Traveling Isn't Expensive! You're Doing It Wrong...
/When I was a young lad, I was very different than most of my peers. Most kids would go off to Summer Camp or play sports, but not me. I was on the fishing creek or exploring in the woods finding new ways to get around my city of 229 people in the Piney Woods of East Texas. (Yes, that's correct 229 people. I have more friends on my Facebook than my entire city. Don't laugh!)
I grew up fishing, camping, hunting and boating because that's the life that my entire family is into. Everyone knows how to fish and if you don't know how to fish, people will say, "Boyyyyy you ain't country if you don't know how to provide food for yourself!"
So I learned how to fish and I'm still damn good at it. When I was exploring the natural creeks, hiking through the woods and discovering I often wondered, I'm sure there are more beautiful places out there to see. And this is when my knack for traveling began.
Caddo Lake. One of the most beautiful natural lakes in East Texas and Northwest Louisiana.
I'm often asked this question... How do you travel so much on a budget? Most people still look at traveling as being expensive. If you are using a travel agent, booking your stay directly from a hotel website or using a rental car website, YOU ARE DOING IT WRONG. Here are some helpful websites and tips below to get the best travel experience on the low-low.
Don't Stay In A Hotel, Use AirBNB
Booking hotel rooms directly from a hotel's website is soooo 1998. And booking them on Hotwire is soooo 2008. If you want a true experience of the city that you are staying in book your travel stay with AirBNB. I've chilled in remote villas in Puerto Rico, on the top of mountains in Ashville, NC and many other places. Hotels always charge an arm and leg plus your kidney for a basic room and sometimes they aren't as clean as an AIRBNB.
Visit SkippedLagged & AirFareWatchDog On A Weekly Basis
Nomads don't pay full price for flights. Don't be jealous of your friends or family members because you see them booking flights all the time. Yes, you can do it also! World travelers live on sites such as AirFareWatchDog and you can get some crazy deals to anywhere. Also, airlines don't want you to know about SkippedLagged. I've used it several of times. I'll book a trip to Seattle, but I'll walk off the plane on my layover in Denver and the cost is much more reasonable. Don't check-in any bags or they'll end up in Seattle. Always bring a carry on when you are using SkippedLagged.
Make MegaBusYour Bestfriend
Okay, Greyhound may not be your bestfriend but MegaBus should be. You may not be able to afford that roundtrip flight ticket out of town, but MegaBus has some killer deals. I've found tickets on MegaBus for $14 roundtrip from Atlanta to New Orleans. I've traveled to D.C. for F-R-E-E on Megabus also. **If your MegaBus is running late, especially 2 hours behind, call customer service and ask for a refund. Believe me, they'll refund your entire fare within a couple of days and BOOM, your trip was $0. Visit MegaBus and book your next trip out of the city.
Don't Rent A Car, Use TURO
I've had the worst experience with rental car companies. They always ask for $250-$300 deposit and bombard you with fees. Ummm, I'll pass. I'm all about TURO and the freedom they give to rent a car almost anywhere from an individual. I've rented a Range Rover in D.C. for less than $200 for 4 days and have used them for many other trips. Some of the TURO host will even deliver a car to your job or the airport. Get behind the wheel today with TURO.
Stay at a Hostel or CouchSurf
Do you enjoy meeting new people? Staying at a hostel or couchsurfing is for you. At times you may not have to pay any money if you find a great host. Hostels and Couchsurfing is popular in Europe but many people in the states are taking advantage of these sites for the low-cost.
So stop with the excuses of why you can't travel. You have the tools to find a reasonable trip, SO GO!!!
