16 Tips For Budget Travel

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Everyone loves to travel, but no one likes paying for travel. It really puts the ‘pay’ in ‘pain’, especially with how expensive flights and accommodation can be. 

But we want everyone to enjoy a holiday or three, so let's break down how to satisfy that travel itch, without making your bank account yell at you. 

But first, you should ask yourself one important question—

Why are you travelling in the first place? 

This may seem like a silly question, but can help set expectations for your holiday and establish some ground rules for your spending. 

After all, as Time Out Australia reported in 2024, Aussies spend more than $4600 on overseas holidays. That’s expensive enough, without piling on additional costs.

So think about it—

Do you want to immerse yourself in nature and go on non-stop hikes? Do you want to taste a gauntlet of all the best local food spots? Do you want to visit museums or cultural sights? Do you want to shop so much you have to purchase additional luggage to bring it all back? Do you want alone time or to surround yourself with other exuberant people? 

Once you’ve locked down the reason; you can search for travel deals, flights, accommodation, and experiences with intention. 

This is a long budget travel guide, so for ease of reading we’ve broken it down into five main categories—planning, flights, accommodation, experiences, and food. 

Without further ado, it’s time for travel. 

What’s The Plan, Fam?

There’s a certain romantic appeal to the impulsive holiday; simply packing bags and gallivanting into an adventure. Like Bilbo in The Hobbit. But there’s many savings to be found in a pre-planned travel itinerary. Here’s some tips for saving as many dollars as you can—

Did you know: Beforepay offers a handy budgeting tool that provides personalised spending insights. It’s a great way to find potential savings that could go to your holiday fund. 

Book in advance

It’s true what they say—the early bird gets the flight deal, or something like that. Booking early is not a revolutionary tip but it can be one of the biggest savers. Booking flights or travel packages early can help you beat the rush of holiday travellers that drive prices up, snag any tantalising deals airlines are offering, and secure a booking at the cheaper end. 

For example, using Flight Centre to check prices for a return trip from Sydney to Melbourne gave us the following prices: 

And for an international trip from Sydney to Paris: 

This wasn’t an exhaustive test, and didn’t include taxes, extra carry on luggage, and all the other little costs. But purely as an illustrative exercise, it shows how much of a difference advance planning can make. 

An extra little tip: Flight Centre can be a great comparison tool but it can be better to book the flights found on Flight Centre through an actual airline. We wrote all about it with our 5 Places To Find Travel Deals blog! We even go over the Aldi travel option, which we still can’t believe is a thing. 

Be flexible 

Flexibility’s not just for fitness. By being open to flight dates, airlines, and destinations, you can scope out budget places to travel, no matter the time of year. Tools like Skyscanner or Google Flights can be particularly helpful in tracking flight prices. 

Skyscanner even has an ‘Explore everywhere’ function that provides a high-level overview of flight prices. 

It’s about the holiday, not the destination

Sometimes you want to go to one specific place, and that’s perfectly fine. But if what you want is a holiday, with no specific destination in mind, consider popping over to countries that let you stretch your money further. 

This can not only help save money on flights, but can extend to the entire holiday. For some travel inspo, Escape has a list of the cheapest countries for Aussies to travel to in 2025. 

More expensive doesn’t necessarily equal more enjoyment. 

Further reading: But who says you have to leave the country to have a phenomenal time? And wouldn’t you know it, Beforepay has laid out some excellent ideas for budget holidays in Australia. 

Further Further Reading: We’ve even got another article with more great holiday options. Check it out here. 

We’re going off-peak!

To squeeze even more potential savings out of the mix, consider travelling in the off-season. If you’re unfamiliar, this refers to the time of year when fewer tourists travel to a given destination—this often leads to lower demand and lower prices. 

And as an added bonus for all the introverts out there, it may also result in having fewer people around when you’re getting your holiday on. There are many perks for the road less travelled. 

How will you pay for stuff? 

Imagine being charged extra every time you pay for something. Like a surcharge on steroids. 

That’s what some overseas payment options can be like. 

Credit cards and pre-loaded travel cards can charge a range of different fees including withdrawal charges and transaction fees, that can really add up over a holiday. 

Even debit cards can charge currency conversion fees that will take the wind from your financial sails. The good news is that Choice has already compiled a list of debit cards with low overseas travel fees, providing extra options for the budget-conscious traveller. 

While cash may be King in certain places, there’s never a guarantee that cash will be accepted everywhere. Consider this a reminder to double check how you’ll pay, before you fly out.

Beforepay Boost: Our Pay Advance features transparent fees, completely upfront. You’ll know what you’ll owe before you borrow. No tricks, no catch, just cash when you need it. 

Flights

When it comes to flights, aside from the tips about booking times mentioned above, here are some of the best ways to make your next holiday cheaper: 

1. Fly out mid-week: surprising no-one, the weekends are more expensive flight days as more people tend to either fly out after work is over, or return before work begins again. And the cost difference can be significant.

