Travel on a shoestring

I am an 18 year old girl who really needs a break of her everyday life. So, coming this summer (Probably around the end of May), I want to depart from the States and head to Europe. I only want to be gone for 30-50 days (I have wiggle room), I've been doing some research, and I'm getting really excited about going. I've been getting tons of advice and insight from friends and familiy and people online, but I still would like to have other perspective and insight from others. I do not want an…

Hi all,

My brother, 2 sisters, a good friend and I have been planning a 'gap year' trip for a long while now, and we will be starting to book fights etc. soon so would like any advise. We have a rough plan but would rather wing most of it while were out there if we can. Idea at the moment:

Leave mid August 2013
- England - India
- Nepal - Japan
- Make our own way from Japan through China, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Malasia & Indonesia (Maybe the Philippines if time allows)
- Fly to Sydney…

My credit union offers pre-paid debit cards with these fees.
I thinking of using this card for travels in Central and South America.
Do these charges sound reasonable?

Thanks!

Fees
Cost of Card $6.95
Monthly Service Charge $1.75
Add Funds 50¢
Denied Transaction 50¢
Reissue Expired Card $3.50
Card Replacement $5.00
Inactivity Fee (three-months non use) $3.00
Foreign conversion fee low 1%
Excessive VRU transactions (charged for each transaction after four free transactions per month) 50¢
Customer…

Hi all,

Apologies if something like this has been posted before and if it has pointing me in that direction would be useful.

In the uk I am used to using sites like groupon, quidco voucher cloud, hotukdeals etc..to get offers on tickets, nice hotel stays, activities spa treatments etc...I also get cashback on numerous different websites.

I was wondering if anyone had come across particularly good sites used in other countries? Sometimes I think when travelling all the money swing is front…

Hi all,

Bit of a newbie on these forums so sorry if this is in the wrong place!

Me and a friend have always talked about going backpacking for a month. We've talked about it for years and we've finally got decent jobs so we're going to start saving and make a go of it. The only thing is we really can't decide where to go so we'd like some educated opinions. We're open for pretty much anything but below are some specifics.

We're both 20, but will be 21 when we go.
1 male 1 female.
Looking for a…

I´m hoping for some advice or help locating a cheap flight to London around the middle to third week of June 2013. I´ve had a look on the usual websites: skyscanner, amadeus, momondo, kayak, mobissimo, orbitz, lastminute and found the cheapest to be AU$654 from Quito, Ecuador to London on the 18th June 2013 (lastminute.com). We are willing to fly out from anywhere in Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia or Columbia, or if we can find a ridiculously low fare from Chile, Argentina or Brazil, as we plan to be…

Ironically I'm a seasoned traveler and have always simply withdrawn money using A.T.M. cards abroad, but before embarking on a big trip I just double checked to find that my Irish bank now charges 3% per foreign transaction and my Spanish one (I live between both countries) charges 4%. That's a huge fee.
I am correct in saying that foreign banks will generally charge too? Is that a percentage fee or a set fee or can it change?
Also I am correct in saying that the foreign bank will give you less…

21 yo female from the midwest US with a month and a bit of cash to spare next may-june. I enjoy culture and the outdoors. I just want to take a bit of time to enjoy myself and travel independently (something I haven't done before). I've spent some time in Kenya and Tanzania and loved that, but ideally my $3000 would include airfare, so I don't think I can swing getting myself to East Africa again unfortunately.

I'm literally up for going anywhere in the world, I just thought I'd gather a few…

Hey Y'all,

I am embarking on a budget trip of a lifetime in a few weeks. 7 months, 7 countries, $3000 AUD, 1 camera and a trusty guidebook. Here is my rough itinerary and the places I'll be going to in no particular order:

Dec 18 to Feb 12 - Philippines (Cebu sightseeing and island hopping, Beachin' in boracay)
Jan 27 to Feb 9 - Thailand (Koh Phang Nga the one with James bond island, Khao Lak, Similan Islands)
Feb 9 to March 18 - Malaysia (Penang, Kuala Lumpur, Langkawi, Sarawak)
March 18 to…

Hello! I just registered on this site and I have little to no experience in living on the road or "serious traveling." I'm really interested in traveling the world, and I wondered what advice people might offer. I have a BA in psychology (which I assume is useless for travel-purposes) and my husband is a truck driver.

From the little bit that I'd read on this forum, I understand it's probably better for us to save up money here at home with our regular jobs and use that to travel instead of…