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Traveling affordably or better yet cheaply is a goal for many of us involved in the miles & points game. Without the use of these extremely valuable currencies, Kim, Lucas and I would travel probably a fraction of what we do each year.
Miles & points will take a big bite out of expenses in terms of flying and accommodations at our destination. What about the destination itself?
There are many places that people look to avoid due to the costs while you are there- meals, visitings sites and getting around just to name a few. When I think of pricey destinations, Denmark and Norway immediately come to mind.
Others might be surprised to hear that we did not find Japan or Russia (both visited in 2013) to be that expensive.
Some of our favorite regions to visit are Southeast Asia and Latin America due to the low costs to visit. We also found it to be extremely affordable to travel around Eastern Europe.
Smarter Travel has a slideshow: 10 Places to Go While They Are Still Cheap: 2014 Edition.
The slideshow lists a good mix of places from around the world although half of them are located in Europe. While we’ve only visited one of the places from Smarter Travel’s list, most of the others have been on our radar for quite some time. We’ll also be visiting one of the places from this list in a few months from now.
Here are Smarter Travel’s 10 Places to Go While They Are Still Cheap:
- Philippines
- Greece
- Dominican Republic
- Mexico City, Mexico
- Lisbon, Portugal
- Bucharest, Romania
- India
- Sofia, Bulgaria
- Riga, Latvia
We’ve only been to Riga, Latvia and it was an extremely affordable place. We were there in 2007 so I’d guess that it got a little pricier over the years. If you are thinking of heading to Riga, I’d also recommend checking out Estonia and Lithuania, two more affordable and interesting countries located in the Baltics.
Have you been to any of the places from Smarter Travel’s list. If you have any other recommendations for affordable places to visit, please share with us in the comments below!
Check out the Smarter Travel slideshow HERE to find out about each of the places that made their list.
We visited Dominican republic and agree it is cheap, but the country was so poor we didn’t want to leave the resort. It made Jamaica look wealthy, and had more crime and beggars. When you ride past the trash dump on collection day and see hundreds of locals looking through the piles for something useful, it makes you greatfull for what you have….On the plus side they did have the most affordable all-inclusive resorts we have stayed at and the locals that work there are always smiling and seem to be happy to have a job, service is great even if your not tipping. We don’t go to Cancun or Playa del Carmen much anymore because they have gone up in price so much Florida is cheaper, and the workers at the AI resorts have their hands out for tips and ignore you if your American and not tipping…..as far as places not mentioned Belize is still undeveloped and affordable for a diving destination.
Interesting perspective. I have heard similar things about the DR.
We are not divers but Belize has been a place that we’ve wanted to visit for quite some time!
Dimitri- We visited only a couple of parts in Vietnam and it was cheap! Cambodia was also a bargain. Have a great time in Greece!
AlohaDave- Awesome! It seems like pretty much all of SE Asia are bargain destinations!
DaninStl- We were close to going to Romania last summer but opted for other parts of the Balkans. Hopefully we’ll get there before while it is still a good value!
Romania is still not bad but not nearly as cheap as it used to be a few years ago.
Ran the table, plus I’d add Myanmar and Laos.
I’ve visited Mexico City, Lisbon, Riga and agree they are cheap and great places to visit.
I would recommend Vietnam for sure, I was shocked how cheap it is.
I am going to Greece this summer.
I’ve been to 5 of the places listed and I’m not sure if I agree. I think places like India and the Philippines will still be cheaper in 10 years compared to USA or other places in Europe.
Even in expensive places, there will always be more affordable eating options. I went to college in New York City and though most people consider NYC to be very expensive in the USA, as a college student we all found the sweet spots of where it is affordable to eat! Similar to your experiences in Russia and Japan, I normally check out the university areas and find out where the locals eat since those places tend to be quite affordable.
As far as other places I’d consider to travel to while it’s cheap:
Myanmar (especially before it becomes a second Thailand) – When I went in 2009, I was relieved to see more locals at the temples than tourists (in Thailand the opposite was true.)
Egypt – Due to political unrest, tourism is at an all-time low and it is quite affordable to go there right now.
South Africa – The USD is quite strong at the moment against the ZAR, and thus it’ll be more affordable for Americans to visit the country. Right now the exchange rate is $1=11 Rand. When I went to South Africa in March 2013, the exchange rate was $1=9 Rand.
Hey Joey- You bring up some excellent points! I’d agree with the article regarding the European destinations but you definitely never know. In comparison to the West, India and the Philippines will most likely always be cheaper. In NYC there is no need to break the bank since you can find great food at all price levels. Nice tip about visiting the university areas- we do the same when possible and also try to find the local places.
Myanmar (and Laos) have long been at the top of my list of places to go but the timing just hasn’t been right.
When we visited Egypt, it was around a year before the overthrow of the government. It was definitley not expensive so I could only imagime how much cheaper it is now. On our two visits to South Africa I don’t remember it being cheap or expensive. I’d put it at just not standing out either way. What a big difference a year makes from when you visited til now!