How much does it cost to travel every month? How much money does it take to travel around the world? How much money does the world need to travel.

Who in childhood has not dreamed of traveling around the world? Boys were eager for pirate schooners to desperate captains, girls dreamed of big and beautiful liners, like in the "Titanic" (but without consequences). With age, such dreams have moved into the category of impossible dreams, but in vain. Gazeta.Ru talked with people who have been on a round-the-world trip, with those who are just about to make them, and with the organizers of such trips. And also found out how much the most modest and most comfortable trips will cost and who can afford it all.

Option number 1: hitchhiking with friends

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Budget: $ 1.5 thousand (71 thousand rubles at the current exchange rate)
Transport: any ride (from cars and buses to horses and trains)
Travel time: 198 days (originally planned for 1,000 days)

Vladimir Peresedin is 35 years old, he is a professional traveler. He is fond of mountaineering, and decided on a trip around the world because of a thirst for adventure: he planned to travel around the world in 1,000 days with his friends and spend only $ 10,000 on it.The days turned out to be five times less, but Vladimir does not lose heart: he says that it was only first try.

“We planned the route of the trip in advance,” says the traveler. - First, we made a list of places that just need to be visited, then we drew a “thread” of the route and chose reference points on it - places for spending the night. Through the CouchSurfing website (a service that allows us to visit foreigners free of charge in exchange for our own hospitality), we found guys who were ready to accommodate us and conduct a city tour. Plus, the plan included overnight stays in hostels - in case you can't stay comfortably on "rubber".

The level of comfort on such a trip is far from five, four, or even three stars. You have to spend the night with a variety of people with different incomes: sometimes guests are given a separate room with a bed, and sometimes you are content with a sleeping bag in the common room.

“As for food, no more money is spent on it than at home. And if you are used to getting by with $ 5-10 a day, then you will not spend any more on the road, - says Vladimir. - The duration of the trip directly depends on its cost: the more time you have, the less you will spend on your adventure, and vice versa. My trip was planned for a thousand days, but in the end I was on the road for only 198 days.

During this time, I visited 15 countries and drove at a leisurely 31 thousand km. On the list I have Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, Sudan, Georgia. "

The travelers did not have any particular idea: they wanted to see the world, observe people. Even beautiful pictures turned out by themselves. True, it was not possible to finish the journey beautifully in this story: “There were no dangerous situations on the road, but there were critical ones. My partner lost his passport in Afghanistan and was in prison for two months - there were problems with his release. Another disadvantage is the periodic lack of overnight stay, but here the tent saved. Well, in the end, we did not complete the trip around the world, as we got sick in Sudan. There was a strong suspicion of malaria, so they urgently returned home. In the future, we plan to finish our route. ”

Option number 2: the whole family in a private car

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Budget:4.5 million rubles.
Transport: van Ford Transit
Travel time: 2.5 years

Sergey and Ekaterina embark on their first round the world trip in their lives in the summer of 2015 together with their nine-year-old son Alexei. Their trip around the world is also a kind of 2.5-year experiment: during the trip, Lesha will receive distance education according to the school curriculum.

“We love to travel by car and want to show our son how beautiful and diverse our planet is,” says Sergey. - We do not have a clear route for the entire trip: the road, of course, will be planned and worked out, but not for the whole world trip at once, but in parts. First we will go through Russia (here the route is almost ready), then Mongolia, Kazakhstan. Further, most likely, China. "

Another feature of this trip will be interactivity. The itinerary will change depending on the wishes of readers who follow the family's movements on social networks.

“According to our preliminary calculations, the total cost of a round-the-world trip is about 4.5 million rubles,” explains Ekaterina. - We have a two-room apartment in Moscow: we plan to rent it out and travel with this money.

And there is a certain amount that we collected as start-up capital for the trip. Insurance will be postponed from it: money for an emergency return home from anywhere in the world. "

In addition to passive income, the family has a regular income. Sergey is a programmer, he creates websites. The main advantage of this kind of work is that you can do it anywhere in the world, if it would be the Internet. The family is also counting on sponsorship: their website already has bank details for voluntary donations to the trip fund.

“We want to ride a spacious Ford Transit van,” the travelers say. - We calculated that it would be possible to put a third seat, make two folding beds, build in a stove, refrigerator and dry closet. Now we are even thinking how to make a shower. But on the way we will, of course, sometimes stop at hostels and inexpensive hotels. Right now, we are euphoric with the anticipation of adventure, but there is also some fear. Still, this is a long journey, and what difficulties lie ahead, we do not know. But we strongly believe in success. "

Option number 3: romantic sea cruise

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Budget: from $ 20 thousand (about 900 thousand rubles at the current exchange rate)
Transport: cruise ship (liner)
Travel time: minimum 90 days

Of course, such an adventure cannot be called affordable or budget. But theoretically, you can save up for such a trip once in a lifetime. In addition, there are so-called round-the-world travel segments, when you buy a ticket for only a certain section of the journey.

