The ultimate guide to traveling for free

Money

A lot has been written about free travel.

So much, that one gets tired just thinking about it. But hey, that doesn’t mean everything has been said and so here you have it: We have compiled a long list of the resources that will make you travel for free right below these lines.

Use it wisely!

THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX

  • GET LUCKY

  1. Win a contest (google “travel contest”)Get lucky
  2. Do some research. There are endless opportunities out there!
  3. Get a sponsor. Here’re some of our partners.
  4. Become an influencer like, for instance, these cool Instagramers.
  5. Get yourself a sugar daddy or mommy (just kidding!)
  • SAVE SOME MONEY

  1. Work your ass off before going anywhere
  2. Sell everything you have (or just some stuff you don’t need)
  3. Raise money for your project or cause (crowdfunding, donations, charity..)
  4. Cut your daily expenses, like your phone. Use a calling app to talk to other users for free and make cheap calls to everyone else.
  5. Follow our saving tips

WORK ABROAD / ON THE MOVE

Dalvik beach
Now that I am reliving these pictures (here’s Dalvik beach, in the North of the country), I need to get myself back to Iceland soon! Seriously.
  1. Get a skilled migrant visa to any country looking for people with your education and experience background
  2. Trip leader (Contiki, Trafalgar, HF Holidays, Intrepid,  EF, Backroads, Dragoman, G Adventures, etc. )
  3. Group tour organizer (Adventures abroad, Adventures incorporated, ..)
  4. Trekking or mountain guide.
  5. Take a challenge (Global Adventure, Across the divide, Charity treks, Mongol Rally, Rickshaw Run, etc.)
  6. Flight attendant
  7. Travel seller (at G adventures for instance)
  8. Rockstar on a world tour
  9. Video blog for Tripfilms
  10. Create a start-up and head to Chile (with Startup Chile, and get 40000 dollars to develop it)
  11. Travel writer
  12. Importer/exporter of goods. Make sure it complies with the law first.
  13. Work for a non-profit organization. Start looking for it on Idealist
  14. Travel photographer. And you could be doing cool photography things soon!
  15. Freelancer (designer, SEO analyst, online teacher, translator .. )
  16. Journalist
  17. Bartender all over the world
  18. Expat if your company gives you the chance
  19. Caregiver
  20. Au-pair (in Aupair.com or GreatAuPair.com)
  21. Language teacher (get your TEFL certificate and teach in a faraway country)
  22. Cruise (CruiseShipJob.com) or yacht crew (crew seekers.net)
  23. Temporary fruit picker
  24. Farmworker
  25. Sailor or worker at a ferry crossings company
  26. Ship Unloader
  27. Conference speaker (you should, at least, pretend you are good at what you do..)
  28. Diplomat, politician
  29. Chef (there is always a high demand for these!)
  30. Busker
  31. Musician
  32. Artwork specialist
  33. Product reviewer or secret shopper
  34. Seasonal worker at ski resorts in winter
  35. A worker at hotels during high season. For instance, at Club Med
  36. Start your tourism-related micro-business (city guide, photo tour, .. )
  37. (Your favorite sport) instructor
  38. Work camper (in National Parks like Yellowstone and Yosemite or campsites)
  39. Bar hostess in Japan (just for women, we don’t like it either but it pays well!)
  40. Test medication (we wouldn’t recommend it..)
  41. Join the Navy (we hate this one)
  42. Spread the word.. of God (another non-keeper)

