Story Photos
 As the sun sets over the Carribean Ocean at Taganga, Colombia, a fisherman brings up his net as others watch the view. Greg Ebersole
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Travel abroad without breaking the bank
Monday, December 1, 2008 11:01 AM PST
By Greg Ebersole
Printable version
E-mail this articleIn today’s economy, many people who like to travel are putting off their plans. I’d hate to do that, since travel energizes and fulfills me.
Because I travel often on very little money, people are always asking me how I do it. In hopes of keeping more of us exploring the world, I decided to try and put together some answers.
Save frequent flyer miles
I use an Alaska Airlines credit card that earns frequent flyer miles. For domestic travel, I try to fly on Alaska or one of their partner airlines and earn as many miles as I can; it’s amazing how quickly they add up. I have made two trips to Colombia this year alone with my accumulated miles, paying only a tax charge of $50-70 for my flights.
Location, location, location
For inexpensive travel abroad, the best locations are Asia, Africa, Mexico and South America. Other good airfare deals will take you to Mexico or Central America countries such as Costa Rica.
Preparation, preparation, preparation
Once you’ve decided where you want to go, do some reading and research. I always try to read a non-fiction or fiction book or two about the country I plan to visit. I also take a relevant book along for the flight, bus travel or spare time. Reading gives you a feel for the country and its people ahead of time.
Next, get a good guidebook. There are several good guides: Lonely Planet, Bradt or Moon all contain good ideas for cheap places to eat and sleep.
The Lonely Planet also has a good Web site, especially the Thorntree forum part. You can select a country and read through an endless number of e-mailed questions and answers from people relating to almost anything you need to know about that country. Anyone can register and ask questions.
Before going to Colombia, I got great ideas on what towns should not be missed, highly recommended places to stay, good places to eat, best locations for salsa dancing, best ways to change money, and how long and how much it cost for bus trips between cities.
Pack light
Everybody says this, but I really mean it. I pack once, then cut everything down by about half.
Figure out what the weather will be like, and bring only clothing for that climate. Bring outfits for everyday use and something for an evening out. You can always have clothes washed cheaply along the way — and I often wash socks, underwear and a shirt in the sink and hang them up to dry overnight.
In many countries, clothes can be bought fairly cheaply. An added benefit is that when you wear native clothes, you won’t look so much like a tourist. Leave the Hawaiian shirts at home. I like to keep a low profile and not stand out too much, especially in some of the more risky places I like to go.
I never check baggage on flights. I travel with one backpack that, when packed full, easily fits in the overhead bin of most airplanes. If necessary, I carry on an additional small daypack that fits under the seat. This makes it easy to move around quickly. And because I don’t check baggage, customs clearing is faster and there’s no chance of lost or delayed luggage.
Occasionally, I have had to ride a bus or metro train with my backpack. I’ve travelled in small boats packed so tightly I thought we would sink. To save money, I occasionally have crossed from one country to the next on the back of a motorcycle, with my backpack on. That’s only possible because I travel light.
I also have good small padlocks on all the zippers so they can’t be opened while I’m traveling. Padlocks also keep people from the temptation of reaching into one of the pockets.
Even though I pack light, I have been able to carry my laptop, camera and chargers. On my last two trips, I traveled with a small Canon point-and-shoot with a zoom lens. This allowed me to draw less attention to myself and not risk the chance of a robbery.
Often, I carried the camera in a small white plastic bag like everyone carries on the street. And even with that camera, I came home with good, large, frameable prints. All the photos for this story were taken with the Canon point-and-shoot.
Share costs. Keep track.
I travel alone, and on transcontinental flights, I make friends with someone going to the same destination. Besides passing the time and getting to know someone, it allows me to share a cab with them to a hotel or the center of town and split the cost.
Before I arrive at my destination airport, I make a money conversion cheat-sheet for the country I’m visiting. I write conversions in dollar increments to 10, then increments of ten to 100 of the local currency. This makes it easier to know how much I’m spending. If I’m constantly trying to figure out amounts in my head, it’s easier to be cheated or end up paying too much.
Before leaving the airport, I change a little money for the taxi or bus to my hotel. Later, I can find out where to get the best rate of exchange and change money or use an ATM.
Learn the best money practices for the country you’re traveling in by reading Web sites or good travel guides. In Colombia, they rarely accepted dollars, traveler’s checks or credit cards. Only fancy restaurants, large hotels or chain stores would take credit cards. For my travel, I had to withdraw $50 or $100 at a time in the local currency from bank ATM machines.
Be laid back about lodging.
I like to stay in hostels, which I find all over the world. Most have co-ed dorm rooms with three to five bunk beds. This is the cheapest lodging, usually costing $5 to $8 a night.
Most hostels are full of backpackers from 20 to 30 years old, from all over the world. It can be noisy; people are coming and going at all hours. To sleep, you may need earplugs.
