Ultimate Trip Planner | How to Get the Most Out of Your Backpacking Budget

Updated May 2024

I’m a firm believer that travel does not have to be expensive. In fact, there’s something freeing about stuffing a handful of ragged clothes into a backpack, sleeping in hammocks and eating street food.

Therefore, I want to share my backpacking trip planner and show how I make the most of my backpacking budget, so that all you like-minded budget backpackers out there can save on travel costs and take your adventures even further.

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Backpacking Trip Planner: Before You Go

Before you set off on your budget backpacking trip, there are a few things you need to know and must sort out before you go. I have definitely made the mistake of leaving trip planning until a few weeks before I was due to leave, which increased costs and meant I was stressing the fuck out. 

The “before you go” costs of a backpacking trip are usually the most expensive of the whole trip, so make sure you can cover the costs of the following before you start working out a day-to-day backpacking budget:

1. Travel Visas

Research the visa requirements for your passport for every country you plan to visit on your backpacking trip. Some countries require a visa in advance, others require the purchase of a visa on the border – but be warned that rules can change, so double-check before you go.

For example, I hold a British passport and I can travel within the EU without a visa, however on my Two-Month Southeast Asia backpacking trip I needed to pay US$50 in advance for a visa to Myanmar and US$35 upon arrival in Cambodia, among others.

It sounds obvious, but every country is different and I’ve been caught out before by assuming free entry (yep, thanks for that curved ball, Australia). If you hold a UK, US, Canadian or Australian passport (the main readership of this blog), you can find out travel visa information on the following sites:

• United Kingdom – Foreign Travel Advice
• United States – Travel.State.Gov
• Canada – Travel.gc
• Australia – Australia.Gov

2. Vaccinations

I am personally terrible at this because I can never remember which vaccinations I’ve had (moving countries and doctors all the time will do that to you). Ideally, you should get your vaccinations at least four weeks before you leave for your backpacking trip, so make sure you speak to your doctor about your plans a couple of months before you plan to go.

Again, here are the best websites for UK, US, Canadian and Australian citizens to look up which vaccinations you need for your backpacking trip:

• United Kingdom – NHS website
• United States – CDC and Travel.State.Gov
• Canada – Travel.gc
• Australia – Smartraveller.Gov

3. Travel Insurance

If you have a backpacking trip with dates decided (and don’t plan on coming home during that time), then you can shop around to find the best deal on backpacking travel cover. However, things can be more complicated if you’re leaving your backpacking trip more open-ended.

I personally use World Nomads Travel Insurance, the Explorer Plan and have done for years (and you’ll see many other travellers and travel bloggers do the same), mainly because they are the only company that will cover me once I’m already abroad. It’s also easy to extend a policy with them if you change your plans and decide to stay longer:

Disclaimer: We receive a fee when you get a quote from World Nomads using this link. We do not represent World Nomads. This is not a recommendation to buy travel insurance.

Once you’ve bought your policy, make a note of the policy number and the insurer’s emergency claims helpline on your phone, write them down in your diary (in case you lose your phone) and also give that information to a parent or reliable friend/family member back home, just in case.

4. Backpacking Gear

This is going to warrant another blog post in itself and obviously varies according to where you plan on travelling to. However, here is my advice for the backpacking gear you will need for your trip.

a) General backpacking supplies

Although it’s difficult to recommend travel essentials for every backpacking trip, I believe there are a few essentials every budget backpacker needs:

• Clothes you don’t mind ruining and sweating in.
• More swimwear than underwear.
• Lots of high-factor sun cream and aftersun.
• A good mosquito spray and tiger balm (toothpaste also helps soothe bites).
• A scarf and warm jumper (for air con more than anything else).
• A first aid kit (including something that can disinfect).
• Two multi-way travel adapters (no, one is not enough).
• Long trousers and something to cover your shoulders for more conservative countries.
• A backpack you can lift and doesn’t just open from the top (see below).
• If you menstruate, a menstrual cup (saves space, money and the planet).
• Padlocks (at least two).
• Packing cubes.

b) The best backpacks for budget backpackers

I’ll let you in on a little secret: I may be a budget backpacker, but I have never owned one of those monster backpacks. I used a holdall during my backpacking trip around Southeast Asia and I used a similar holdall/suitcase with wheels during my North America trip.

So, before you fork out on a fancy backpack to look the part, ask your friends and family if they have a big backpack or bag you can use. Try them out and see what works. If you really have no options, then here are a few backpack recommendations from other budget backpackers, some of which are even carry-on friendly:

• Osprey Porter, Farpoint and Fairview
• Kelty Redwing
• eBags Mother Lode Convertible
• Pacsafe Venturesafe X40
• Deuter Transit

Recommended Read: I’ve committed to making my bathroom and travel toiletry back zero waste and plastic free. Plus, many zero waste toiletries come in solid form, so they’re perfect for your backpack or hand luggage, as well as better for the planet and for you.

c) How to pack your backpack

You know what I’m going to say, right? Pack your backpack and try to lift it. Did you fall over? Does it hurt? Then unpack it and cut a third of your things.

