Ways to Travel on the Cheap

American author Mark Twain may have penned the all-time best quote about the benefits of travel:

“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime.”

Traveling to far-off lands, including foreign destinations that might otherwise be out of your comfort zone, has the tremendous effect of opening up your perspective and understanding of the world. No other experience has quite the same power. You can read about strange cultures and exotic locations -- or view them on TV -- but going to these places and experiencing them directly with your physical presence drives the experience to the deepest levels of one’s consciousness.

Unfortunately, the economy can often be a significant detriment to the hope of exploration.

Oliver Wenedell Holmes once said, “A mind that is stretched by a new experience can never go back to its old dimensions.” a statement which is often prescribed to the experience of travel. It’s one of the reasons why just about everyone dreams of taking a trip somewhere. Too often, it remains just that -– a dream.

The No. 1 reason that people give for not traveling is lack of money. Without the necessary resources, travel can feel like a luxury too far away for many to grasp. Young people especially are stuck with the paradox of having a level of freedom to explore they won’t always have while being in introductory jobs that often don’t pay the wages necessary to see the world.

Even so, that hasn’t stopped millions of people over the years from finding a way to get where they want to go on a bare-bones budget. If you get creative, there are plenty of ways to get your wandering jones fixed and without making yourself strapped for cash.

You can travel on the cheap, for free – or even get paid to travel if you consider one of the following strategies:

1. Get a Foreign Job

Experienced travelers know about certain types of low-skill or unskilled job openings that are always in demand in just about any country. Examples are bartender, au pair, hotel worker, cruise line service worker, food worker, and many more. None of these are glamorous, high-paying jobs, but if you want to find a way to explore New Zealand or Brazil, finding work along these lines is one way to do it.

2. Teach English

Every American comes with a built-in skill -– the ability to speak proper American English. There is an unlimited need in thousands of locations around the globe for English language instruction. English is the “global standard” for the world. Anyone who wants to get ahead in a foreign country knows that learning English is a must. Thus, look for agencies that offer English-language tutoring in foreign nations, and that can be your ticket to travel.

3. WWOOFING

If you want to get paid to travel, consider WWOOFING. What’s that? It stands for World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms. This platform offers a chance to work on an organic farm in exchange for free room and board. WWOOFING is available in 130 countries, and there are more than 12,000 host sites. This can afford free travel to France, Australia, Hawaii, Costa Rica, and dozens more exciting destinations.

4. Sharing Economy

Learn to tap into the sharing economy. This consists of local people that act as small tourism companies by sharing information on where to find great deals on everything from cheap rooms and places to eat that offer the lowest prices. A Google search on sharing economy resources for travel will hook you up big time to uncounted resources you can leverage to travel on the cheap.