ever spend money on: souvenirs<\/strong>. i used to get stuff, but really, it\u2019s just going to take up extra room in your suitcase and i\u2019m the type of person to let it just sit on the shelf for years and never look at it again (*eyeing dusty fez and cobwebby lantern from morocco*). that\u2019s not to say i\u2019ll never. if something really catches my eye, i will get it, but for the most part, they\u2019re a waste of hard-earned moolah.<\/p>\n

something i\u2019m willing to scrimp on: lodging<\/strong>. when i was a grad student traveling around europe (shh, it was an easy program<\/a>) i\u2019d have no problem staying in hostels. traveling in winter was the best because they\u2019d be virtually empty\u2014i\u2019ve had entire rooms to myself on several occasions (e.g., picture above). but even though i have a job that pays more than a Hiwi<\/a> again, i prefer to stay cheap. if i didn\u2019t have to tote my work laptop with me everywhere i went (and maybe have to work, even on vacation), i would still do the hostel thing. so, i now do the cheap hotel thing. well, the cheap-but-still-highly-rated-on-tripadvisor thing.\u00a0<\/p>\n

many of you will gasp, but i\u2019m willing to be stingy about\u00a0food<\/strong>. i will have fast food for several meals if that means being able to get the occasional nice meal. i mean, yes, i could probably afford non-fast food meals, but i balk at spending so much money. so yes, that means i have eaten at quick<\/a> more times than i care to remember. silver lining? sometimes the tastiest food is cheap street food. one word: d\u00f6ner<\/a>. also, the best sausage i ever had\u00a0(har har, all you people with dirty minds, i\u2019m serious)\u00a0was from some random subway station stand in prague. cheapskate or not, i\u2019m traveling to explore, so i make it a point to at least have a nice, typical meal at least every other dinner, if not more often.<\/p>\n

speaking of subways, it\u2019s key to do research to see what sort of public transportation<\/strong> deals there are at your destination, like all-day transit passes or discount combination tickets, etc. if i can help it, i will not rent a car or take a cab. public transit all the way! it\u2019s cheaper, you don\u2019t have to deal with driving\/parking\/speeding tickets<\/a>,\u00a0and, most important to me, i feel more connected with the place i\u2019m in.<\/p>\n

and speaking of transportation, flights<\/strong>. do. your. research. kayak<\/a> and hipmunk<\/a> are your friends. imho, definitely just go cheap, with a caveat. i am willing to spend slightly more (my cutoff is usually around 10-15% of the ticket cost) to stick with a single alliance (in my case, star alliance) because i can accrue miles on one airline while flying different carriers to different parts of the globe. and once you get those miles? USE THEM. no point in hoarding (burn baby burn, as they say). and when you have an unpredictable work schedule like i do, miles are like gold. even at the last minute, off-peak travel is usually easy to get at the lowest redemption option, and the flexibility with an award ticket really helps. i\u2019ve had to reschedule tomorrow\u2019s trip to japan three times, but because it\u2019s an award ticket, changing the dates has been free! (although costs are dependent on airline and any elite status, and are subject to availability, yadda yadda)<\/p>\n

so. what am i willing to spend money on? experiences<\/strong>. i will, and have, traveled for the express purpose of one thing (usually a long weekend trip for a concert):<\/p>\n