Travel Pro Tip #32: How to Live Travel Pro! Inspired by @jedau. Part Six: Maximize Your Purchasing Power Through International Living! (Part I)
Maximize Your Purchasing Power Through International Living! (part I)
Hey there my Steemit friends. A key part of being Travel Pro is all about purchasing power. Every country around the world your purchasing power changes. Just crossing the border from one country into the next could have you spending double at every turn or cutting your expenses in half. Just a move in the exchange rates can have your expenses changing significantly in one direction or the other. In this part six of our How to live Travel Pro Series, we are going to talk all about how to make this work for you and show you how you can live very well for very little all around the globe!
I'm from the USA so I have the benefit of holding, earning, and using one of the stronger, more stable, and most tradeable currencies the USD dollar. This has been an advantage to me to varying degrees over the years. My last article was titled "Don't Travel Strictly for Pleasure!" This article you are reading runs on a similar theme.
I often choose my destinations on where my money goes the furthest. This is probably the main reason I've been traveling for over eleven years and have never been to Europe! Going to a place like Europe is full of countries I personally call Pay More Get Less. Meaning you have to pay more for everything from hotel, transportation, and food, and you receive less in return.
I enjoy second and third world countries with low crime and stable governments. Countries where you get off the airplane with a twenty dollar bill in your hand you are immediately at the top of the economic social scale. These countries I call Pay Less Get More Countries. This means that hotels, transportation, and food are all less expensive and you get more in return.
Then you have places that are in between, like a country I'm currently visiting Chile. Here I have to raise my daily budget of about $30 dollars a day to about $40 dollars to maintain the same quality of living. While in Peru I could get by very comfortably for about $20 dollars per day. For $30 a day I was enjoying up-scale restaurants and didn't have to think twice when purchasing things. I truly felt wealthy in Peru living on $30 dollars a day.
The things I basically spend my money on day to day is not much different then most people around the world. Food and Rent; travel expense, clothes, and other random things that plays in just a bit as well, but I can actually put off clothes, electronics, and other shopping until I'm in a country that offers great deals.
For example electronics, the US basically can't be beat, clothes third world countries especially ones that produce it for cheap like Peru, Cambodia, Malaysia, Indonesia... Travel expense well, you just need to look back into my blog to learn how I work that magic. However, food and rent is your daily expense that can't be avoided.
What's your budget? What are you working with? What's your income while traveling? Can you afford to travel perpetually? Can you afford to travel anywhere perpetually? How about living in a hotel in Paris France for a month at $100 dollar as night? Can you afford $3,000 dollars a month in rent; for a year, for ten years?
This is how you have to think about things if you're going to Live Life Travel Pro. Going to Paris my be your dream destination, but it could be a financial worst nightmare. It could be so expensive that you either have to live in a dorm, couch surf, and eat from supermarkets, and still blow your budget everyday.
For me this is no way to live long term. You basically have to Pay More and Get Less; lowering your standard of living to something undesirable or simply blow your budget day after day, potentially causing serious harm to your financial situation.
I have so much great information to share on this specific topic of Maximizing your Purchasing Power Though International Living we'll have to continue where we left off next week in part II. Until then I sincerely hope you have been enjoying this series! -Dan "World Travel Pro!"
With over 11 years of travel experience I answer travel and international lifestyle questions. Leave a question in the comments and I may make a Steemit post just for you!
Awesome article! Mexico is definitely a pay-less-get-more country for me, coming from Europe :) Btw, there are many places even wayyy more expensive than Paris in Europe :D A good idea would be to find a base in one of the cheaper countries and make short trips to other places from there. Europe is relatively small and with low-cost airlines (RyanAir, WizzAir)covering most of it, you can get pretty much everywhere for literally a few bucks ;) I am sure you will enjoy your European trip too Dan :)
Yes indeed, Mexico is one of the greatly underrated Pay-Less-Get-More countries. So much negative propaganda about this country, yet parts of it are very safe and offer a lot of fun in the sun for very little. Thanks for the tip about Europe. I'll have to consult you before head over there.
I also prefer going to countries where I can stay longer for cheaper. Yes Paris maybe great, but I'd only be able to spend a few days thers wjole on the same budget I could have the best time in Cambodia or Indonesia for weeks.
Exactly! Hopefully one day our paths cross! I love meeting like minded people! You totally get me! Hope you are having a great day and thank you for following this series! -Dan
Thank you for posting such useful things!
Wow Chile sounds amazing!! Thanks for all of the great info. At which point do you think you'll be able to head to Europe?
