There’s no such thing as a free ride. Well, actually, there is, but it would be pretty bland without a bar tab and fairly flinty without tipping the staff.
For most of April we were on the M/S Expedition, a polar cruise ship owned by Gap Adventures, as the only passengers on a repositioning cruise to England. You just never know what is possible unless you ask, and this was something we never imagined before the trip to Antarctica.
We arrived in England on April 27 to a big case of sticker shock, since the dollar is weak in relation to the pound right now. We miss the $1 giant beers in Ecuador when a mere pint here costs the equivalent of $4. Everything else is inflated at the same proportion or higher.
We also chose this time to buy some new gear, as the selection was good, the size ranges were easier to fit than in South America, and we need some of it more now than we did before. One thing that works for us is getting a little bit needy before we buy something. For instance, Betsy has been using an old fleece jacket for a while as a total warmth/dryness solution, and it isn’t really working. Instead of of running out to buy just anything, she stayed in a somewhat “needy” situation for a while to better understand what would work best. Because of this, she got a great combo in a good color that will work for warmth and dryness and not take up too much room (and has enough pockets). Don’t shortcut on the items that will keep you warm and dry because cold and wet are not the way to enjoy any excursion.
This leg of our trip will see us investigate different modes of travel and accomodation to help offset the cost. After landing in Falmouth, we tried our first couch-surfing gig and it was fantastic. We spent the last 3 days of the month with our host Nick and had a fantastic time (more on that to come). Lodging cost was zero, but we did spend a bit on beers and eating out.
let’s get to the numbers
- Total spending to date through April 2011: $11,539
- Total spending for April 2011: $1,397
- Daily average for April 2011: $46.56
- Overall daily average (to date): $54.69
expense breakdown:
Lessons Learned:
How will our budget be impacted in May? Well, we are staying with some friends for part of the month, planning to hike some of the national paths - a free activity - for several days, sightseeing in a few English towns, and then ending up in Edinburgh with a possible apartment rental at the end of the month, just in time for Warren’s 40th birthday.
Stay tuned to see how the UK impacts our budget over the summer.
About Warren
You guys are doing a great job staying within your budget! We have been traveling (actually stying with a very genrous family member) for the past few months and are practically terrified of what we will find in the “outside” world when we head off to our next destination next month-prices on everything have skyrocketed since we left home a few months ago. Eeekkk Thanks for the monthly update, however, it’s great to see how much others spend when traveling.
Thanks for the comment April. We are happy with the fact we have met some amazing people along the way as well as some close friends who have helped us out. Plus, starting in South America is a big boost since you can get over the initial struggle of traveling on a tight budget much easier. We certainly made our share of mistakes, but luckily they were relatively cheap.
You are going to absolutely love the “outside” world and will find that you can manage to the budget quite well as long as you both are on the same page and are willing to forego some of the old impulses we all seem to carry with us.
Good luck and let us know who it goes.
I found myself laughing over your monthly budget since the #2 item is the bar bill! Sounds like you had a great time on the ship and I look forward to hearing about your travels through the UK, one of the many places still left on my bucket list.
Ah yes, we have had to expose our alcohol budget. In South America we blended it easily in groceries and meals since the costs were so low. I fear now you all will find out the truth about our love of wines (and now ales in the UK).
The money, the money! Having spent a lot of time in the UK over the years, I know the woes oh so well. What is the exchange rate to the dollar these days… over $1.60?
It’s great that your couch-surfing gig went well… I’ve always wondered about that, but don’t know if I’m THAT brave in my older age these days.
~
Angie, you are spot on with the exchange rate. It is the most challenging aspect, but alas we knew that going in. We just booked a month in Edinburgh so that should help us stay on budget, or at least close to it.
Given how much older we are than most couch surfers we were a bit worried as well, but all for nought as it turns out. Go for it if you get the chance.
You crazy kids!!! You are such an inspiration for us soon to be rtw-ers…knowing that you as a couple are traveling on well under $100 day is so good to know….can you keep it up through Europe??
Staying tuned for the next exciting episode of “Married With Luggage”…
Hey guys, great question! We have fallen back in love with England and so excited to spend a few months here. However, it will all depend on our budget. We also have life & health insurance payments due this months which will make May look quite ugly. But, fingers crossed we can find our groove and continue our under budget trend as we slide into summer.
Thanks for the nice words and great to hear from you again.
Hey Warren - question for you about this Budget your Trip program….do you guys just use the free version or have you upgraded to Pro at all? I think I have figured out the gist of it, but are there any little glitches you found with it, or any hints to make the process flow smoother?
Thanks!!!
Just curious… I noticed the cost of the repositioning cruise is absent from your budget, which I would count as lodging and transport fees. How much did this cost? And why don’t you choose to include it in your budget? (I’m planning a rtw trip myself, hence the prying questions.)
Nice catch Mary and feel free to pry. We want people to get as much information as possible based on our experience.
The cruise up from Argentina to England was free for us, with the exception of alcohol. Gap Adventures agreed to pay all our costs in exchange for us providing feedback and suggestions to determine if this type of trip would be interesting to others. Since we were the first people to ever do it they thought it would be a great opportunity to determine if there is a market for this type of travel. Given our experience, we certainly think so.
I love couchsurfing, it only saves a bit of money as you end up going out with them but you meet so many great people.
Agreed completely that the savings are not huge when you add in the fact you will be going out for a nicer meal than typical. We cooked one night but still the savings were not tremendous overall. Besides, like you said it is about the people you meet when traveling and we had an amazing time with Nick and didn’t even think about the money.
I always love seeing how much you are spending or I should say NOT spending. I am still so amazed that you are at such a low dollar amount and over 200 days traveling. So great. I have to say I am a little disappointed in the bar bill??? I was looking for some bigger numbers. hahahah can’t wait to hear about Europe! Cheers.
Paz, we apologize profusely for any missed expectations on our part with the bar bill. To be fair, there were a few days our VERY rough weather that created conditions “not conducive” to consuming alcohol…no matter how much we might have been tempted.
(Plus, there were a couple of nights where the crew bought us drinks. These did not make it into the bill but believe me we felt the tequila shots the next day.)
If you make it to China we will have to have a good time making up those missed drinks.
It’s so refreshing to see those numbers. I feel as though the budget we’re setting is overkill (not that it’s a bad thing to save extra money… we can travel longer!)… it makes me want to leave now! I’m interested to see how your European budget turns out.
It’s always good to stay within budget, but looking at ALL those AMAZING photos of the two of you enjoying each moment of your lives and the huge smiles on your faces, I’d say it’s PRICELESS!! ~Aloha
Here is a site I would like to share http://volunteerstays.com/, great site if you are low on budget and want to stretch your travel dollars. Allows you to do work exchanges in return for local food and accommodation along with an opportunity to experience local cultures and ways of life.
Hi Ali,
Thank you for sharing. Looks like a great site we could use in the future as we explore new experiences.
Sounds like you had a great time on the ship and I look forward to hearing about your travels through the UK, one of the many places still left on my bucket list. Given how much older we are than most couch surfers we were a bit worried as well, but all for nought as it turns out. Angie, you are spot on with the exchange rate.