Travels with my laptop

People often ask me where I get the money to travel as much as I do. My job isn’t particularly well paid but I manage to have at least 3 trips a year, usually on long haul flights and quite often to expenisve places (think Iceland… hmm). The truth is that there is no big secret - I just choose to spend my money on travel. I don’t go out much, I hardly ever buy new clothes and I generally spend as little as possible as I’m usually saving up for my next trip. I also maximise the funds I have by booking the cheapest flights I can find and staying in cheap accommodation.

As I’m currently pulling out all the stops in my attempt to save up for an extended round-the-world trip, I thought I would write a little guide to saving money for travel (of course this advice could be used if you’re saving for anything). Most of these tips can also be used while you’re on the road and a bit of extra cash when you’re without a regular salary is never a bad thing.

1. Make the most of the money you already have - don’t stick with the same old bank account you’ve had for years. make sure you put your money into a high interest savings account to maximise your interest. Have a look at moneysavingexpert.com for some good advice on the best savings and current accounts to pick.
2. Stop spending money on things you don’t need - If you buy your lunch every day you could easily be throwing away £100 or more a month. If you buy a Starbucks every day that’s another £50 or £60. Little things easily add up. Look at where you could be saving money and cut back - If you can walk to work then do so instead of driving or paying for the bus - you’ll lose weight and get healthier too! Have a hard thing about how much you spend on socialising every month - there’s no need to stop going out altogether but wouldn’t you rather be drinking that beer on a beach in Thailand?
3. Have a clearout and make money at the same time - Ebay can be a godsend but so many people seem to either not understand how it works or can’t be bothered to take the time to use it. Trust me, it can be well worth your time and effort. Take a good hard look at your possessions - what haven’t you used in a year or more? what is worth more to you as money than it is sitting around the house? If you’re planning an extended trip you’ll probably be needing to put your possessions into storage anyway - better to get rid of as much as you can before you leave. And don’t assume that what you have isn’t worth any money - you’ll be suprised at how much some people will pay for things that you consider junk. I find Amazon marketplace easier than Ebay for selling books, DVDs and CDs. The fees are higher but you’re more likely to find a buyer looking for what you’re selling. Ebay is great for clothes, electronics, magazines and other general items. For general junk and stuff that’s not worth listing, try a car boot sale. I’ve made £500 in the first month of clearing out things that I no longer need on Amazon and Ebay and I will continue to do this until I leave on my trip.
4. Advertise your skills - If you’re a writer, illustrator, web designer or programmer, you will be able to sell your skills on a freelance basis to bring in some extra cash. Most of my freelance work has come in by word of mouth so try asking around your friends and colleagues first. You can also try sites like elance and getafreelancer which allow to you bid for work, although the prices have been pushed down by outsourcing companies in countries like India in recent years. Try a google search for websites concerning the type of work you’re interested in - popular sites often have message boards with freelance oportunities posted on them. Finally, if you’re an illustrator, try submitting work to threadless - you can earn a nice chunk of money if your illustration is chosen to put on a t-shirt.
5. Get crafty - if you have artistic skills, whether it be sewing, painting or jewellery making, you can make money from your skills. I recommend Etsy for selling your work - if your pieces are popular, you can make a lot of money doing this. Think carefully about the time you’re spending and how much to sell your work for - unless you’re a very fast knitter it will be difficult to persuade someone to pay you at a decent hourly rate.
6. Get paid to answer questions - AQA and Texperts will pay you to work from home in your spare time as an internet researcher, answering questions that people send in by text. Both these companies are over subscribed and have long waiting lists at the moment but it’s worth taking the Texperts test to see if this kind of work is for you. I’m currently waiting for a position to open up so I’ll let you know how much you can earn as soon as I know more!
7. Cashback sites - they won’t make you rich quick, but every little helps. These sites offer you cash back every time you buy something online by clicking through their site. If you’re planning to buy something it’s worth checking on these sites first as you can often get around 10% cashback. They also offer you money without the need to buy anything - just for clicking on websites, filling out questionnaires and also by changing your gas and electric company etc. My favourite site is Rpoints and I’ve earned about £250 from them to date, but I’ve also heard good things about Quidco and Pigsback.
8. Mystery shopping - I’ve done a little bit of mystery shopping in the past and never really made a lot of money from it but if you’re serious about it and flexible about when you can work, it could make you a nice little chunk of cash for your trip. Check out the moneysavingexpert forums for reccommendations on the best companies to work for and what to expect.
9. Get paid to review music - Again, it’s never going to make you rich but you can pull in a few extra pounds a week (or more if you can stand it!) by reviewing music by unsigned bands at slicethepie. 5 star reviews earn 12p per track, although I think it’s pretty impossible to get to that level! Anway if you like listening to new music and spend a lot of time on your computer anyway, it’s an easy thing to do while you’re working on something else.
10. Make money from your websites - this is something that I’m still working on so I don’t know too much about it but there is money to be made for those who are willing to put in the time and effort. The main premise behind the idea is to drive traffic to your site and then make money from advertising and affiliate sales. This is a huge topic that I’ve not quite got my head around yet so I will direct you to problogger to learn more.

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