An alternative is a private room in the hostel, either with a private bathroom or a shared one in the hall. These usually run from $10 to $25.
Many older travelers would feel uncomfortable staying in a place with so many young people. I’m in my 50s, but I enjoy the camaraderie, and I’ve made friends from all over the world. I stay up late, talking and sharing travel tips. I’ve met Europeans who quit their jobs and are in the middle of six- or 12-month trips around the world.
Another plus is that most hostels have free coffee and a communal kitchen. You can purchase food at the market and cook in the kitchen, saving a lot by avoiding restaurant meals.
Almost all hostels now have wi-fi connection or computers with Internet connection, so you can keep up with world news, download your photos and burn CDs, and send e-mail to friends and relatives.
On my recent trip to Colombia, I even got to know the hostel owners. They had a wealth of information, and many maintain great Web sites where you’ll find good tips. I had e-mailed some of them before my trip with questions and they graciously and promptly replied.
In Mompos, the owner of the fairly new La Casa Amarilla is Richard McCord from Great Britain. He has a beautiful house with several dorm and private rooms, a kitchen area, TV lounge and living/dining room. His relatives and staff are very helpful. After being stranded there for a few days due to a trucker’s strike and barricaded roads, one of Richard’s staff members arranged for some of us to ride out of town in a small van over rough roads to Santa Marta, on the northern coast.
Bogota has several hostels including a new one, the Cranky Croc, owned by an Australian named Andy. He has been a backpacker himself, staying in many hostels around the world. He has added some of the best qualities he’s found to his own, including extra long beds and storage units that are lockable.
In Medellin, the three-year-old Black Sheep Hostel is owned by Kelvin of New Zealand. He’s very well informed about Colombia -- especially information on safety -- and works hard to ease people’s fears about traveling there. If there is a dangerous area, he can tell you where it is. And his Web site lists many of his favorite places and what they offer.
In Popayan, I stayed at the Hosteltrail Guesthouse, run by Tony Clark and Kim Macphee of Scotland. Theirs is a new, modern hostel, and their Web site provides good information on Central and South American countries, including links to hostels.
In Cali, I found a private home owned by a widow, Esperanza, who has converted her upstairs into three bedrooms with bathrooms, a kitchen and outside balcony. She is a gracious host and would always offer a cup of coffee and a chance to visit and practice speaking Spanish.
Try Couchsurfing
Another service budget travelers can use is called couchsurfing. The idea is for travel lovers like myself to offer a place to sleep, for free, in their own houses and apartments.
The Couchsurfing Web site (www.couchsurfing.com) has more than a thousand profiles of people all over the world who are willing to offer their couch and friendship to travellers. The mission statement says, “couchsurfing seeks to internationally network people .. to make the world a better place. Couchsurfing is about finding free accommodations around the world. We strive to make a better world by opening our homes, our hearts, and our lives. We create deep and meaningful connections that cross oceans, continents and cultures.”
I met and corresponded with couchsurfers in Colombia. In Popayan, a university instructor, Mauricio, spent three hours showing me around his city, taking me up the hill overlooking town to see the view. In Longview, I have hosted two travellers, one of them a fellow from England who was biking across the U.S.
Adapt to your surroundings
Wherever I stay, I use that room as my home. I don’t like to stick to a strict schedule. I rough out an itinerary, but am open to change. You may like a particular place and want to stay longer. On my last trip, I stayed in Mompos extra days because roads were closed. Other times, I’ve made friends and decided to spend more time with them.
I like to spend my days wandering and exploring, usually on foot. I learn the bus or metro system to travel longer distances. They’re cheap and readily available. I dress down, don’t wear jewelry, and try to blend in the best I can for a tall gringo.
I make a point of learning some phrases in the language of the country I’m in, whether French, Vietnamese or Spanish. I try to act like I know where I am and what I’m doing -- I won’t stand on the sidewalk reading or looking at a map in my guidebook. If need be, I write down addresses or directions on a piece of paper ahead of time and stick it in my pocket.
I use my street smarts, and that makes me feel comfortable wherever I am. The less you stand out or draw attention to yourself, the less apt you are to have problems or trouble. Even though you may look like a foreigner, you can also appear as if you have lived in the country awhile and know what’s what.
I’m always happy when at some point, someone asks me for directions.
I enjoy discovering places to eat on my own. In Colombia, I found my favorite panaderias, where I could get a good cup of coffee and pastry for only 85 cents. I found cafes or restaurants where I could get a good lunch with soup, beef or chicken and rice, salad and drink for between $2 and $5.
If you like museums, there are often free days listed. If you like guided tours, there are many to chose from and you can find competing prices offered. In markets, and even on buses in Colombia, you can negotiate the price. I have bought bus tickets for less money from the driver than at the ticket office.
After travelling in more than 40 countries, I keep finding new ways to cut my costs. And that will allow me to save up enough for my next trip.
I like what Mark Twain writes in “Innocents Abroad.”
Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one’s lifetime.
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