“A full-fledged round-the-world trip is a voyage in which the ship crossed all meridians and twice - the equator. But there are cruises that are not inferior in scale to the around the world. For example, when a ship leaves Europe, goes around Africa, goes to South America and back, this is called a grand voyage, but not a round-the-world trip, ”explains Elena Karmanova, PR Director of Via Maris. Cruise companies really break the round-the-world route into segments: such “partial” trips are used by the majority of tourists who have chosen a cruise ship for their rest. Such voyages last from two to four weeks.

“As for round-the-world travels, such tours are booked by a few. Even if you collect all the Russian companies that are engaged in cruises, you can count on one hand the number of such orders.

For example, our company does not even sell a trip around the world every year, ”explains Elena. According to her, there are not so many people in the West who want to travel around the Earth. As a rule, these are wealthy people of the 55+ category, well-off, in a high position and with a decent salary. “In Russia, the age of such travelers is 40 and over. These are, as a rule, top managers, less often - businessmen. There are, of course, those who somehow saved up for a cruise, but very rarely, ”the representative of the cruise company concludes.

Option number 4: an elite journey along the meridian

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Budget: up to $ 1.5 million (about 71 million rubles at the current exchange rate)
Transport: private business jet
Travel time: 27 days and 26 nights

For obvious reasons, this option is not suitable for everyone. However, you can still dream about it. In Russia, such tours are organized by a special company - "Club of exotic travels". “A person plans such trips once in a lifetime. It is very difficult to organize it: you have to charter a private jet - this is already a substantial amount, about $ 1 million, - says Igor Logunov, the general director of the Club. - Usually such a business plane has 8-9 seats, but such trips are still more often used by couples who want to be alone. Less often - companies.

These trips are ordered about once a year. Then in the reviews they write in one line: "I liked everything."

According to the expert, such trips are really memorable: those who ordered the tour are served at the highest level at every stage of the trip. For them, not only employees of the organizing company, but also local residents and even the authorities try their best. For example, in Chukotka, which is one of the last points of the route, the state Chukchi-Eskimo ensemble "Ergyron" performs before the tourists. Interestingly, despite the gigantic cost of such a voyage, food and drinks in restaurants visited by a traveler are paid separately.

Updated 12.27. Views 217 Comments 57

The financial issue is one of the most pressing when it comes to travel, especially long ones. Few can imagine how you can leave everything and leave for several years to travel around the world. That is why it was interesting for me to post this guest post about the guys who have been on the road for a year and a half, and their incomes are quite ordinary, they do not earn fabulous money there, but are available to the majority. So why does someone go, and someone only dreams? But let's get away from philosophy, let's see in practice how much money can go, and what we get for this money, moving from country to country.

What is the post about

If your heart calls you - do not be afraid and do not resist.

This article is intended for those who are interested in the practical part of travel. For those who need to assess their own desire and its correlation with the possibilities. We will tell you about life and money on the way by our own example and by the example of our ongoing (at the moment one and a half year old) trip around the world.

Of course, it's worth starting with the fact that budget travel Is a piece that is becoming more famous and more popular in Russia every year. Many travelers make routes, inconceivable in terms of duration in time and space, not only with a small budget (Valery Shanin and his "World Tour for $ 280" through 14 countries), but also practically without him (Vladimir Nesin and his travels barefoot: according to the traveler, the only one a fixed amount is a pension of 7,000 rubles a month). It is worth mentioning Anton Krotov, the creator of the Academy of Free Travel, author and co-author of many published useful guidebooks on how to travel with minimal cost.

All in all, the world is full of great romantics, practical travelers who share their experiences. And if the question "to go or not to go" is limited only by money, we recommend looking for information about the above and other free travelers on the Internet - their experience inspires action.

IN national park "Sequoia", USA

Money at the time of launch (what we had)

Now, about our approach. There was no thorough preparation for the trip around the world. It took us about two months from idea to implementation. All figures are given below for two.

• money for obtaining an American visa (the only one made before departure) 11880 rubles,

• money for the first tickets: Moscow-Irkutsk train 11,600 rubles, Irkutsk-Harbin airplane 222 EU,

• work in freelance mode, based on which we were able to plan a monthly budget of 30,000 rubles (for two)

• a small margin for different deposits, which we planned to spend (and spent) at the end of their term when going beyond the planned budget and in case of unforeseen expenses.

The good thing about budget planning and cost tracking is that you create a kind of zero point, a bar against which you can assess your own strengths and the possibilities of staying in a particular country. Of course, in different countries and opportunities these are different, but a limited amount per month helps to be more vigilant.

For example, here is the statistics that we managed to compile due to this vigilance:

Expenses that include almost everything - travel, accommodation, food. Calculation per month for two (visa fees are indicated for one), validity period: late 2013 - early 2015.

