10 Ways We Make Traveling On A Budget Happen
Travel can feel out of reach, especially as a homeschool family on one income, it felt like travel was not possible for us. I set out on a journey to change that dynamic for our family. A big part of how our family experiences more of the world without a big budget comes from choices we make long before we ever pack a bag. I came up with these ideas because I was determined for my kids to see where history took place and not just read about it in books, learn compassion firsthand and meet people far beyond our lives in our suburban bubble.
For us, travel has not come from having a big extra budget. It has come from small, practical choices made throughout the year. None of them are complicated or will make us rich , but together they have helped make travel possible for our family and have opened the door to trips, little adventures, and experiences that are core memories for our family.
Here are 10 ways how our family experiences more of the world without a big budget.
1. We Take On Side Jobs
This has probably been one of the biggest ways we make travel possible. Extra jobs are not always exciting, but they give us extra margin, and that margin helps fund trips.
-I work concessions at a local concert venue during the summer. The schedule is flexible and allows me to make extra money around the days that work for me.
-We have a minor league baseball team fairly close, and I work concessions there too.
– I also work early voting for the primary, general elections and Election Day, and that has been another really helpful seasonal income source.
These are not forever jobs or full-time commitments. They are just smart ways to bring in extra money during certain seasons, and that extra icome can go a long way toward travel.
Okinawa
2. We Make Eating Out Something Special
This is one of the biggest ways we save money throughout the year so we can travel more.
-We eat out on special occasions, usually for somebody’s birthday, and sometimes we even choose to make a favorite meal at home instead.
-In the car we keep simple snacks and drinks on hand so we do not to make an unplanned trip drive-through or coffee shop.
-If we know we will be out during lunch or dinner because of work or activities, meal prep helps us stay ahead so we can bring a meal with us or have something ready when we get home.
This is one way our famly experiences more of the world with out a big budget.
3. We Thrift and Make It Fun
Thrifting does not feel like sacrifice to us.
-It feels like a treasure hunt. We love finding cool, useful, interesting things secondhand instead of always buying new.
-Shopping secondhand we have found many prom dresses, Halloween costumes, formal wear to use for school performances and baseball pants among other things that are not used very long and sent to the thrift store.
-You get a higher quality product for half the price of a bargain brand you would buy at the store.
4. We Rethink Christmas and Birthdays
This has been a really fun one, honestly. Gifts do not always have to mean buying a bunch of brand-new expensive stuff.
-Make it a fun, where all gifts are from a secondhand or vintage store.
-Do an all-handmade Christmas where everybody has to make each other something.
– Make the gifts all travel related, such as a new travel backpack, fun flip flops, travel journal or camera to be use toward an upcoming trip instead of buying those right before the trip.
– let the trip itself be the gift. Plan to travel over the actual holiday or surprise the family with tickets and a packing list on Christmas and travel several days later. check ticket
Sometimes the most memorable gifts are the creative ones, the meaningful ones, or the experience itself.
5. We Swap With Neighbors
Using the Buy Nothing Page on Facebook and Next-door we swap things locally with neighbors.
-We have found and given travel gear, household goods and even furniture with our community.
– I love that it is easy and items can be picked up as I run errands and I can share our no longer used things right from my front porch.
-One of my favorite parts is that we help keep things out of the landfill.
I love that swap pages save money, but I also love that it feels practical and community-minded
6. We Participate in Studies at Local Universities
This is one of those things people do not always think about, but it can be really helpful.
-Look for a local college, university or medical facility and ask if they have any kind of studies, most do.
-The local university here has a food lab and often offers study lasting anywere from 20 minutes to a couple of hours..
-We have also done tastings on both food and beverage through the university.
7. We Limit Subscriptions
Subscriptions are one of those things that seem small until you add them all up.
-Netflix, Hulu and HBO make an appearance during the winter months, especially December and January, when we are home more and want to watch Christmas movies and new seasons of shows.
– We pause during busy seasons and when we have watched the newest episodes of our favorite shows.
– Sign up for one at a time, like one month of Netflix and then another month of something else.
8. Use Last Year’s Model -Do not big on upgrading for the sake of upgrading
Seeing a Castle in Germany or the Sydney Harbor Bridge is so much more exciting to us than the newest phone model
-We do not upgrade our cars or phones just because something newer came out.
-We would rather travel more than keep upgrading to the newest thing.
-Passing down phones to our kids or keep using older models as long as they still work. That mindset has saved us a lot over time. There is nothing wrong with nice new things, but for us, more travel is usually more worth it.
9.Books
If you love books, this one matters.
-We use the library. If your local library does not have the book you are looking for you may be able to access it with a interlibrary loan.
-We use Libby or Audible. With audible we apply the subscription rule above. We use it just for a season to get several books we are unable to get on Libby.
– Free page and Little Free Libraries are a fun way to trade out books you no longer want and to read some that you may not have considered.
Books can get expensive fast, especially if you read a lot. Using the library and free book options lets us keep reading without constantly buying new books.
10. We Do Surveys for Extra Money
One of the little things I do is surveys through Prolific. It is not flashy, but it works.
-My goal is to cover meals when we eat out on our next trip.
-It is very flexible. You can do 1 a day or 20. I try to do 5 a day first thing and get it done
-It is easy to do and can be done right from your phone when waiting to pick up a kid
I like that it is something small I can do consistently, and those little bits really do add up over time.
Final Thoughts
This is how our family experiences more of the world without a big budget. Travel does not happen for us because we have endless extra money sitting around. It happens because we make a lot of small choices on purpose throughout the year. Some of them are practical. Some of them are creative. Some of them are just little habits that have become part of how we live. Travel on a budget is possible even when it seems impossible.
Travel does not always have to come from some huge life change. Sometimes it starts with packing your lunch, skipping the random drive-through stop, doing a few surveys on your phone, or saying yes to a side job for a season. Those little choices may not look exciting in the moment, but they can turn into plane tickets, road trips, weekend getaways, and some really good memories. What are some ways you save all year so you can travel more? I would love to hear them in the comments.