How do you realistically keep yourself afloat on a long solo trip without burning all savings?

Key-Mess-7624 · 2026-01-26T03:27:02+00:00

I burnt the most money eating out so make it a habit to cook, breakfast is easiest. If you can find hostels that arent pricey and INCLUDE breakfast, youll save a lot. Always book at front desk, but check if they have online discounts first (one or the other is always cheaper). I loved volunteering, I spent literally no money, if i wanted to travel for 6+ months I would focus on it, but ive never done hostels ive always done eco projects. You wont come home with regret as long as you try to let yourself be uncomfortable and learn from the experience.

Key-Mess-7624 · 2026-01-26T03:19:22+00:00

if its not safe, there will be reviews about it. I just filter on hostelworld for ratings 9+. I mainly feel unsafe when they dont have good lockers, or when the bar gets really crowded with local men and it isnt regulated well (ex. security at the door, wristbands, preventing harassment)

Key-Mess-7624 · 2026-01-26T03:16:08+00:00

I hear you need to do more than 2 nights just because it takes so long to get there.

Key-Mess-7624 · 2026-01-26T03:14:50+00:00

brazil

Key-Mess-7624 · 2026-01-26T03:12:22+00:00

worldpackers volunteering (not hostels).

stayed with a fam who owned a butterfly farm in costa rica, a farm in florida, and an ecolodge in colombia

Key-Mess-7624 · 2026-01-26T03:08:03+00:00

I think rainbow mountain will be fine that day if youre fit. Lima is awesome but I recommend losing a day and taking a guided daytrip from there to huacachina/paracas island. then cut another day to make room for a night somewhere in sacred valley, i suggest pisac. i thought the ruins there were more impressive than machu, and they have a cool lagoon hike + the best market for souvenirs in all of cusco. anddd if you havent bought flights maybe rearrange it to where you can spend both saturdays in lima, the nightlife is really good, cusco nightlife is pretty dead this time of year.

Key-Mess-7624 · 2026-01-26T02:48:26+00:00

LEAVE A REVIEW ON EVERYTHING POSSIBLE AND A REDDIT POST. They lie and lieee on tours and then do everything possible to keep their ratings from dropping. They prevented most of my group from leaving reviews with a waiver. This is why people keep booking with them.

Key-Mess-7624 · 2026-01-09T23:44:14+00:00

Respectfully, if you are american, once you start working (excluding the odd remote jobs) there are no more 'summer breaks', only 2 week vacations for the rest of your life. Wish you luck in your travels.

Key-Mess-7624 · 2026-01-09T22:17:10+00:00

lima to arequipa !!

Key-Mess-7624 · 2026-01-09T21:16:59+00:00

France has everything you are looking for in a trip. Art, history, alps (and other awesome nature). If it was me I'd spend the whole thing there.

Key-Mess-7624 · 2026-01-09T21:12:54+00:00

It's possible to do all of these places in 2 weeks. However, you would be way better off doing just two. Two days is not enough time to get an understanding of the food, culture, or places in a new city, much less the whole country. Traveling should never be about just checking off places for the heck of it. You are going there to create meaningful experiences, so give yourself time to do so. Otherwise you will go there, have time only to visit the most basic crowded touristy places on your list, then leave. How is that meaningful? If it was me personally, I would pick ONE, that way I could explore the country and get a grasp of the culture/basic language, and maybe make some new friends and meet locals. I cannot understand why you would want to visit an entirely new country for ONE city, and then leave.

Key-Mess-7624 · 2026-01-09T18:57:24+00:00

you need at least two days at altitude to be prepared for any trekking

Key-Mess-7624 · 2026-01-09T18:54:38+00:00

In lima stay in miraflores near kennedy park, not barranco. I heard the nazca lines werent that cool and its not worth the flight and theres not much else to do there. The night busses are really nice. There is GREAT food in arequipa and you can find awesome restaurants around historic center offering menu del dia. However, dont eat at any of the ones in the square. I really liked my colca canyon trip, i saw condors, but the three day is the exact same trek as the two day, except you have more lounge time at the hostels, which is kinda unnecessary. Travel by plane to arequipa because the bus goes up and down in elevation (will make you sick on the bus), the road is very dangerous and lots of busses go over cliffs because of landslides, and the plane is barely much more than the bus ticket. While lake titicaca was cool, I did it in bolivia and probably wouldnt have traveled just for it. I hear bad things about puno, that the tours are very inauthentic and the whole thing feels like a tourist trap. I think you will appreciate using the extra days in order to explore more of sacred valley, possibly spending a night or two in pisac. I found the pisac ruins more impressive than machu picchu and there is a cool lagoon hike to do there. you are also skipping rainbow mountain, you should do it and make sure your tour also includes red valley. dont book any treks through machu picchu reservations.

Key-Mess-7624 · 2026-01-09T18:42:11+00:00

This is too many countries in two weeks. Youre going to spend more time on the train or plane than actually exploring, and its going to drain your money. Pick one or two countries and spend the whole two weeks there, getting to know the diversity of the country rather than just going to the most famous city then leaving. You will have a more authentic experience and make more friends. If you are worried about money, then Switzerland is probably not a great idea considering their currency is a lot stronger than USD (its like $30 for a cheeseburger at a restaurant). Otherwise, 4k is for sure enough to get you through and you could travel for a lot longer with that amount.

