The motto of this article: a journey must not be expensive! We want to give some advice that will help to cut your trip expenses a lot!
1. Don't buy Western food!
After a few weeks spent in Asia tourists start to miss their usual meals. And there are so many cafes at your service! McDonald's, Starbucks, Pizza Hut etc. But don't hurry! You will spend a lot more in these places than in local snack-bars. Moreover, the taste of food in the Asian branches of worldwide-known fast-food restaurants is still different than that of the food in the same restaurants in Western countries.
So don't miss the opportunity to get to know tasty and healthy Asian cuisine. You can eat at McDonald's at home after all.
2. Stay away from downtown!
To cut the food costs even more, you just have to go away from downtown. Then you will see a new wonderful world, and the prices there will be the reward for a thrifty traveler.
3. Cheap accommodation
Thinking about a place to stay? There's a way not to pay for it. Such opportunity is provided by www.couchsurfing.org and other couch surfing resources that let you find a person anywhere in the world who will let you stay for free at his or her place. With the help of such sites you can find a bed or even a whole house to stay in. You should be aware that success of your searches depends on your profile; you have to take care of that. Couchsurfing is a way to master foreign languages and make new friends. We think this is one of the best ways to travel not only for thrifty tourists but also for those who want to make friends with locals and learn about their culture and lifestyle. But remember: couchsurfing is always a surprise in the question of accommodation.
If you didn't manage to find a free sleeping spot, don't be sad. You can save money on accommodation in other ways. We recommend you not to book rooms in expensive hotels but rent apartments from the locals. You can do this upon arrival. But if you want to be sure that you won't have to sleep in the streets, we recommend to use www.airbnb.com with the service of which you can choose a flat or a room. The site is created in a way that allows you to communicate with the owners of the apartments in the built-in messenger. The rent of a private dwelling not only helps to cut the costs but also lets you find a "sweet home away from home".
4. No alcohol!
Sounds scary? Don't be, we just want to recommend you to control how much you spend on the alcohol. Despite the fact that in most Asian countries food prices are rather low, alcohol there can turn out to be really expensive.
To the pleasure of those who love alcohol we can say that in some countries, e.g. in China, you can get alcohol for free in certain places. Chinese people really appreciate places that are visited by Europeans (or people who look like Europeans) so to raise the attractiveness of a club its owners hire people who call out for European visitors. Your aim is to find such "caller", then you will play a role of an attracting rarity and be able to drink for free.
5. Think before calling home!
Instead of talking to relatives using old means of communication, e.g. cell phones and hotel phones, just use modern apps, such as Skype, Viber, WhatsApp or KakaoTalk and Wechat that are especially popular in Asia. Or you can just enjoy the beauties of mysterious faraway lands and turn off all your devices.
6. Bargain wherever you can!
Don't forget that the majority of East culture representatives are really fond of small-trading. So don't agree to the prices that you are offered – they are aimed for the Europeans that are used to supermarkets and fixed prices and are really excessive.
We hope that this small list of hints and pieces of advice will help the reader to make use of his budget wise and feel comfortable far from home.
Timur Savelyev
