Cheapest place to backpack?
Replies: 18 - Last Post: May 3, 2012 2:03 PM Last Post By: travelinstyle46
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Cheapest place to backpack?
So I am planning my first backacking trip for me and my boyfriend next year, the original plan was a month in Europe, but the more I research the more I realize there is so much that I would want to see, that I would want to spend more time and money then we currently have available. So I have decided that Europe will become the ultimate trip, and in the meantime we will test the waters with a destination that is more suitable to our budget, but we have no idea where we want to go, there are so many possibilities, and tons of places we would love to visit, but where can we get the biggest bang for our buck? Our budget is $6500-$7000 canadian dollars, which would have to include airfare from either Eastern Canada or Boston, Ma, USA and back and a months worth of living. We plan to take advantage of hostels, couchsurfing, and camping to avoid costly accomodations. I have already travelled throughout Canada and to some southeastern states, so dont tell me the cheapest place to go is my backyard, I've been there I want to see more!!! Our travelling style will be very open, the basic idea is to arrive in one city, have a general timeline of other cities to visit, but be very open and flexible throughout the month. I want to see as many places as possible without being on a schedule itiniarary. Our dates are open year round, but would like to shoot for this time next year. If any one has any suggestions or advice, it would be greatly appreciated.Thanks :)
1
Apart from your own backyard...the cheapest place to get to will be Mexico.Followed by the rest of Central AmericaCountries like Guatemala,Honduras or Nicaragua could easily be done on that budget.
2
I was going to suggest Guatemala as well. Indonesia is a similarly cheap country to travel in, but it would be pretty expensive for you to get there, especially from the east coast of Canada! If you could get a cheap air-fare to Bangkok or KL then SE-Asia could be an option. I think Indonesia, and probably Laos, would be the cheapest countries to travel in (although that's just my experience)...and they are both awesome!3
Central or South America are good ideas, so is Mexico. There close and you can get relatively cheap tickets to those places.Also South East Asia is very cheap, you would live like kings with the budget you have for a month.
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Thanks for the replies :) I have taken your advice and looked into Central America area, focusing on Guatemala, although to be honest the cheapest airfares seem to be in Cancun(for as low as $350 round trip!) while Guatemala is more in the $750-$1000 range, although the prices are not exactly accurate as I am searching for a year in advance, most sites only quoting me until march 2013 which is still high season in some areas. I think the month to do it would really be mid april to may 2013. I also looked into SE Asia but decided that although it would be inexpensive once we are there, the airfare(upwards to $1600) is just way to much.So now my next question, if anyone would like to offer some more advice, would be is using a travel agent worth it? Since my starting and end destinations are flexible, and also my dates for that matter, is it better to go to a travel agent to find the best deal, or just keep searching the variables online?
Thanks everyone, I really appreciate any advice :)
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skyscanner.net is a great website for looking at airfares. Type your starting airport in and leave the destination field blank. You can search the entire year, viewing prices in different months to any destination. Play around with it a bit and you'll get a good feel for prices. If your starting airport is a small one, put in your nearest large airport to return good search results.Have a great trip!
12
Vietnam, Thailand, Eastern Europe, South America, and even Western Europe depending on how budget-savvy you want to go!I flew from Poland to Vietnam one way for approximately $450 US dollars and hung out in the south region of Vietnam for a whole month. I was able to stay with some friends, utilize couchsurfing, and by the end of the month, I had only spent $350 US dollars. My one way ticket to fly from Ho Chi Minh to Amsterdam was (if I remember correctly), around $400. Sometimes it is cheaper to buy 2 one way tickets rather than a round-trip but do be wary of Visa Requirements when you fly do one-ways. Finding cheap airfare? I love Kayak (www.kayak.com) better than Skyscanner (www.skyscanner.com) because it always seems to find CHEAPER deals!
For one month in Vietnam, I only spent $1,250 (that includes airfare, food, visa fees, transportation)
Below are some of my favorite websites to save $$$ :
www.kayak.com (airfare)
www.couchsurfing.org (cultural exchange for stay)
www.helpx.net (volunteer in exchange for accomodations)
www.seat61.com (cheap transportation around the world)
www.covoiturage.com (not sure if this is elsewhere outside of France, it's like couchsurfing for cars)
I hope those resources helped! You can also look through my blog which contains stories, resources, and other tips for budget travel!
Cathy Trails
Good luck!!
Cathy
14
my advice would also be with mexico or central america. got back from costa rica in january and i spent a little over 2 weeks there... over all im not sure how much i spent but i know it was well under what your budget is and costa rica is even considered one of the more expensive countries in CA. as the others said guatemaula and nicaragua are great budget destionations. but with flights as low as they are to mexico why not! im sure it would still be a great experience. you could easily send that whole time exporling mexico or you could venture down into some other CA countries like the others suggested!ADVERTISEMENT
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