4 things I never spend on when traveling abroad (and 5 others that are definitely worth the money)

When it comes to how we spend our money, it’s usually a matter of limits and prioritizing. On one hand, we are usually bound by our respective financial situations, but on the other, we often still have a lot of choices to make.

Ever since I was old enough to make and save money, I always prioritized traveling. However, I do set limits within that as well and make choices and priorities on what is worth (for me) spending money on.

It‘s all a matter of personal choices. Some people like using travel agencies and are willing to spend money for someone else taking over the organizing part. Others have favorite hotels or prefer traveling extra comfortably. It’s not really a question of good or bad choices. But nevertheless, I feel we should make conscious choices in these cases as well and maybe come up with a financial priority list beforehand in order to avoid horrific surprises and huge regrets when every single cost is added up at the end of a trip.

4 things I never spend money on when I travel

Business class and flight extras

I’ve flown business class before, and I’m not gonna lie, it IS great. Especially on long-haul flights, that upgrade in comfort, space, and extras make the whole thing a lot more bearable. But anytime I flown business, it was actually for a business trip and thus not paid by me. To be honest at my current financial situation I just cannot justify spending that much more on having these extras. Especially as nowadays the longest time I spend on an airplane is 2-3 hours, and for that I’m not willing to pay double the price.

Very fancy and too expensive hotels

The same reasoning as with business class. I always set a budget and a threshold of how much I’m willing to spend on a hotel. No extremes for me – I don’t go for overly cheap, but I’m not paying too much either. Especially, because we really only use it for sleeping; I’m not the type of person who lounges around the hotel on vacations. Sure, if my financials will vastly improve, I’m not opposed to very nice hotels, but right now I prioritize other things. While I’m not the biggest travel hacker, I can usually still score very good deals even on Booking.com (definitely register for the genius deals and make a lot of research).

Taxi or Uber

I think there’s no better way to explore a city than on foot. But even when we have to cover longer distances, I always opt for public transportation in a foreign city. You can save a lot of money that way, and often, especially in big metropolises, like New York or London, it’s a lot faster as well.

City cards

City cards or passes are seemingly a very good deal. Usually, a lot of the major tourist attractions are included, along with fast-track entries and sometimes public transportation and you only have to pay one time for the card. However, the deals are often only good at first sight. Major attractions or museums are often not included or you only get a small discount and you still have to wait in line. A lot of venues are included however, because they are less popular and this way they are hoping to attract more people.

To be honest, I think there’s practically no way to get the maximum value out of the card. It doesn’t mean it’s completely useless, but I always evaluate them case-by-case. Yes, I’m the type of person who makes a rough plan (OK, a quite detailed plan) of what I want to visit in a new place. I write down all the opening hours, entry fees, transportation costs, and then make a calculation and a comparison of whether a city pass is worth it. Sometimes yes, you can save some money, sometimes it’s really not worth it.

5 things that I spend on instead

Direct flights

Another old and trusty way to save money on traveling: sometimes you can score tickets with 1 or 2-stop flights for a fraction of the price of a direct flight. Once again, it all comes down to prioritizing. I hate airports, am terrified of flying, so extending that experience is simply not worth it for me. I’d much rather spend a little bit more money, but gain valuable vacation time, instead of spending that on an airplane.

Checked-in luggage

You can score a lot of great budget flight tickets, but you must be aware that it usually comes with very limited luggage options, often only a handbag. I pack quite smartly and travel quite light, but I do like to set aside space for potential purchases and I don’t like having to decant my contact lens cleanser to meet the bottle rules. We usually also pack together with my fiancé, and one bigger checked-in luggage is way more comfortable (especially for me, as I can strut around the airport fashionably with a small tote, while he deals with the bigger luggage:)).

A hotel with a central location

While I don’t like spending on fancy hotels, I do spend on hotels with a more central location. When I was younger the way I saved money when traveling was finding the cheapest accomodations, often well outside the city center. Nowadays I prioritize saving time, and not having to spend hours after an exhausting day traveling through the whole city or switching transportation 3 times is definitely worth the extra cost for me.

Eating out

For me trying the local cuisine is just as much a part of exploring a foreign place as visiting a museum. I just refuse to go for very cheap fast food options (especially as I don’t eat fast food), so if I see a nice place, I’m willing to spend on that for the experience.

Programs and experiences

If I travel somewhere, I always start out with the assumption that it might be the only time I ever visit it. So I try to make the most out of all my trips and that definitely includes spending money on experiences, like eating out, cultural visits, a boat trip, a musical or theater, or whatever fun and interesting things the city offers. Here are a couple of my recommendations on how to make the most of a trip.

What are your travel spending priorities? Is there something you never spend money on when you’re taveling?

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