Save your pennies

I know, I know, this is common sense. (So then why aren't you doing it?)

First things first, try to save as much money as you can before taking off on your trip. You don't have to be a penny pincher to save your money, you simply need to cut out the crap! The first thing you need to do is look at where you're spending the most money, and see if you can cut it down. For me, I was spending waaay too much money eating out and drinking. Do yourself a favor and buy some rice and beans. They're delicious, filling, and the $100 a week you're spending on food and booze will go a looooong way in southeast Asia. Trust me, it will be worth it.

Manage your subscriptions

Managing your subscriptions is hands down the easiest way to cut out unnecessary expenses. Take a good look through your credit card and bank statements, and see if there are any subscriptions that are taking $10 a month here, and $10 a month there. I was spending $10 a month on a few different online yoga memberships that I wasn't using, had accidentally bought a few applications that I didn't realize cost money, and owned a few credit cards that I wasn't using at all and was being charged annual fees of upwards of $200.

After re-evaluating my memberships and subscriptions, I cut out most of the subscriptions (except Spotify, never could I ever!), and BOOM. $100 bucks back in my bank account per month.

If you're too lazy to dig through your bank statements, you can download a few different applications that can help you cancel your subscriptions for you.

Save $$ on your flight

Believe it or not, I have never spent over $1000 on a flight. A typical excuse I hear of why people don't travel is because "flights are too expensive". Nope! Here are a few different tools I use to find cheap flights:

The first, and best, is Scotts Cheap Flights. You can sign up for free, and Scott will email you daily, alerting you on different flight deals. Most of these flights are so cheap, it's hard to believe it's even real. However, I've now booked deals with him a couple of times and can assure you it's all legitimate. This year I flew roundtrip to Bali for $450 from LAX, and last year I flew roundtrip to Barcelona for $400.

Flights From Home

Las Vegas, Phoenix, and Salt Lake City only. Like Scotts Cheap Flights, they send out email notifications with all the good deals. Additionally, you can follow them on Instagram to find their deals on your feed.

Trade your skills for an exchange

By far the most sustainable way to travel is by working/ trading your skills for an exchange. I've done this many times, and been able to not spend a dime once I arrive at my travel destination. Many people want your skills/work, and they'll provide you with housing, food, accommodation, or even pay in exchange for your help.

This is my preferred way of travel anyways, because you get to live like a local. Here are a few ways you can do this:

Workaway.org.

Do you work in marketing? Farming? The service industry? Childcare? Are you an artist? Are you a teacher? If so, great! If not, it doesn't matter, because Workaway is literally for everyone. Anybody can find an amazing opportunity working in another country through this website. Basically, people who need work will post their job listing, and you can reach out to them and get in touch about working for them if you're interested. Workaway has any and every kind of job, for any and every kind of person.

YogaTrade.com

As a yoga teacher, this is my preferred way of traveling for pretty much free. YogaTrade is just like Workaway, except for yoga teachers. If you're a yoga teacher and you've been looking for an excuse to teach, and travel to another country, then YogaTrade is your new best friend.

Through YogaTrade, I've been able to live and teach on a remote coast of Bali, in a poppin' surf hostel in Sri Lanka, and in a permaculture farm in the south coast of Costa Rica. YogaTrade is the best... Ever.

Teach English

This is becoming more and more popular as the demand of English speakers escalates in the world. You can find jobs teaching English all over the world, but there's an especially high demand in Asian countries, such as Thailand, Vietnam, and most of all, China.

From what I've heard, China offers the highest pay, and if you're a native English speaker, you're almost guaranteed a job.

In order to teach English, most of the time you will be required to have a TEFL (teach English as a foreign language) certificate. However, due to the extremely high demand for English teachers, I have many friends who have gotten away with teaching without the certificate.

WOOFing

WOOFing, which stands for 'working on organic farms', is an amazing way to experience a new country. Once you sign up, you'll have access to hundreds of different opportunities to work on different organic farms all over the world. From making wine in New Zealand, to working on a goat farm in Switzerland, the options are infinitely endless and there's something for everyone. If you've been interested in permaculture, farming, or even just working with your hands, WOOFing is an amazing option for you.

Travel like a local

Once you're abroad, you have two options:

1. Act like a tourist, or

2. Act like a local.

Acting like a tourist means the following: staying in nice places, visiting all of the touristy spots, (maybe even paying for tours, tour guides, etc), splurging on food and drinks... you get the picture. As fun as this might be, it can drain your bank account, and fast.

My preferred way of traveling is to act like a local. This means I eat at more affordable, local spots (which honestly, the food is usually better), I stay off the beaten path, I avoid tourists (and tourist destinations) like the plague, and I save a lot. of. money. If you're not doing a trade or work in exchange for your accommodation, I recommend staying in hostels or guest houses. You can find super cheap options on Hostelworld or Booking.com.

If you have two weeks of vacation a year, then by all means, go all out. But if you're like me and you're looking to stay a while, maybe even experience living in another country, then you need to start acting like a local.

Only bring a small bag

I recommend bringing a small bag instead of a big piece of luggage. This will save you time, it will save you money on the additional fees of a checked bag, and it will save your muscles as you won't have to lug around as much crap. As valid as all of these reasons are, my main reasoning for taking a small bag is this:

You won't have room to purchase anything else.

I've been traveling for about 4 months now with a tiny backpack. Unfortunately, this means I wear the same outfits every week, and I need to do laundry more often. However, my bag is 100% full just the way it is, and I have zero space in my bag to buy anything else.

I love clothes, I love shopping, and I especially love acquiring items from other countries. However, due to my tiny bag, I've been forced to reevaluate every single purchase I make, knowing that if I buy something I'll have to get rid of something else first in order to fit it in my bag. This has left me buying hardly anything along my travels, therefore, saving a lot of money!

Travel with a smile

It's the little things that count. The local man trying to sell you something? Smile at him and ask him what his name is. The woman selling you a coconut from the side of the road? Learn how to say 'hi, how are you?' in the local language. I can't tell you how many times being kind, smiling, and learning a bit of the local language has helped me form connections with people all over the world. By being kind, I've been given local prices at markets, been invited into people's homes for family dinners, and made valuable connections with people who I can't even communicate with.

Make your travels less about you and your instagram account, and more about making a positive impact in the world - even if it means just sharing your smile everywhere you go.