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| The Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon, Myanmar lights up as the sun sets. |
A newbie traveller shares his tips on travelling despite a meagre income.
Travelling is a very rewarding experience but can also be financially draining; take that from someone who has a 9 to 5 job in a government office of a developing country. But, finances should never hold you back from hopping into that adventure you've always dreamt of. My mother has sound advice for that, "yung pera kikitain mo rin yan maya't maya, pero yung oras, pagkakataon at pangangatawan mo, lilipas 'yang mga yan." [You can earn money sooner than you think, but the time, opportunity and that health you have, they will all pass.]
Travel is a game between, money, time/opportunity and health, and if truth be told, the easiest to control among these is money. Many people mistakenly believe, in my own little world, that I am wealthy because I travel. No matter how I like to believe that, it is plainly that - a mistake. So how do I travel, given the limited finances I have? Here's how.
Set A Goal
My current project is to travel the Southeast Asian Buddhist trail. Buddhism is a very influential philosophy that guides about a fifth of the world's population, let alone about half of the countries in ASEAN. So it is really very interesting. This Buddhist trail covers Myanmar, Thailand, Lao PDR and Cambodia. The essential ancient sites for these are Bagan and Mandalay in Myanmar; Chiang Mai, Sukhothai and Ayutthaya in Thailand; Louang Phabang and the Champassak region in Lao PDR; and, Siem Reap in Cambodia. Of course the ancient and modern forms of Buddhism merges in the capital/prominent cities of these countries, namely, Yangon in Myanmar, Bangkok in Thailand, Vientiane in Lao PDR and Phnom Penh in Cambodia.
This trail is worth about 2-3 months of continuous travel, and because I have a 9 to 5 job, I just can't cover them all in one go. But, because I have a clear large picture in mind, I can cut it into bite-sized pieces that can fit into a week or 2-week itinerary. So far, I have covered Yangon and Bagan in Myanmar and, Vientiane and Louang Phabang in Lao PDR. Hopefully, I will be covering the Thailand portion soon.
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| photo above Tak Bat (Buddhist Almsgiving Ceremony) at Louang Phabang, Lao PDR |
Budget Travel Tip: Give your travels a purpose, look at the larger picture!
Map out that Work Cycle
After being in your work for a year or two, you should already have a fair idea about your work cycle. You know it when the load sends you neck-deep into your job, and also when there is little to do in your office. You also know the average period each part in the cycle plays. Let me tell you a secret, long weekends are never the best times to travel! Many people fall into the trap of arranging their trips around long weekends, but that's the main problem, many people do it. What happens actually? (1) You don't get to impress your bosses that you are someone they can depend to work when everybody is off elsewhere, (2) you don't earn the extra 25-50% of your pay for working on a holiday, or that paid time-off you earn in its place, (3) flight and accommodation prices are naturally jacked-up during these times and (4) because the tourist destinations will likely be full on these long weekends, your experience will not be as enjoyable. Travel is just like playing in the stock market, you don't buy when everybody else is buying, and you don't sell when everyone is selling too; you have to work on the counter-flow.
When do you travel then? Travel when workload is on a downturn! Your bosses will likely approve your paid leave when there is not much to do in the office. It makes plain economic sense, working on a holiday earns you 125-150% of your salary, taking time-off on a non-holiday will penalise you 100% of that salary, maybe even less because you can use paid time-off. End result, you get a 25-50% savings.
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| A few of the many wats dotting the Bagan plains, Bagan, Myanmar. |
Budget Travel Tip: Stay away from travelling on long weekends. Travel 2-3 weeks before and after the peak season.
Detailed Planning
The tigress is dangerous not during her attack itself, it is most dangerous when it is sitting still, crouching, because that is the time she is calculating every single move she'll make to catch her prey.
A great deal of planning will save you a lot. It is not luck when I usually get my plane tickets at sale price and get my hotel accommodations at very good value, it is a result of careful planning and sometimes outsmarting computerised booking systems.
In the case of airfares, knowing the sale cycle of one airline maybe a good start, but it will not get you far, especially if your destination is not in the list of the airline's route. This happened to me during my first solo trip abroad. Yangon is not a CebuPacific destination, no matter how many Seat Sales CebuPacific will offer, I simply would not get to Yangon!
So what is important? I will try to outline this process in a separate article. 10 Steps to Get that Best-Value Dream Vacation Airfare You've Always Wanted
Getting a good value accommodation is equally as important as getting that much coveted air fare! Again, nothing beats organisation and planning. Deciding for an accommodation takes into account even more factors than booking a flight, but the rewards of getting the right one far outweighs the effort you'll spend here. When you have been out all day, hiking, biking or walking in your dream destination, a clean and huge bed, warm shower and hot meal in your hotel will be a luxury you'll not exchange for anything else.