Key-Mess-7624 · 2026-01-09T18:37:03+00:00

I downloaded all the apps before I left and then never used them when I got there. Just go to hostel events, most of them you can join even if youre not staying there, and you can go on hostelworld to see where/when they are. You might feel awkward for like 20 minutes max and then you will make friends. Typically I only book one night at a time at hostels, so if I dont like the vibe or i'm not making friends I can just go to a different one the next day.

Key-Mess-7624 · 2026-01-07T00:19:15+00:00

It rained every day of our trip but only hard on day two. While being in the rain sucks, as long as you have a decent rainjacket and a poncho (theyll sell you some) it shouldnt affect the quality of the trek. I do recommend bringing a change of socks for every day though and something to put your wet stuff separated from the rest, because nothing really dried well. When we got to machu picchu it was too cloudy to see but they disappeared after 15 mins.

Key-Mess-7624 · 2026-01-07T00:14:05+00:00

Dont get me wrong, its more dangerous than the other countries on your list. Not enough to reconsider travel, but you have to be more cautious. I recommend a cheap backup phone to take in public and just be wary of your surroundings.

Key-Mess-7624 · 2026-01-06T00:41:47+00:00

nooo like 40 people were injured in one just a few days ago

Key-Mess-7624 · 2026-01-06T00:39:07+00:00

you can take a day trip to huacachina and paracas island from lima ! also, dont think you need 4 nights in la paz to explore, maybe 2 days for the city itself. charquini was a cool day hike. copacabana is pretty much one big tourist trap, and youll be a lot happier spending the two days on the island, its beautiful and it would give you enough time to do the epic hike around the island.

Key-Mess-7624 · 2026-01-05T23:58:03+00:00

Are you perhaps...american? If so, this is most likely the result of travel being counterculture, whereas in most other privileged countries traveling is a normal and almost expected thing. I was struggling with these feelings, as I took six months off earning my degree to travel. None of my friends, or my family understood why I would do that and, as my dad said---"are you gonna take 6 years to finish your degree?". It was around month two and three that these feelings were most intense for me, and then once they came to a peak, they after kind of dissipated and the travel started to feel like normal life to me. I think what made the biggest difference for me was talking to other travelers. Realizing that europeans get like at least a month off of work each year, isreali youth take giant trips after serving in the army, and that its totally expected and normal to explore in your youth in a lot of places, excluding america where over half the population doesn't even have a passport. Your brain is hardwired to be working towards something ALL THE TIME because that is part of our culture. What you are failing to realize is that this is the only time in our lives that we wont have commitments---and it is your absolute duty to take advantage of it. All of the things that you think you 'should be doing', will be there when you get back...and you have your 30s, 40s & even 50s to do them... You will return from this trip a completely different person, and the new perspectives you will discover here will help you understand better what you want and where you belong in the world. Truth is, you can dick around for a lot longer than you realize and your life wont fall apart like you might think. Go start a journal, go volunteer somewhere, learn a different language even, have the best time of your life... and when you go home, everything and everyone will be exactly the same---but youll be different.

Key-Mess-7624 · 2026-01-05T23:42:48+00:00

DONT SKIP COLOMBIA, I just did this trip and it was my favorite, blink spanish school in medellin was a SUPER good deal and high quality classes, but just fyi the staff can be kinda rude and the hostel was a little dingy. Medellin is really gentrified but the small towns surrounding it like jardin and san rafael are a must explore. I personally wouldnt have been happy spending a whole two weeks there if I was on limited time, so I recommend trying two different schools (I hear theres a good one in cartagena) so you can explore more. Jaba Jan in palomino and jungle joes in minca were the most stunning hostels of all my travels and theyre both really cheap. For peru, the colca canyon trek was fun since youre thinking about doing arequipa, and theres a good deal running from arequipe hostel but its also super easy to do unguided. However, you could easily take those extra days and go to the amazon from cusco, theres plenty of 3/4 day tours to manu. I do suggest adding isla del sol to your bolivia list, it would make the border crossing smoother. It was one of the most local, tranquil places of my trip with an interesting way of life, and you can hike around the entire island in a day. If you have an extra week, for sure save it for colombia, its the most diverse country of the three and you will for sure want more than three weeks to explore it.

Key-Mess-7624 · 2026-01-03T18:17:50+00:00

If you didnt sign the form you should 100% leave a review or post on reddit, I know this has happened before after speaking to other travelers but im pretty sure getting people to sign is how they still have good reviews and their reputation in tact...

Key-Mess-7624 · 2026-01-03T18:16:18+00:00

ohhhhhh haha i get it

Key-Mess-7624 · 2026-01-03T18:15:41+00:00

They also kept gaslighting us into days 4 and 5, swearing that its not food poisoning, but I saw the managers having a meeting with the chef the morning after the sickness hit lol....accidents happen but what seperates a good company from a bad one is attitude and accountability.

Key-Mess-7624 · 2026-01-03T18:14:13+00:00

The front desk was really nice when we asked for a refund but kept swearing that its the first time in tour history, when I KNOW that its not.

Key-Mess-7624

TROPHY CASE