• China- 24-26 thousand rubles (including a tourist visa for 1 month - 1200 rubles);
• Laos and Vietnam - 20 thousand rubles (both in the first and in the second country for Russians, a visa is not required if the stay does not exceed two weeks);
• Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia - 15-20 thousand rubles (Cambodian visa US $ 25);
• Indonesia- 26-28 thousand rubles (US $ 25 - visa with a stay of up to 1 month, to stay longer, a tourist visa in Bali was renewed)
• Australia- 400 $ AU at the rate of 1 $ AU \u003d 33 rubles (Australian tourist visa for a period of stay up to 3 months 145 US $);
• USA- 30-35 thousand rubles, the exchange rate at that time was 35 rubles per dollar, including the cost of gasoline and a car, the visa was paid back in Moscow, and we were given a period of stay at the border - six months.
• Mexico (Guadalajara) - 30 thousand rubles ( visa-free regime with a stay of up to six months - upon entry or exit, you must pay a customs fee of US $ 28).
• Mexico (Cancun) - 30 thousand rubles at the beginning, and it was here that we saw the growth of the dollar exchange rate, in connection with which the monthly expenses in terms of rubles increased greatly to 40 thousand.

And now let's talk about the most burning question: our ways of earning... As practice shows, not many people believe in the possibility of making money on the way. Often, this disbelief becomes the cause of a "requiem for a dream." We are surprised when we pass by young, drunken homeless people: “Hands in place, head in place! Why doesn't he find a job to live a normal life? " The most important thing is to remember that if there are no physical limitations, then you are unlikely to disappear, wherever you are. And even with limited health, the brave in spirit find their calling or seek it. The most difficult obstacles are in the mind, which means that it is only in our power to “remove” them.

We have long been addicted to the "freelance" regime. He has two significant advantages - mobility and the ability to search for a case in spirit; and one drawback - the amount of money earned directly depends on the time spent on work. We list below everything we use - something bigger is going to be made of grains.

Our ways to make money

Copywriting

From the very beginning of our journey, we had several partners, for whom we wrote custom articles. The payment ranged from 600 rubles to 25 $ US for an article with photographs, or 10 $ for a copyright of articles on our site.

Programming, administration, SEO

The source of work is regular clients or clients who come on recommendations. A week of work brings on average $ 200 US, a month can be up to $ 1000 US. It is not necessary once at a time, the amount of money depends on the "success" of the project, as well as on the time invested.

Link exchanges. Advertising on sites

Passive income that takes almost no time - 80-100 US $ per month.

Photographing

Private photo sessions. It brings good profit, but due to our elusiveness - not often. Photo sessions with different conditions from US $ 100 per hour (here you need to take into account that the photographing itself is followed by hours and days of post-processing).

Illustration, design

Clients come based on recommendations. The cost depends on the project. A significant disadvantage is that a suitable space is required for work: a table, the ability to "expand" with a graphic tablet - it is difficult to implement with constant moving, but possible at moments of rest from the road.

Guide

One of the most interesting types of earnings is done locally. This opportunity opened up for us only in Mexico, but we can try to continue. The working day of the guide (depending on the tasks) from 50-150 US $.

Paid Videos

Recently, our favorite partner suggested making a video specifically for a specific project. These are three-four-minute motivational videos collected from our material.

Sound streams

An example of a not very successful attempt :) For a year and a half, the sale of sounds on the stock brought 5 $ US, and even bringing this money into reality turned out to be a problem.

Sale of printed photos on foam board

Unsuccessful attempt. We have made a photo shop on our website. Everything in mind: with a catalog, with beautiful pictures, with a basket. There were several orders, unfortunately, delivery fails. We could not find a good performer - across the cities of Russia, photographs printed on foam board were delivered broken and broken. I had to abandon the idea.

Soundaround.me project

Our project is non-commercial, but around it there are some suggestions for our readers, which may be pleasant to them, and at the same time support our idea. In practice, this is more moral help, but it is no less important. For example, custom-made postcards brought in a total of 2,000 rubles in a year and a half (from each postcard sent, about 10-50 rubles remain on the project's account, depending on the country of departure).

Voluntary donations - support coming from our friends and relatives, for a year and a half, about 15 thousand rubles.

Where does the money go when traveling?

Of course, in our case, the averaged mode is most convenient. Constant movement does not contribute to excess income, therefore we try to avoid excesses in spending. Of course, sometimes we do not deny ourselves certain joys, but now we are not talking about them. The next step is to highlight the main cost items on our way.

Based on the set monthly budget, we, guided by the mood, balanced in terms of spending. For example, if the hitchhiker released the funds provided for movement, we could spend them on food; if we slept in a tent, we could travel part of the way by public transport, and so on.

Food

The most constant main waste. More than half of our budget, since proper and timely nutrition is the key to good mood and health.