VOLUNTEER ABROAD

Djupavik coast
How would you like to spend 15 days here? This picture was taken nearby Djupavik, a tiny and isolated Iceland village located near the Arctic circle. I did it as a volunteer and couldn’t stop recommending it if you are adventurous and ready to take in new and challenging experiences! Here’s to that!
  1. Super short-term: Join a work camp. SCI, worldwide. Small fees may apply.
  2. Short term: Geekcorps, Winrock, ACDI VOCA, FSVC, IESC
  3. Long-term: Peace Corps and United nations, worldwide. Americorps, USA. VSO, UK.
  4. As an English teacher.
  5. Artists programs. Find more on Artcorp.org
  6. Sudan volunteer program
  7. Kibbutz volunteer, Israel
  8. Volunteer in an NGO abroad. Go Abroad has lots of programs.
  9. EVS if you are European (like I did, in Iceland!)
  10. Turtle teams worldwide
  11. Helpx
  12. Workaway
  13. WWOOF (World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms)
  14. Conservation Volunteers (Australia and New Zealand)
  15. Sister city exchanges
  16. Workampers (if you are an RVer)
  17. National Park Rangers (USA)
  18. Disaster relief
  19. Hiking Trail Volunteers (CDTrail, PNT, Appalachian Trail, .. )
  20. Organic Volunteers (almost every kind of volunteer work)

STUDY ABROAD

  1. Get a scholarship.
  2. Go to a country where education is free (Sweden, ..)
  3. Take part in an exchange funded by your local organization, university, or government

GETTING THERE

  1. Hitchhike
  2. Register to get every airline in the world’s newsletter and wait till they offer free seats (like Air Asia)
  3. Work your passage as a sailor
  4. Ride a bike
  5. Walk everywhere
  6. Use frequent airline’s miles (small fees may still apply)
  7. Free travel schemes for seniors (Ireland), children,…
  8. Relocate vehicles (Britz, Maui, Autodriveaway …)

SLEEPING

  1. Couchsurfing (is Couchsurfing safe?)
  2. Global Freeloaders (register at least 6 months before your departure)
  3. Hospitality club
  4. Servas
  5. Hostels and monasteries of Saint James’ Way, Spain. They are no longer free but affordable for pilgrims and hikers (8-10€)
  6. Beach or free camping
  7. House Swapping
  8. House Sitting
  9. Hostel worker (in exchange for food and accommodation) South America, New Zealand, worldwide.
  10. Warm showers (bicyclists)
  11. Clubs (Lions, Rotary, Motorcyclists, Gays and lesbians, Educators, Women, Optimist, Mensa if you are really intelligent and after paying the intelligence test cost, Tandem bicyclists, Evergreen for 50+,…) For many of them, a small fee applies.

Related read: The 4 Types Of Intelligence Developed By Traveling


EATING

Bonus Iceland groceries
And here are the groceries we bought in Bonus Iceland to survive 15 days in a Djupavik work camp as volunteers.
  1. Plant your food
  2. Go fishing and hunting (where permitted)
  3. Take the food supermarkets to get rid of at closing times
  4. If homeless, daily meals are offered in shelters
  5. Dumpster dive in cities
  6. Trade restaurant food for dishwashing
  7. Donate blood (and, luckily, you will get something to eat afterward)

VISITING

  1. There are plenty of “free city walking tours” worldwide. Do some research
  2. Museums: during off-peak hours might be free / some of them are based on donations / Plenty of them cost nothing!
  3. Art galleries are usually free (and, if you happen to arrive during an opening, you might get a glass of wine too)
  4. Parks and nature spots are usually free of charge
  5. Most of the online travel guides cost virtually nothing (like our Andalucia Road Trip Guide. Go check it out!)

What else would you add?




There are 26 comments

Add yours
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  2. mister j

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  3. Mira Ahipara

    I will second on advantages of getting a teaching degree in English. It’s not the best paying job in most parts of the world, but it sure allows a lot of possibilities in life including world travel.

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  10. CJH

    Great list!!! Here are a few other things that I have done, and plan to do, to travel for (kind of) free. Enjoy!

    – Get a teaching degree/teaching English certificate (it will hopefully allow you to travel anywhere and everywhere!)
    – Work at English camps overseas (some companies will pay for your flight overseas and back to work for them)
    – Crash at a friends place, or a friend of a friends place (social networking at its best!)
    – Apply for free tickets to music festivals (check out this site for contests during the spring and summer http://consequenceofsound.net/ )


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