No, you will not use your make-up bag. No, you don’t need to take more than two books (travel guide and one novel to swap once you’re on the road). No, you will not use your hairdryer or straighteners.

If you don’t see yourself using an item every single day of your budget backpacking trip, CUT IT. The alternative is waiting until you’re two or three weeks into your journey and having to dump all the stuff you swore you would need, but actually don’t.

Travel secret: pack fewer toiletries and clothes than you think you need because… you can always buy toiletries or extra clothes once you’re travelling.

5. Flights

For finding the best deals on flights, I use Skyscanner because it’s flexible (I can filter by destination, by month or simply choose ‘everywhere’ as a destination), which helps me work out the cheapest flight at the most convenient time for me.

Here are a few more tips on how to find the best budget deals on flights:

a) Book as soon as you look

Rumour has it that there are algorithms in place which figure out how popular a flight is by how many people are looking at it, then put the prices up automatically. Therefore, don’t spend weeks on price comparison websites deliberating because you’ll only push prices up.

b) Use the incognito tab

I’ve no proof that this works, but at the very least I feel better for doing it. Using the incognito tab when looking at flights supposedly tricks the algorithm, so there is less of a chance of flight prices being pushed up.

c) Be flexible

Before I need to book a flight, I sit myself down (usually with a beer) and repeat this little mantra to myself: There is no perfect flight. There is no flight at the time I want, from or to the places I want, at the price that I want. But, I am booking a flight today.

Once you accept this, it’s much easier to compromise. The more flexible you can be with dates and times, the better change you’ll have at finding a cheap deal.

How to Make the Most of Your Backpacking Budget

OK, budget backpackers, now we get into the nitty gritty. Now that you’ve worked out the initial costs of the big five (visas, vaccinations, insurance, gear and flights), you can work out your backpacking budget for your actual backpacking trip.

Here are my tips on how to make your backpacking budget stretch as far as possible:

1. Research Your Budget By Country and By Average Spend Per Day

What do I mean by this? Well, when I was planning my Southeast Asia travel itinerary, I heavily researched a realistic budget for each individual country I was visiting.

So, I worked out that I needed more budget allocated for Myanmar and less for Cambodia and Vietnam. However, Myanmar was at the start of my trip and I was amazed at how under budget I was… so I spent more! Then, when I got to Cambodia and Vietnam I realised I had underestimated how much I needed and was out of pocket.

Lesson learnt: do your research to work out how much backpacking costs in each country, but also have an “average spend per day” for the whole trip to keep the budget in perspective. And don’t be afraid to adjust your budget when and where necessary during your trip.

Here are some websites that can help you estimate backpacking costs by country:

• My Funky Travel has an amazing guide on Backpacking Costs in Different Countries.
• Budget Your Trip has a detailed calculator that can help you work out travel costs by country.
• Trek hard also has an interesting travel cost estimator for daily costs of backpacking.

Or simply refer to your guidebook. Remember to take all budget advice with a pinch of salt (better to overestimate than underestimate), as currency conversions change, inflation happens and the more popular a destination becomes, the quicker the prices rise.

From my personal experience as a budget backpacker, I’ve found that you never truly know the cost of things until you’re actually at a destination yourself.

2. How to get the cheapest accommodation deals

When it comes to finding cheap accommodation on a backpacker’s budget, I’ve tried everything.

First, reach out to any friends you may have where you’re travelling to – you never know if they may invite you to stay or know someone who can host you. Plus, it’s way more fun staying with friends and having a local guide who can show you around or recommend the best things to do.

Of course, it’s unlikely you’ll know people everywhere (but the more you travel, the more people you meet…), so the next step is hostels. Why hostels? Because I’ve tried Couchsurfing and though I thought it was a great initiative five or six years ago, I feel like it’s become a bit more seedy and it’s not reliable – someone can cancel last-minute and leave you with nowhere to go.

Similarly, I find that Airbnb is not particularly reliable (I’ve had a few last-minute cancellations which meant I had to pay more for a hostel than I would have initially because of the short notice). Also, I think Airbnb is overpriced for what it is – I’ve never found anything cheaper than a hostel on there.

So, now that we’ve established that hostels are the best way forward, here are five ways to get the cheapest hostel deals:

a) Use price comparison websites to find the cheapest places

Don’t use your guidebook because by the time your guidebook has been researched, edited, printed, published, purchased and read, the information is likely out of date. Also, most guidebooks have rules about how long a place must be open before it’s accepted into the guidebook (often two years) and only recommend a few places, so you’re not being shown the best options.

I use and thoroughly recommend Booking.com because I always find the best places on there, the reviews are up-to-date, plentiful and reliable, and the deals are super cheap (we’ll come back to this on point e).

b) Look at location and kitchen facilities

When I went to Rome, my friends and I found an amazingly cheap deal at a campsite/hostel – the catch? It was miles out of town. We spent hours on public transport every day, which was also a cost, and meant it would have worked out the same price if we’d stayed in the city.

