Great Guides to Help You Plan Your Travel Budget

Great Guides to Help You Plan Your Travel Budget

There are literally hundreds of guides on budget travel to be found on the Internet and in bookstores. Some are useful, some are not. It really depends on what you want and where you are going. Many web sites offer email subscriptions and regular updates on where the best deals are. So how do you decide which ones are the most useful? A lot of the sites are confusing, so how do you find the ones that are going to give you the information you need?

 

Online bookstores have sections on travel guides. Try Amazon or specialty travel book stores like the Globe Corner Bookstores. They have an amazing array of guide books for the traveler on a budget. The most important thing to keep in mind about published guidebooks is that once the information is printed, it is probably out of date. Although most of them are updated annually, you cannot take what is written as set in stone. Internet guides are preferable in this area because their information is updated sometimes on a daily basis so all the deals on offer are available when you see them.

 

The best guides seem to be the ones that give you specific information on either your choice of destination or the type of holiday you will be taking (family vacation, backpacking, students, seniors, etc). There are the well known guide books/web sites like The Lonely Planet… Read the rest

Visit Your ?sister City? for Economical Traveling

Visit Your ?sister City? for Economical Traveling

What is a ‘sister city’ and how can you travel to one on a budget? 

 

A number of cities all over the globe have adopted a sister city in another part of the world to promote greater understanding, among other things, between the two cities and their nations. The sister city ‘movement’ began at the end of World War II and was instigated by America.

 

Participating cities aim to develop friendships and foster relationships between their chosen sister cities (some cities have more than one sister) and to encourage peace and understanding between nations. This is done in a number of ways – encouraging business and economic relationships through trade and technology, stimulate cultural and creative networks, develop partnerships between cities and countries and to provide the opportunity for sister city citizens to experience other cultures through travel.

 

Traveling to your sister city may be something you wish to do and it can be done at relatively low cost if you are able to become part of an exchange program. Cultural exchanges between sister cities are generally paid for by your home town. Some cities select students to travel to their sister city for a period of time, (it could be weeks or months) and pay all expenses. If you are a student, investigate what opportunities are available for this type of travel.

 

Traveling to a sister… Read the rest

Summer Job Ideas for Budget Travelers

Summer Job Ideas for Budget Travelers

Can you get a job over the summer while traveling? There are plenty around and many aimed at travelers specifically. Organize your work permit and check out the local paper for jobs for travelers. You’ll be amazed at what kind of work you can find to do.

 

1. You could become an au pair or nanny. There are many opportunities to look after people’s other kids while traveling. Try England, South Africa or Australia for starters.

2. You could teach English. In a number of countries there are opportunities for English teachers. If you are bilingual you’ll have a much better chance of scoring one of these jobs in places like Japan.

3. How about working in a pub? In England there are opportunities for free board in pubs where you are prepared to pull a beer. Hospitality jobs are relatively easy to come by in Australia.

4. Have you ever considered working at children’s holiday camps in the USA or Russia as a camp counselor?

5. You could become a fruit picker! Get to work in the fields all over the world.

6. What about a winter holiday job? Can you ski? You can get jobs as ski or snowboard instructors in many ski resorts all over the globe.

7. How about becoming a Jack or Jillaroo on an outback station in Australia? Immerse yourself in the… Read the rest

Are Discount Travel Web Sites Really the Best Deal?

Are Discount Travel Web Sites Really the Best Deal?

 

The Internet gives you easy access to so much information that you can become overloaded. When traveling this is definitely the case. Friends and fellow travelers tell you to book your trip on line yourself – you’ll save hundreds of dollars. But is that really the case? Will you be able to access the best and lowest deals? Isn’t it quicker and cheaper to do it all yourself? Maybe – maybe not.

 

Beware the discount web site. Don’t book on the first deal you see. It may claim to be the lowest fare, but you won’t know until you look around and surfing the web for the best price may take quite a while and time is money.

 

Research of web sites stating they will give you best deal shows up many times as an incorrect claim. Many big travel web sites pay homage to their sponsors and advertisers, by showing their ‘deals’ only. In the airline industry, a number of small carriers are ignored and they may well offer the best deal for you, but you won’t know if their information isn’t displayed.

 

Prices of air flights differ wildly on the Internet. Try it and see. Go to a number of travel sites and look for fares to Sydney, Australia. See what you get. And this is what you need to do when booking your travel through the web.… Read the rest