There are countries that are completely cheap and abundant in this regard. There are terribly expensive ones. The smallest amount recorded per person (one meal) is in Laos, the city of Luang Prabang - in terms of bales at the rate of 2013 - 20 rubles. The most expensive food we found was in Australia. For example, a gallon (frozen, because it is overdue by an average of a week) milk in the bush (Australian desert) - from $ 5 AU. I don't even want to talk about the cost of cafes and eateries.

Transport

Our 1993 Honda Civic, USA

Internationally, we try to use all types of transport, choosing the most optimal for the price. There are only six flights on our way so far, the cheapest of them is 40 US $ for two from Malaysia to Indonesia, and the most expensive from Melbourne (Australia) to Honolulu (USA, Hawaii) is 800 US $ (also for two).

In countries where intercity transport (over long distances) the road was not used. These are: Australia, America and still Mexico. In Asia - from China to Indonesia - trains, buses, and even airplanes were used. Interestingly, a bus on Java from Jakarta to Bali turned out to be the same in price as the flight, while a direct travel on the ground takes several days (if without stops) - a test not for the weak!

Tent

Without a tent, we would not have ended up in the wild hot springs in the mountains of the USA

When you know that your home is with you, you become less dependent on circumstances. It's not scary to stay in the mountains or jungle for the night. And even if you don't feel like sleeping in a tent, its mere presence adds confidence when bidding for a room.

Second hand, recycle and local production

Where there are good second-hand shops, use them. In other places, it is a pleasure to try on what the locals wear in Latin America, and in Asia, too.

Workarounds to attractions

Archaeological site of Uxmal, Mexico

No, we are happy to support the country's economy or the fortune of a private owner ... when we can afford it and does not present us with a choice like "eat or look at ...". In other cases, we try to take everything that is available to the maximum, it does not matter what blocks the path: a fence with security, jungle or mountains - sometimes you have to physically strain yourself - but it's worth it. This is our way - we do not call on anyone to break the law :)

Healthy lifestyle

We are not ardent opponents of anything, no. The fact remains - alcohol and cigarettes are almost always expensive, but they are completely unnecessary (sometimes they generally increase any risks). It is even more economical to be vegetarians, but we have mastered this Level only partially and from time to time :) This can also include the rejection of any "snacks" such as chips - this is absolutely beneficial in all respects.

Summarizing the above

Our life on a long-term journey in the material plane is very similar to the usual life in one place. All the same thoughts: where and how to make money in order to travel and live as you like, according to your heart.

We are now preparing for the next part of our journey: South America on a motorcycle. During the six months of stopping in Mexico, I managed to learn a lot of new things, finish old projects, come up with and implement new ones. I managed to earn a little, while the missing amount to buy a motorcycle, but at least something. It is possible that after some time there will be a person among the readers who knows the companies who need advertising. Perhaps this way we will find ourselves partner friends who are ready to provide some of the equipment (helmets, protection, etc.) on the South American route in exchange for advertising a product or brand.

We love to dream :) And no less than that, we love to realize our dreams. This is the only way to live! We believe that long-term travel is one of the keys to learning about life, interesting and rich.

Let your travels last exactly as long as you want and only run into surmountable obstacles!

National park "Sequoia", USA

We will be glad if we inspire by our example!

Read, watch, listen to us on the following resources:

• http://soundaround.me Our travel site for thoughtful stories

I was born and raised in Tyumen. But I always wondered: this is how it is with us, but how is it there, in another city, another country, on another continent?

As a teenager, I decided that I would go around the world. My parents did not support my desire, but they did not forbid me either. At the age of 20 I first found myself abroad, and at 21 I went around the world.

Around the world, in my understanding, is when the start and finish are at one point, with the intersection of all meridians.

At first I was motivated simply by natural curiosity. Then travel became a part of life. The more I move around the world, the more I want to understand why I can, but my neighbor cannot? How to teach a neighbor to drop obstacles and know the happiness of travel?

In my free time, I give master classes for those who want to know our planet. I like to inspire people. But I would travel even if my experience was not interesting to anyone and if there was no Internet to share my impressions.

How much does it cost to travel around the world?

I spent 180,000 rubles on the first trip around the world. This amount includes:

• air travel - 72,000 rubles;
• housing - 17,500 rubles;
• visas - 6,700 rubles;
• food - about 50,000 rubles;
• communications, entertainment and other minor expenses - the rest.

Another important nuance. I never take cash on a trip. Only foreign currency bank cards. Because if I lose cash, I will be left without a livelihood. If I lose my card, I will transfer funds to the second one and calmly continue my journey.

How to prepare for your first solo trip?

I advise you not to use ready-made checklists from the Internet, but to compose your own. It is necessary to calculate the travel budget and prepare a backup option for each force majeure.

For example, I usually have an overnight alternative in case the hotel I planned to stay at is overcrowded. That being said, you need to be prepared to sleep at the airport or on the beach if things go wrong. By the way, there is even a rating of the most sleep-friendly airports and instructions on how to do it correctly.

