Planning a trip on a budget? Here are our favorite travel planning resources:
Flights
Google Flights (for checking and comparing flight costs)
Expedia
GoToGate
CheapOAir
Ryanair (budget airline for flights within Europe)
Lodging
Hostelworld
Priceline (try the Pricebreakers option, where they select the hotel for a discounted rate)
Booking.com
Airbnb
Logistics Planning
Wikitravel provides extensive information on transportation, typical prices, recommended neighborhoods, and safety tips. Rome2Rio offers multiple travel options between cities and countries, while Google Maps helps find budget-friendly food near your accommodation and enables map downloads for offline use. Google Translate serves as a translation tool for menus, signs, and other written content, so make sure to download the language you’ll need in advance.
Packing Essentials
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Osprey Fairpoint 40
She’s been using this one since 2017 and it has held up excellently!
Kelty Redwing 36
His exact bag (Redwing 44) was discontinued a few years ago, but this one is very similar.
We love this one because it has USB and Lightning ports directly on it!
A bit pricier but it helps you sleep in economy even if the seats don’t recline, which ends up being worth a lot over time.
This is fantastic for flights without entertainment systems (there are more of them than you might think). It attaches to the back of the tray table.
A good budget-friendly noise canceling headphone option.
These are Jillian’s favorite walking and travel shoes; very comfortable and lightweight.
They’re also Seth’s favorite travel and walking shoes.
These are much easier to pack toiletries in than single-use bags, and they’re TSA approved.
Airport charging stations are notorious for hackers and malware. Protect your devices with a data blocker, which only allows power to come through.
Most airplanes still use dual slot headphone jacks. This tiny device allows you to bring your own (more comfortable) wired headphones along with you.
These are the most comfortable budget-friendly wired headphones we’ve used, which are great to have on long-haul flights. Don”t forget the dual slot adapter to use (listed above) to use them for airplane entertainment systems.
An easy way to keep some extra cash on you securely.
A cute but still functional hidden item option.
Fjallraven Kanken
This backpack is super sturdy. I use it to bring my camera, a water bottle, snacks and wallet around throughout the day when I’m traveling.
This is a very basic insert that keeps my camera secure in my day backpack. It’s great for my simple setup (DSLR, one lens, battery pack).
Fjallraven Vardag 16
A smaller backpack for everyday use while traveling.
We use contact lens cases for non-prescription medications and to bring smaller amounts of product like lotion.
We love taking these on flights to help us stay hydrated, which can prevent jet lag on arrival.
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