This Summer is the plan. Thanks for the kind words!
Let's say me and @gregbit chose the same way. Before we find our destination we are trying to visit some places but places where our budget is like you said so "see more pay less" ;) When we were in Europe we were lucky because we stayed in our family houses :) So it didn't cost a lot :) Thank you for such a great article :)
Thanks Margaret. Traveling this way is so important if you going long term. You can really make a mess of your financial situation get caught blowing your budget out of the water, week after week, month after month. Spending 700 a month in Ecuador vs spending 4,000 a month in another place is a huge difference. Like 48,000 a year vs 8,400.
Just want you to know most of the post I do have been in the bank. I've spent hardly any time on Steemit lately. I've been traveling like crazy.....but I made some changes and slowing my roll! Stopping in Santiago Chile for a full two weeks. Going to relax settle into one place for a while and have time to check your page out too! and many others. I just got here to today and like the the article says it's bit expensive here so I'm trying to find a good deal on a place for the two weeks but so far it's not easy.....Thanks again for your support and nice comments! -Dan
Beautiful pictures it look very nice.
Hello @world-travel-pro! You have wonderful travel stories. I also write about travel, but I have non-standard stories. I have never seen such stories on Steemit anywhere else. My travels about the technologies of different countries. Each country has its own traditions of manufacturing services or things - this is my story). It was nice to meet you! Good luck to you!
Thank you so much for leaving the nice comment. I'm glad you like my article. Steemit really is a special place! Have a great day!
That's interesting that Chile is an in between place value wise. It's the main country that I would still like to do a "big" trip too. However, it won't be for a while anyway so who knows what the situation will be by then.
I'd hate to miss Europe even though it is expensive. If I was travel pro I think I'd saved the money from the days when i didn't spend my budget and use that some time in the future to get to Europe.
A bit like we've been saving for years to go to Antarctica! 😊
Hey, you're one step ahead from my next article.
"If I was travel pro I think I'd saved the money from the days when i didn't spend my budget and use that some time in the future to get to Europe."
That's exactly what I explain in my next article, or the one after that. I have two more already written.
Chile is expensive. I'm learning that fast. As expensive as any western country I've been to. I'm not happy about it. It's eating up and my budget but more than I though. It's almost impossible to get a hotel in Santiago for less then 50 dollars! Where peru it was $10. I'm still searching though. I just got here.
Antarctica, wow. Don't forget your scarf and mittens!
Glad I'm one step ahead! That makes a change @world-travel-pro. 😁
Sounds like we're going to have to do some extra saving if we want to spend time in Chile then.
Mind you, by the time we get there it might well have changed.
Happy hunting. I'm sure there's a deal out there somewhere for you to find! 😊
I just made a Travel Pro Deal. Thinking out-side the Travel Pro Box! lol
Since Chile is basically a first world country with first world prices I knew the deals would be with the people. So I found a guy online who works from 8am to 10pm and rents his two other bedrooms out of his 3 bedroom 2 bathroom apartment. So for 17 dollar a night I got myself 15 days at his place. It's clean, modern, gated community! The other room has two German girls. Which may be a bonus! They are tourist and out and about all day anyway. So basically I have this whole aparment to myself, kitchen, balcony looking out on the mountains.....for about the same price as a bed in an 8 person dorm! Very Travel Pro! This is the magic I'll have to work in Europe for sure. Plus there is a 60 inch flat screen TV and X box in the living room!
Ha, ha, ha! I knew you could do it @world-travel-pro. Welldone! Sounds like a very good deal.
Hope the German girls are good fun. 😁
Breaking it down into a daily budget is pretty awesome. Steem works great with a lifestyle like that since you can get paid every day too, which sometimes is a life saver.
Cool! I notice a big difference in the expense from one city to the next even just within USA, and it is not always what you would expect.
So glad you are enjoying my series here. Yes steemit has been life changing for my budget travels...it's little less "budget" and more "travel". Yes every city changes all over the world. Right now I'm dealing with Santiago Chile, it's way more expensive than I hoped.
I think you are very suitable to spend vacation time here (Sabang Aceh Indonesia Island) ..
here the sea view is very beautiful and very affordable from all your needs here .. i really hope someday you come here..good Luck for you... @world-travel-prom
I'd love to go there. I almost did about 7 years ago. But I spent all my time in Bali. Next time I'll have to check out Sabang! Thanks for the comment and info.
equally .. yes .. i think you have to sag..babs is the world's paradise
Nice picture! 👍
You got an upvote, so it would be kind to follow this account for more upvotes in the future 👊🏼