Furthermore, if you are serious about sticking to your backpacking budget, you are going to be doing some cooking! Even if it’s just buying a bunch of bananas for breakfasts instead of grabbing a coffee and a pastry every morning, you will need a kitchen at your hostel.

c) Don’t book online, just turn up

This is particularly true of hostels in Southeast Asia vs the rest of the world – many hostels charge a higher price for an online booking than for a walk-in, so you will most likely get the best price by researching beforehand, using a site like Booking.com, then turning up on their doorstep.

However, there are exceptions to this rule. Those exceptions are holidays, festivals and peak season. This has caught me out so many times, so always research, double-check and triple-check whether your destination is likely to be booked out or busy, as this can inflate the price or leave you homeless.

d) Haggle or ask for a discount

Yes, this is cheeky and I personally don’t do it because accommodation in most popular destinations for budget backpackers is already cheap by western standards. Be aware that you need to be sensitive if you do choose to do this and that haggling is the art of finding a price both parties are happy with, not getting the cheapest deal.

A traveller I met from China swore by the system of asking for a discount at the point of check-in. He would research places using Booking.com, then if he was staying longer than a few nights or if he was part of a group, he would politely ask for a discount. The hostels almost always said yes.

3. Make friends, or take them with you

Sharing and splitting costs is, of course, a way to save money on the road, whether that’s room costs, tour costs or just sharing food. Plus, you can split and share toiletries or backpacking gear, so that your backpacks are lighter and potentially more carry-on friendly (i.e. no baggage costs).

Furthermore, one of the best travel tips I could give (and one of the many reasons why hostels are the way forward for backpacking) is to be social.

Get chatting to fellow travellers in your dorm and you might just get some tips from them on what to see and do, and where to find good deals. Hostel staff are also a underrated resource of information that could save you a few pennies with their local knowledge.

4. Plot a Travel Route Over Land

Long bus journeys are not always the most comfortable, but they are often the most cost-effective way to travel from city to city, and country to country. To save money on air fares, choose a backpacking travel route that goes overland, either by long-haul bus journeys or trains.

If you’re apprehensive about taking public transport in a foreign country, read How to Survive Long Bus Journeys in Southeast Asia.

5. Start out more cautious and ease into things

There is a definite learning curve when it comes to backpacking on a budget. For the first couple of weeks, I would advise that you are more cautious with your spending, then relax more as you adjust to the backpacker lifestyle and figure out the costs of things.

Let me assure you – you will make mistakes. Even with a few years of budget backpacking under my belt, I still arrive at a hostel to discover that I was charged double for my taxi transfer compared to someone else.

Embrace the mistakes, laugh and learn from them.

6. Be careful with your possessions

I guarantee that during your backpacking trip you will have something of yours stolen and/or you will leave something behind. On my two-month Southeast Asia trip, I left my towel at the first hostel I stayed at. On my North America trip, I left my scarf and book on a plane. On a trip to the Philippines, my phone was stolen out of my bag on a night out.

Of course, towels, accessories and books are replaceable. So are phones really, but all the photographs I lost were not. You should already have travel insurance in place to cover any thefts of major items, but it doesn’t hurt to be extra careful.

You may have noticed in the Backpacking Gear section of this guide that I advised you bring along at least two padlocks – one for your daily backpack and one for your big backpack or hostel locker. Not only is a visible padlock a security measure, I believe it also acts as a deterrent, especially for pickpockets.

Some people use money belts, but I stick padlock keys, some money and any other valuables in my bra.

Another great tip is to split your money and valuables. For example, keep one ATM card in your big backpack (hidden in the toiletries bag is a good spot) and another in your daily backpack.

If you do lose some of your possessions, the same advice applies as above: embrace the mistakes, laugh and learn from them. Remember that the most challenging times make for the best travel stories.

7. Have some cash saved for a rainy day

Ideally in US dollars because you can exchange them anywhere. You never know.

8. Be Flexible.

The final and ultimate trip planning budget backpacker travel secret I will let you in on is this: be flexible! Things. Will. Not. Go. To. Plan. You will miss your plane, a hostel will lose your booking, you will get lost, you will get sick, there will be an earthquake (true story)… the list is endless.

That chilled out budget backpacker attitude may take a while to sink in, but you will have to learn to let some things go. If there are no ferries going across to that island you want to visit today, do something else. If you miss your bus, spend an extra day in the city. If you get sick, fork out for a private room and spend a couple of days resting.

Make the most of your time because you won’t remember the stressful bits – just the great memories.

Ultimate Trip Planner & Backpacker Budget

Phew. So, did we cover it all, budget backpackers? Did I leave anything out? If you have any questions or backpacking budget tips of your own, comment below. If you found this post helpful, I’d be very grateful if you share it with friends, pin it for later and most importantly, have a great trip!