2. Fly out early or late: While getting up before the dawn can sound like the best or worst thing ever (depending on whether you’re an early bird or night owl), booking flights that depart either really early or really late can also shave down the total cost. You can always take a nap on the plane.

3. Travel light: As airlines continue to charge for every milligram of luggage you choose to bring, travelling light has some real financial benefits. If you can reasonably and comfortably holiday with just what you bring in a carry on, it can also help save a few bucks. But if you’re a hefty packer or want to bring lots of souvenirs back home, it may not be a sacrifice you’re willing to make.

Travel rewards

Who doesn’t want to be rewarded for doing regular-person things? There are many reward and frequent flyer programs in Australia, some of them tied to credit cards others to specific brands. These points build up over time and can be used to discount the costs of flights. 

• Flybuys 
• Qantas Frequent Flyer
• Virgin Velocity Frequent Flyer

Chances are you might already be signed-up with one of these programs, or even one not listed. They can be a great option if you engage with the services that give you points. Plus, if you own a credit card, you may want to check if the plastic comes with any additional perks. 

Accommodation 

Together with flights and food, accommodation can be one of the biggest budget drains of any holiday. Plus, any solution really depends on how you like to travel. For example, a private hotel room will cost more than a hostel, but may be perfect for someone who likes spending time alone. 

Here are some tips for potentially cutting those costs: 

1. Budget-friendly stays: There are many options to get a temporary roof over your head on holiday. Hostels, shared accommodation, staying with friends, hotel rooms, Airbnbs, and even house sitting for others, offer their own pros, cons, and price points you may wish to explore. 

2. Stay on the fringes: Depending on where and when you’re visiting, booking accommodation outside of the main touristy hotspots can be a good way to avoid any potential travel premiums. Just make sure you’re near an accessible transport option so you can get around without any trouble. 

Experiences

You’ve saved on a hotel, scored the best deal on flights, now you’re in the country. How do you save money with your boots on the ground? 

Walk

One of the best low-cost activities to do in most countries is simply wandering around, looking at things. Whether you want to explore the streets of cities or towns and do some window shopping, or hike through natural attractions, there’s sure to be something that’ll get the heart pumping without putting pressure on the wallet. 

And our team agrees! We asked a few people in the office to give up their best travel insights, and Kasey was big on hiking, backpacking, and walking. You can read about his trip to Machu Picchu and other budget travel tidbits in our ‘What’s Been Your Best Budget Holiday?’ blog. 

In the immortal words of Pantera, “respect, walk”.

Embrace public transport 

Ubers, rideshares, and taxis are certainly convenient, but they are also expensive. When safe to do so, jump on a bus, a train, or a local transport option. Not only will you support the local economy but you may end up saving a fair bit of cashola, especially if you are constantly out and about. 

Book tours on holiday

This may not work for high-demand experiences or be helpful when it comes to planning a holiday, but waiting until the last minute can potentially net you some savings. It’s not guaranteed, of course, and is perhaps best with experiences you wouldn’t be upset at missing, but it’s good to keep in mind as an option. 

We’d still recommend booking your must-see attractions in advance, though. Just make sure to shop around to see if there are reputable deals. 

Further reading: If you’re tossing up on whether to travel solo or join a group tour, we’ve got the perfect budget-minded blog for you, fellow traveller. 

Food 

Life would be so much cheaper if we didn’t need to eat. But despite the cost, sampling all the culinary delights of a particular place is one of the best parts of a holiday. Or testing their coffee (and what their coffee costs—Sydney cafe prices are atrocious). Here are some tips for eating cheap while travelling—

Visit local markets

There’s a common saying that you might have heard already—eat where the locals eat. After all, If you live in a place, you tend to gravitate towards food that tastes great and is affordable. And that’s where local markets shine. 

There’s nothing wrong with visiting a fancy restaurant or two, but you could end up paying through the nose for the experience, when there may be a delicious budget option nearby. 

Cook your own meals

Or at least your lunch and snacks. 

This one’s a bit of a hard ask, since many people go on holidays to avoid doing the things they do back home. But if you simply grab some ingredients from a local store (perhaps a market?), and put them together yourself, you can save yourself a couple meal’s worth of expense per day. And you can still eat out at breakfast or dinner. 

Further reading: Beforepay has got every budget angle covered, with this nifty list of affordable and healthy meal prep ideas. 

It pays to be prepared

When it comes to holidaying on a budget, preparation is key. The earlier you plan things, the more you shop around, the more potential savings you can claim on travel essentials.

It’s not always guaranteed, but it gives you more opportunity to avoid demand-driven prices and impulse purchases that could push your budget over the edge. 

Further reading: Some holiday-goers are using ‘buy now pay later’ services to see the world. We went over the pros and cons of BNPL for travel in another edition of the Beforepay Beat. You should read it. 

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