Brown Ajah Travel Event - Travelling on the cheap!

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Hello all and welcome to the fabulous Brown Ajah Travel Event!

 

Travelling is something that is seen by many people as a must have experience. Being immersed in other cultures and learning from people different from you - even the people a few hours away in the car - can be a wonderful and thought changing event.

 

However in this day and age money tends to be tight and travelling (vacationing/holidays) seems to be more difficult.

 

Therefore, I want to talk about this:

 

Does anyone have any advice for travelling on the cheaper side?

 

Any tips on places to go that are wonderful but a bit cheaper?

 

Does anyone just prefer not to travel and just stay at home with the kids/family/friends?

 

Any tips for making a "staycation" at your house more fun for you and your family?

 

Also, feel free to jump in with any of your own questions or whatnot, the more the merrier!

[Wren of the Brown]

I did a few things to make local travel more interesting.

 

I bought a few books on local history and Colorado ghost towns. I then try to locate the places historical things happened.

 

I bought Colorado's entry into the Roadside Geology and travel a lot looking at various, uh, rocks. I also have a few books on local plants and wildlife.

 

I basically tried to immerse myself in Colorado history as well as my place in the American Southwest. I won't be going to Disney World any time soon.

[Millon]

Hiarth basically said what we try to do here. Become a tourist in our own city. There's prolly plenty to do right under your nose.

[WildTaltos]

Does anyone have any advice for travelling on the cheaper side?

 

walk/ride a bike to where yu want to go. works great for stuff in yuor area - i dont know about other people but for all the time ive lived here i still dont know everything singlle detail of the landscape besids that it changes so theres always somthing i can go see/do. this can be lot of fun besids be very contemplative and mind-opening experiencce, especially for things further away if you have the time to do it. ive spent weeks in the past just hiking from one place to another, less time when i got my bike; would bring a sack with me with a blanket, a knife, change of clothes, bottle for water, usualy some flint and tinder, som other basic supplies i think i might need, and just go.

 

you can stop at parks/camping sites or if yuor feeling particularly bold someones propertty if you think you wont get caught (i would recomend not leaving trace that you were there because thats litle disrespectful besids probably alert them that someone was trespassing and might not get away with it if evre do it again in future). really all this costs is lot of boldness and hardiness to sleep outdoors - shouldnt cost you anything otherwise unless you dont hav the supplies yet but those would definitly be cheaper than buying inn rooms or anything. also if you can make use of bus or train routes. ones within a local area are usuly cheap or free, and there are some that sometimes will take you to a nearby town for cheap too, so if you are lucky you might make quite some distance town hopping on them.

 

if you are going to travel internationallly and you dont have much options but to do a plane or something, you could save yourself some money by becoming friends with someone who lives where you are going to. not onlly then could you probably stay with them and save yuorself money on lodging and food, but you also get a free guide and you get greater immersion in the culture, rather than just being a tourist bumbling around area not sure what to do or say getting robbed at every turn.

 

Any tips on places to go that are wonderful but a bit cheaper?

 

as just said, lots to do in your local area.

 

Does anyone just prefer not to travel and just stay at home with the kids/family/friends?

 

i would rather stay in my own area, both becuse i like the security/familiarity and because i personaly get distressed and angry when tourists/strangers come around and i dont like doing that to other peoplle (even if it may not bother most as much as it bother me), but that dosnt mean i dont travel now and then.

 

Any tips for making a "staycation" at your house more fun for you and your family?

 

dont be spoiled. thats the number one tip. you dont have to go to an amusment park that rips money out of your arsehole or to a tropical resort or eat overpriced food every night or whatevre to have a good time. just doing something as simple as having a picnic everyday somewhere different or having a hike where you completly immerse yourself in the woods for several days with your family or friends - just doing anything to have a nice time with family and friends, whether a meal  together or a bonfire party is lots of fun, more fun than i many times experience going somewhere ive nevre been before or to amusement parks or wherevre because i always get a little anxious when im somewhere new.

[Mrs. Cindy Gill]

Does anyone have any advice for travelling on the cheaper side?

 

off season.  cheap hotels can be lovely.  mooch with family.   do the math, sometimes planes are cheaper than driving.

 

Any tips on places to go that are wonderful but a bit cheaper?

 

nearby attractions are attractions for good reasons.  open your eyes and check out your own town or city or countryside.  

 

Does anyone just prefer not to travel and just stay at home with the kids/family/friends?

 

*raises hand high*

 

it takes time to travel and thats time id rather spend in other ways

 

Any tips for making a "staycation" at your house more fun for you and your family?

 

hmmmmm.... it just is fun to me. it's nicer if i've done the cooking beforehand or if we can go out to eat a bit.  it's nice to just know there's nothing we have to do but rest and spend time together.  i'd say don't mess up a good staycation by overscheduling activities.  just breathing free is good enough.

[Zashara]

Does anyone have any advice for travelling on the cheaper side?

 

If you want to fly somewhere - book tickets on a tuesday. Either do it weeks in advance, or super last minute. If you want super cheap, look at booking a cruise at the last minute. You can sometimes get it like 70% off with lots of goodies.

 

If you are traveling in Europe, check out Sandeman tours. They have free walking city tours done by guides that work for tips. All the tours I've been on have been amazing.

Any tips on places to go that are wonderful but a bit cheaper?

 

Local/State/National parks. They're pretty awesome, usually you can find some close by, and they are usually really pretty.

Does anyone just prefer not to travel and just stay at home with the kids/family/friends?
 

Sometimes. Well no, I love to travel. The more exotic the better.

Any tips for making a "staycation" at your house more fun for you and your family?

 

I'm the wrong person to ask for this. I've never done one.

[Ryrin]

I love traveling, far, far away.

 

I have a friend who does the house swap thing. She did this last in Scotland. I have another friend who did the couch surfing thing in Australia.

 

When we went to Israel, we dumped money monthly in an account.

 

Never have done a "staycation" but I think I would want to relax at home with my family.

[Ryrin]

Yeah, we did Priceline once and got a really nice room for a good price.

[Mrs. Cindy Gill]

that's how I found my favorite hotel. didn't save much but they sorted the cheap decent ones for me. my friends have gotten excellent deals on nice NYC fancy schmancies with them tho.