The modern traveler is not obliged to be able to navigate by the compass (if I take away my iPhone, I will be stupid for a long time in an unfamiliar place), but must be unpretentious and open to the world. The second is the most important.

Take a minimum of things with you, and then cut this minimum by half.

• Behavior rules. In decent establishments there is always a regulation: you cannot bring guests, make noise after eleven, leave things in the washing machine, and so on. The more rules the hostel has, the cleaner and more comfortable it will be.
• Stay limit. You can't stay in good hostels for more than a week or even a couple of days. If there are no restrictions, it is highly likely that guest workers or prostitutes have settled there.

I am looking for accommodation through Hotellook or "Islet". At the same time, I always tick the "free breakfast" and "free Wi-Fi" boxes. You save a lot when these services are included in your stay.

Does couch surfing work?

And how! I love Couchsurfing.com. I even made a video on how to use this service.

The most hospitable people from the countries I have visited, by the way, are here, in Russia.

How to communicate with the local population?

At the time of the start of the first circumnavigation, I knew English at the cat, home, sorry level. But while traveling, I tightened my tongue well. If you do not understand what is happening around, then you risk your life and the brain is activated - you learn new words and phrases instantly.

• “Hello!”, “Thank you”, “Sorry” - simple politeness that is very much appreciated by the locals.
• "Stop, that's enough!" - useful in the market or, for example, in a massage parlor.
• "How much is?" - if you ask in the local language, you can pass for a foreigner who is well versed in the local realities and who should not overcharge.
• "Where?" - helps out in many situations, you can find out where some attraction or toilet is.
• “I need help” - if you give an SOS signal in a language that people understand, they will come to your rescue faster. Well, you can start any conversation with this phrase in an unfamiliar country.

How to eat while traveling?

I never eat in tourist places. It is worth moving 200 meters from the Louvre, as in the cafe there are completely different prices. When traveling abroad, I always use Groupon - it helps to save on food.

If you have just arrived and are terribly hungry, do not rush to immediately get acquainted with the local cuisine. As they say, without knowing the ford, do not poke your nose into the water. Go to McDonald's or another well-known franchised establishment. Then the locals will tell you where the most delicious dishes are served, which restaurant they have been visiting with the whole family for seven years now.

What else can you save on?

1. Moving around the city. I try to book accommodation near the center and use public transport. I took a taxi only once during my trip around the world. I plan to try running excursions and bike rental in the future.
2. Communication. I always issue a SIM card with unlimited internet if I plan to stay in the country for more than four or five days. And I don't miss the opportunity to use the free Wi-Fi.
3. Tours. I never use the services of a guide: I'm interested in feeling the spirit of the place, and not listening to someone's chatter. If you need to know the history of a particular attraction, I open Wikipedia.
4. Souvenirs. Do you need it at all? But if necessary, try to pay with local currency (some cash can be withdrawn from an ATM).

Will there be a second trip around the world?

Yes, in January 2017. In time, it is designed for five months. Approximate route: Russia - UAE - Nepal - Maldives - Thailand - Malaysia - Singapore - Indonesia - Australia - USA - Colombia - Iceland - Spain - Russia.

At the current dollar rate, the budget is 200,000 rubles. But this time it will be more complicated. I plan to make money while traveling and participate in two Ironman starts. Lifehacker inspired me to take part in it. :)

By the way, if the readers still have any questions about round-the-world (and not only) travel, I'm ready to talk in the comments.

The question that I have been analyzing for a long time, and to which I finally received an answer by the method of calculations and estimates, is how much money is needed for an independent, modest, so-called. backpacker, traveling the world? I drove a lot myself, all the time I counted, wrote down and analyzed, I learned a lot on the forums and from guidebooks.

Calculations have shown that people often estimate the level of travel expenses in a particular country incorrectly, and with a meticulous calculation, the average amount of currency spent per day, then per week, and eventually per month turns out to be different than they themselves expect.

The reasons for this phenomenon:

a) objective - in some 5-10 years the situation in a once cheap country can change, it ceases to be such, but in the minds of many it is still such;

b) subjective - if there is an opinion about a country that it is cheap, then trying to argue this for himself, a person remembers only the cheapest price for a lunch / drink / candy ever seen, and he tries to forget about what was more expensive ... And vice versa - if a person is convinced that somewhere is insanely expensive, then he will try to keep in his memory only examples of this high cost.

So, after the calculations, it turned out that the price of travel in Ukraine and in some Vietnam or Syria is practically the same, despite the fact that for some reason Ukraine is considered more expensive by many. This is not true. Here's another. Eastern Europe is sometimes cited as a zone with average, moderate prices, but in reality they are very high there.

For the adequacy of the calculations, an equal should be compared with an equal. For example, someone gives an example of cheap food in a country, but after clarifying the essence of the dish, it turns out that it is an ordinary vegetarian cereal with spices and gravy. So after all, two or three servings of a side dish as a conditional dish will be inexpensive everywhere. Eating meat or fish should be compared to similar food in another country.