When I went out roaming around walking from the Burmese National Museum, through that country's Embassy Row, People's Park and the Shwedagon Pagoda for hours, it was such a relief that when I went back to the hotel, they cooked a warm Burmese noodle dish for me and the shower after soothed me so much I slept soundly and woke up refreshed the next day, ready for a new adventure.
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| Hall of a Thousand Buddhas, Wat Si Saket, Vientiane, Lao PDR |
For tips in getting great accommodations, read through my separate article. [Connect to next Article]
Finally, preparing your actual itinerary is the coup de grâce to this step to a budget-friendly travel. The itinerary you are going to prepare will help guide you, even when there is no wifi around (which is the case in most of the off-the-beaten-track Southeast Asian destinations) and you cannot connect to TripAdvisor. On my part this even includes the possible places where I will eat, the bus schedule for land transfers, and my laundry days. Yes you read that right, laundry is one of the many factors I consider because it will help me limit my luggage so I can fit clothes necessary for a 9-day trip in one 10-L backpack to avoid paying for luggage in my flights!
You will be surprised, the better your plans are, the bigger your savings will be because plans saves you from surprise expenses.
Budget Travel Tip: There is no such thing as over-planning for your trip!
Nothing Beats On-The-Ground Information
This is an aspect in planning that is very important, that's why I separated this from the main section on Planning. Websites, travel guides and books all of these are excellent sources of information, but they are also marketing instruments. So always take their advices with a grain of salt.
Throughout my travels, I have been blessed with people I met who in a way gave much ground information that at times they made me ditch an entire day's itinerary in favour of more budget-friendly options.
This can be friend of friends in Facebook, Filipino expats, fellow travellers and most especially, friendly locals.
On my first time in Penang, Malaysia, I met my former high school Physics teacher, and he generously gave me a Penang-on-a-budget Tour, it gave me so much insights into the place that the next time I went there, I could already tour my students around with relative ease.
While on my way down to Vientiane from Louang Phabang, I met this jewess who has been on the road for a month already she flew from Tel Aviv to Istanbul and from there to Ulaan Baatar, Mongolia, from there it was a trip by buses and trains crossing China down to the Lao PDR border at Mixay/Oudomxay, She has gathered so much travel information which kept me busy taking notes from her stories throughout our 10-hr ride back to Vientiane. In return I gave her information on other destinations in Southeast Asia where I have been and shared to her my RoughGuide to Laos, because she was still on her way completing the Lao leg of her journey and towards crossing the Cambodian border in the south.
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| The sun setting at the Mekong River, Thailand-Laos Border, downtown Vientiane, Lao PDR |
In Myanmar, it was very difficult to get taxi drivers who could speak English. Fortunately enough, the hotel front desk staff was so kind to write for me my destinations in their Myanma script, it saved me a great deal of effort in communications and money!
Budget Travel Tip: Get on-the-ground information wherever you can.
Living a Financially-healthy Lifestyle
Becoming wealthy can mean either of two things, earning additional income, or decreasing costs of living. Either ways results to increase in disposable income, which if managed carefully can become your money for travel!
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| A group of Buddhist nuns playing at the Shwedagon complex, Yangon, Myanmar |
People around me only notice that I have been travelling a lot, what they do not know is I have to give up a lot so I can travel. I don't go to Starbucks and all those expensive cafés. I don't buy expensive electronic gadgets. I commute daily. I rarely shop for clothes. I spend most of my weekends at home instead of spending it in malls. All of these contribute to savings that become budget for travel.
Also, I try to earn a bit more, from time to time, giving night classes at a local university here in Iloilo. This also contributes to more income that easily becomes money for travel.
Financial health also means ensuring that you do not abuse your credit cards. I'll give more tips in another article here: [connect to another article]
Seizing that Opportunity - But not Without Fallback
After all of these, the opportunity shows up, and then you seize it, you travel. But not without thinking about any fallback measures. As I travel more and more, I become more concerned about unforeseen situations. Last year, I was on my way to Brisbane, but I was caught in a storm in Sydney. My TigerAir flight was grounded and I was told that I will be bumped off to a flight the following day. I could not afford to stay a day in Sydney, it was just too much of an inconvenience. Good thing I bought an AceTravel Insurance for my flight, so I ended up flying a different airline on that same stormy day, and my cancelled flight was refunded in full!
It has taught me a good lesson, now I don't travel without buying insurance for my flights and getting myself covered too! Unforeseen situations will cost a lot, and travel insurance minimises these and give you the peace of mind to let you enjoy your trip!
Budget Travel Tip: Get insured!
Conclusion
Nowadays, travel is no longer the exclusive privilege of the wealthy. Everyone who has the dream can make it happen!
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