Well, as they say, money matters! And it really does especially when it is a long around the world trip. So deciding upon a budget is one of the most important aspects associated with round the world travel. Deciding upon the right kind of budget for the trip involves careful and thoughtful planning. In order to avoid any hassles, one must start saving money reasonably well before the trip. Well, there could also be a case where you have enough and don’t have to worry about saving.
Nonetheless, there are a number of aspects that are attached to the budget of a RTW trip. The budget depends upon the following factors:
While calculating the budget for a round the world trip, these factors must always be taken into consideration. Therefore, you must decide as to what kind of budget you intend to have: whether you have a fixed budget and decide upon the relevant factors within this budget or you have a list of destinations and activities that you want to pursue and then decide upon the budget for the trip.
An important but common question that might come across your mind is the cost of the trip. Well, the answer to this question is very subjective. It entirely depends upon what and how you intend to do during the trip. The expenses of the trip depend upon the kind of accommodation you choose, spending on activities, transportation, eating/drinking and others. Daily expense is one aspect where you must a keep a careful eye on.
Now the aspect of the length or duration of your RTW trip comes into play. The daily expense depends on how much you wish to stay at a particular destination. The longer you stay at an expensive destination (say Europe), the expenses would be high whereas one can easily save a lot of money if you stay at a relatively less expensive destination (example: South Asia, East Asia, South America, Africa etc) even if the stay is for a longer duration.
Spending wisely is the mantra for a hassle free RTW trip. Otherwise, one might end up spending a large chunk of the budget on the first portion of the trip. Therefore it becomes very important to wisely choose the destinations that you want to cover and the stops that you wish to make. Too many stops results in over spending as moving from one destination to another, accommodations, transportation so on and so forth can be an expensive affair.
The next thing to consider is the type of accommodation you wish to stay in and the type of food you would eat. If you end up at the receptions of jazzy and flashy hotels and restaurants that might loosen your pockets way too fast than your RTW itinerary lasts and the desires that you wish to fulfill during the trip. Balance is the key here. You can always take into account the number of days you wish to spend at a particular destination and then take into account the type of accommodation you wish to take. One always has the option to stay for longer periods at budget guest houses, homestays for some (hostels, lodges etc. are also good options at certain places) and stay for less number of days in a 3-4 star hotel (or higher) with an amazing view to reduce the load on your purse strings. This way, the traveler ends up saving a significant amount of money.
Well, as for food, one can always go for the local cuisines and gorge on those local dishes without spending much money. One can also afford to eat lavishly at expensive restaurants once in a while. But frequenting such places might burn a hole in your pocket. Nowadays, many of the renowned food chains and outlets have been established across the world, so one can always go for these tried and tested options as well.
Transportation is also an important aspect that needs to be considered. Hopping from one destination to another involves a cost to be incurred. Therefore one can always go for public transportation in order to cut down on expenses. Moreover, traveling in the local modes of transport is an adventure and experience in itself. So buses, trains, ferries and others are easier on the pocket and let you experience and see different landscapes that usually one might not go to.
If one wishes to undertake an adventure activity, say like skydiving or scuba diving or a safari or a trek, then proper research should be done as to how much they cost because these activities actually cost a handsome amount of money.