Another example. In very hot countries, a traveler from our latitudes needs an air conditioner for a minimum comfortable overnight stay. If its presence is considered as a necessity (which is certainly the case in some countries), then it is worth comparing it with a hotel with hot batteries in our country. Norm? As a rule, yes. A very simple hotel with only a ceiling fan, like our very bad hotel, where the batteries are barely full and you have to wrap yourself in three blankets. It is the same with hot water - its presence in the hotels of the countries of Black Africa will be painful to beat and hit on the pocket. So which Africa is cheap? Very expensive, of course. Or they write for some reason that trains are cheap in India. Indeed? Let's compare the cost of not a Stolypin carriage (which is completely free in the CIS), but a compartment with us, and the cost of a train similar in comfort there? Is it that cheap? That is it. Well, if you are really really a homeless person, then in Paris you can spend the night on the sidewalk and eat up leftovers from an urn. For zero. And ride freight trains in coal cars. Then there will be nothing to compare - everywhere one continuous communism.

One more point about human delusions. Prices in different countries are very different, and accordingly, to maintain the same standard of living in them, completely different amounts of money are needed. The thesis would seem indisputable. However, no, there are people who think differently. Those who have never traveled anywhere, only wave their hand, talking about foreign countries, confident that everything is equally expensive, so expensive that there is no way to afford such expenses. Despite the fact that in their place of residence, prices for many things can be higher. Or the same thing, but vice versa: everything is equally cheap everywhere, in any country you will spend exactly the same as at home. These opinions are equally distant from reality.

So to the point. Calculations showed that the cheapest countries in the world for independent travel are: Ukraine, the countries of the Middle East (i.e. Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt; excluding Turkey), Central Asia (Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan), Southeast Asia (I have not been here myself yet, I analyzed the prices according to guidebooks for the region, stories of those who have recently been to Vietnam, Laos and the "Vinsky forum"). This is the first price group researched. The second is Eastern Europe (Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland, Croatia, Hungary, Romania, Serbia, etc .; without Bulgaria). The third group - Western Europe, where prices are not the same - closer to the south they fall, to the north - they grow. For Russia, no separate calculations were made, however, one can estimate by eye and so - Russia is located between groups 1 and 2. Turkey and Bulgaria are also there. Similarly, all other countries in the world can be attributed to one of the groups or to an intermediate position between them.

Prices for a modest (backpacker) trip around the world:
1. The cheapest countries for travel in the world: the Middle East, Central, Southeast Asia and Ukraine - 800-1000 US dollars per month per person. That is, approx. $ 30 a day, of which 15-20 goes to the hotel, 10-15 for meals, museums, souvenirs.
2. Eastern Europe - 2000-2500 dollars per month per person.
3. Western Europe - 3500-4500 dollars per month per person. 115-150 dollars per day, of which 30-50% is spent for the night, the rest for transport - it is very expensive, food, etc.

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* When traveling with an inseparable two, you can save up to 30-40% of the above amount on hotels (for two they are often cheaper).
** The cost does not include tickets from home to the host country / countries and back, there are no visa costs.
*** The calculation does not take into account the possibility of spending the night for free by registration, in tents and hitchhiking. If you do this, then the costs are greatly reduced, at times.

It is from these figures that it immediately becomes clear why there are so many independent travelers in Europe, and so few in our country. Spend $ 2,000-4,000 on a modest trip where you keep thinking about saving? Our people would better invest this money in a summer cottage or a car. And the majority simply do not have such amounts. So the class of backpackers has not yet formed as such and will not be formed soon. To do this, the country needs to get very rich.

A modest (backpacker) journey involves:
a) lodging for the night in some cases in multi-bed primitive rooms, often with other people (sharing), often in rooms without a toilet and shower. The rest of the time - in separate rooms in hotels. About once every 8 days, this budget includes an overnight stay in a typical 3-star hotel with hot water in the room, TV and breakfast. So to speak - once in 8 days to remember good comfort.

b) movement on the cheapest local transport - local buses without air conditioning, low and middle class trains (for the CIS up to a reserved seat), sometimes, four times a month, use of buses or trains of a higher class, if necessary. The budget does not include the use of aircraft - this must be added in excess of the indicated amount, except for possible cheap flights on promotions / low-cost airlines.

c) the use of public transport is included in the budget sufficiently for a full-fledged trip, however, with the constant purchase of passes for several days or tourist cards, the budget will be quickly exceeded.

d) 3 meals a day (sometimes 4 times a day) along the way. Due to the use of the cheapest hotels / hostels, breakfast included in the price of accommodation should be expected only sometimes and not very plentiful.

Meals for money with such a budget are carried out in the cheapest establishments: for Ukraine it is - from a factory canteen to a self-service cafe like "Puzata Khata", for Western Europe - Turkish or Chinese primitive cafes and McDonald's, for Eastern Europe - left over from the times socialism canteens or the same Asian eateries. It is possible to use discounts for lunch at mid-level cafes / restaurants on weekdays (so-called "business lunch").

