The 21st century has made the world a smaller place. It’s far easier to communicate and travel internationally than ever before. But this doesn’t mean that the savings are spread out equally. While airlines like WOW have made it a lot more affordable to travel to places like Dublin, there are plenty of other places in the world which have become more expensive in recent years, if anything.
If you want to take a holiday, immigrate, or make an investment in nations which aren’t commonly visited, you’re going to have to pioneer your own savings strategies. Luckily, this won’t be a challenge for a smart and talented person like yourself. Here are a few ways to make it happen.
Flights and Other Modes of Travel
Accept the reality that the fastest, most direct route is not always worth the cost. Many travelers pay 5-10 times more for the most convenient travel route available. Don’t be that way. First of all, look for travel deals early.
Buying a year in advance can save you hundreds. Then look for connections that could save you money. Finally, investigate modes of transportation other than air travel.
Taking a ferry or train could save you an incredible amount over faster travel options, all while adding romance and personality to your trip. Make a habit of this kind of travel planning, and you’ll save thousands of dollars over your lifetime, all while seeing more interesting places than the average person.
Also, walk as much as you can, walking is perhaps the best travel tip anyone can get. Walking and mixing with local people gives you the best chance to experience a foreign culture. Walking also saves travel money. But be careful and don’t exhaust yourself.
Currency Transfer
Let’s say you want to build a vacation home in a foreign country. Finding affordable land and permits may not be a huge difficulty, but finding the best savings on the currency transfer itself will be harder, especially if you don’t know the transfer industry well. You can use comparison sites to get better currency conversion rate, that find the best conversion rate for you.
marily in the web and mobile spheres. Take the time to find one which caters to your specific needs (the overseas investor, sending one or two high-value lump sums). Finding the right transfer channel can save you 5% or more of a large transfer.
Lodging
If you are going to a country that isn’t a common travel destination, tourist lodging will be even more expensive than it is in popular holiday destinations! As in every case with this sort of travel, it is imperative that you find lodging opportunities which meet your personal requirements, but which don’t specifically cater to people looking to throw away money.
Consider off-the-beaten-path options, like hostels and yurts, if that sort of thing interests you. In Europe, even smaller cities have YMCA hostels to look forward to. And now we have an additional option through sites like Airbnb where you can end up staying with a family having a spare room. That is as cheap as it can get.
Taxes
The more time you spend staying in the other country, the more you will find your tax obligations changing. While there is no general rule for this, tax law for long-term travelers and expats is something you should definitely look into, especially if you’re hoping to save every dollar you can, or to live better on less, in a country having different currency.
There are ways to make travel like this more affordable which aren’t savings-focused. Why not monetize your journey? Travelers around the world have made great side-hustles (and careers) by blogging about their experiences. You need to know how to monetize your blog.
While this market is saturated in some ways, going to places off the beaten path will give you a chance at a unique voice. Master the process of getting to and living within places people don’t normally go. You’ll become an authority on the web, and you can start making money from advertising and traffic, which will allow you to perpetuate your journeys.
There are also job opportunities for people traveling in foreign lands, which may not have presented themselves back home. Simply by being fluent in English, you’ll have a marketable skill which could be applied in a variety of circumstances.
Not every country will allow you to work, but private lessons and other applications of your “talent” may be available to you. Being a language teacher or tutor is also an opportunity to improve your command of the language spoken in the region where you’re living.
Once you’re fully versed in the new language (or, at least, can speak it well enough to be understood in most situations), you’ll have even more employment. Being conversant in the local language also makes matters much easier if you want to transfer citizenship, as well.
There are many people thinking about traveling right now. For financial, cultural, and political reasons, lots of individuals are considering spending more time in a country that is not the one they grew up in.
Whatever your reason, if you are starting to make this sort of plan, think about all of the ways that you can both save and earn money while in a culture which you aren’t used to. For awhile, you’ll be reliant on the plan you make before you leave, so make sure it is a good one.
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