In order not to go out of the budget, breakfast or dinner in a cafe should often be replaced with a dry snack from products purchased in a store / supermarket. In stores with such a budget, you need to choose cheaper products, for Europe - preferably with promotions. When shopping for goodies on the streets (buns, ice cream, water), you need to carefully check that the price is not higher than the national average, otherwise the budget will be exceeded. You should also refrain from shopping for food in the very center of major European cities (with some, perhaps, exceptions). It’s a backpacker's tradition - in the evenings to drink a mug - another beer or other cheap drink in a cafe. This is included in the calculations.

e) the budget includes visits to museums, but a moderate number of them - one museum for every 2-3 days of travel. Fans of museums, paid monasteries and parks should prepare for an increase in the budget.

Is the quoted amount of $ 1,000 for cheap Asia and $ 4,000 for Western Europe strictly fixed, can a different amount of money be spent? My answer is - of course, you can spend another amount. Let's consider these cases.

Case 1, civil journey. If you want to travel between cities in new buses of good companies, and not in unpretentious regional ones, choose compartments and CBs on trains across the CIS, and in Europe - Intercity or sleeping cars, spend the night not in hostels all the time, but in respectable hotels " three stars ”and sometimes higher, in the evenings from the bar to return home by taxi, so as not to wait for a long transport at the bus stop, to visit, in addition to museums, football matches / concerts, in a word, to relax as most of our compatriots dream in their dreams, then on such You will need a trip to the cheapest Asia from 1500-2000 dollars, in Eastern Europe - 3000-4000 dollars, and in Western Europe - at least 6000-9000 dollars.

Of course, for lovers of comfort, it is much cheaper to use the services of travel agencies and buy a tour - because good conditions on an independent (!) Travel cost a lot, oh, how much.

Case 2, uncivil travel. If your finances are not enough for a backpacker trip, that is, at the level with which most people with backpacks travel around the world, then there is only one way out - to start rebuilding the entire structure of the trip.

The most expensive travel destination is hostels / hotels, so if you start spending the night with locals, at train stations in waiting rooms, in tents in parks or along roads, then the budget can be significantly reduced, several times.

The second resource for saving is transport. If you minimize the use of public transport and try to walk all the time, if you ride a bike or hitchhike between cities, you can also reduce costs significantly.

The third way, the saddest, is to save on food. If in all canteens and cafes you choose the cheapest dish from the menu, refuse meat, but add three portions of garnish each (gravy is free :), then the amount of expenses per month will decrease. An even more radical way is to buy the cereal yourself, cook it wherever you have to, and walk all day with a saucepan (plastic box) and slowly, as hunger arises, eat.

With a combined homeless-backpacker trip (that is, finding part of the night for free, but from time to time to stay in hotels, as well as transport and food), it will be possible to save up to 50% of the budget declared at the beginning of the article without a strong loss of comfort and pace of travel. If the costs are even lower (and you can reduce costs up to 3-5 dollars a day), you have to slow down, missing out on some countries / cities, spend more time looking for cheap food and / or preparing it.

An alternative way to save money is to give up a busy trip and settle in one place for a month. Then the amount for rental housing will drop sharply anywhere in the world - renting one hotel room for a month is much cheaper than paying per day, and renting an apartment will be even cheaper. Costs for intercity transport are falling sharply - you will have to pay only for radial exits from the main location, and not for constant moving... Costs for food are also reduced - with a long stay, you can get comfortable in the country / city, and know where, what and how much. Cellular communications, the Internet, etc., also become much cheaper with permanent deployment.

Based on the layout at the prices proposed above, everyone can determine for themselves the direction in which they could go, the level of comfort and the timing of the trip. Happy travel! :)

It all depends on how many and which countries you want to visit. The budget will consist of the following components: visas, flights / transfers, hotels, money with you.

Suppose a trip around the world will affect all continents except Antarctica. Then we will take the following route as a basis: Russia - Hong Kong - Australia - USA - Brazil - South Africa - Great Britain - Russia.

I must say right away that these are only rough estimates and not the best option. But it will give an idea of \u200b\u200bthe average cost of such a tour. The countries selected are quite expensive. You can always save on the country / logistics, or, conversely, stretch both the time of stay and the cost.

Moscow - Hong Kong: 20,000 rubles per ticket.

Hong Kong - Sydney: 35,000 rubles per ticket (16,000 with a transfer).

Sydney - New York: 65,000 rubles (31,000 with a stopover)

New York - Rio de Janeiro: 90,000 rubles (57,000 with a stopover)

Rio de Janeiro - Cape Town: 70,000, with stopover only.

Cape Town - London: 57.000 (25.000 with stopover)

London - Moscow: 12,000 (7,000 with a stopover).

This means that we will spend from 226,000 to 349,000 on flights. I'll tell you right away that it makes sense to look for shares or change cities. It is possible that a flight from New York to Sao Paulo will be cheaper than to Rio. But in this situation, we are calculating.

Australia - 130 Australian dollars (6200 rubles)

USA - 160 USD (11.000 rubles)

South Africa - 1800 rubles

United Kingdom - 136 dollars (9200 rubles)

Total: 28.200 rubles.

Hotels

We are looking at not the most expensive options, 2 nights in each country.

Hong Kong - 6.000 rubles

Sydney - 15,000 rubles

New York - 12,000 rubles

Rio - 7.000 rubles

Cape Town - 5.000 rubles

London - 12,000 rubles

Total: 57,000 rubles.

Money with you

This means that our trip will cost us no less than 400,000 rubles. The price can be reduced to about 300 if you live only in hostels, fly very crookedly and eat in supermarkets, or choose cheaper countries (Vietnam, Peru, Mexico, any other African country, Portugal, etc.). More expensive - easily, up to infinity.

Don't forget about things like health insurance and cell phones. In principle, if you have wi-fi, you can refuse from your cellular phone, while insurance will not affect the total cost of the trip so much.

About 170,000 rubles for flights.

A trip around the world is somewhat more difficult - and more expensive - than that. But there are options.

With such a long and difficult journey, many more factors have to be taken into account, which is very exhausting, and the cheapness of the road may no longer be a priority. For example, you need to be much more careful about transport schedules, because it is one thing to miss a plane from Italy to Slovakia and remain forced to fly home from Italy (you can still keep within 10 thousand rubles and a maximum of a couple of days), it is quite another thing to get into the same the situation in, say, Hong Kong. Therefore, let everyone set priorities for himself.

And yet, here are some universal tips and techniques:

Bonus programs of airlines, online travel agencies (pssst) or banks. This is, of course, the most common place - it is a very tempting opportunity to buy a ticket from purchases that you have already made.

RTW tickets - round-the-world tickets. These tickets are offered not by individual airlines, but, as a rule, by air alliances - there are options, say, Star Alliance or OneWorld. It works as follows: depending on the fare, your ticket is allocated either a certain number of miles, or a certain number of flights, which you can distribute at your discretion, but always in advance. The Star Alliance, for example, has a ticket containing 39,000 miles, enough to travel to all continents. The problem with the approach is that such a ticket will come with a fairly large volume of conditions, which will have to be strictly observed. For example, being late for any flight will invalidate all subsequent flights on your itinerary receipt. These tickets cost from $ 2,500 and generally help save up to a third of total ticket costs.

If a traveler has a task not only to go around the planet, but also to have time to see more, then there is such an idea: to look for local low-cost airlines and their hubs in each major region (places from where / where most of their flights fly). This can be done on the websites of the respective companies or such an interesting service. In Europe, such hubs include London, in the Middle East - Dubai, in North America - New York, and so on. Low-cost airlines are generally a worldwide practice and a real salvation for the frugal traveler. For comparison: in Russia - one such carrier, in China - six, in the USA - seven. Thus, being, for example, in Hong Kong, you can fly around all the countries of the region, at least in one city (Tokyo, Seoul, Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta, Shanghai), paying up to 5000 rubles for the flight.

Residence. Everything is standard here - Booking, AirBNB, Couchsurfing and so on. And another idea - some (and sometimes quite tangible) segments of the route can be done by water on liners, which itself solves the problem of accommodation. From Moscow you can easily go down the rivers to Vienna and Budapest, and beyond; from Guangzhou to Singapore, and so on.

More about accommodation. There is such a thing - a stopover. This is when you fly somewhere with a transfer, and the transfer itself can take quite a long time, sometimes up to 96 hours. During this time, you can have time to walk around the city, if the visa allows and see everything in general. Stopovers are typical for large sites like Istanbul or Dubai. Where to find out about them? In the rules of the fare for the ticket. This is generally a general rule - ALWAYS read the tariff rules. The beauty of the concept is that the stopover is often free (at the expense of the airline) with a stopover, for example, at an airport hotel.

Now let's try to figure out the route. We will move out from Moscow, and we will return there:

All continents:

Moscow - Vilnius, by train Yantar, September 27.

Lisbon - Casablanca - Rio de Janeiro, Royal Air Maroc, October 4, from 19 733 rubles.

It turned out, of course, a very hasty route, with minimal stops at each point, but it gives us an idea that traveling in this way, we can go around the planet for the amount from 170,000 rubles, without any discounts and promotions.

Now we need to estimate how much the accommodation will cost. The task is rather vague, since only each traveler moves at his own pace. Someone will move along this route for a year or more, someone like us - in a little over a month.

However, here are the following numbers to understand.

In warm and cozy Europe, you can stay at different campgrounds and hostels and for 10 euros, like in Rome, for example, or in