Traveling is a real budget, even more so when you start traveling as a family with one, two, three or more children. The cost of transport and accommodation remain the largest expense items in a trip. To travel cheaper, I'm not going to advise you to hitchhike with only your children (and not least) as luggage, nor to practice couchsurfing. I'll give you tips that we use to travel as a family cheaper.
Transport is a real budget in a trip, whether by plane, train or car. So the idea is not necessarily to go far but simply to leave. A few kilometers from home, in another region, in a neighboring country. This is an opportunity to discover or rediscover with the eyes of your children, forgotten or unknown destinations.
You can leave for the day, discover the Audomarois marshes if you live in the north of France, the pink salt flats of Gruissan if you live in the South. For a longer getaway, we also loved our last weekend in Kent in Whitstable, our escape to the country of windmills and tulips in the Netherlands or our getaway in the Bardenas desert. A stay in a border country remains an exotic experience!
The tulip fields of Keukenhof, Netherlands
Do you want to go far and cheap? We have some tips for finding cheaper plane tickets:be flexible on your travel dates, leave from a neighboring airport, travel light, make a stopover and above all do not rush to buy plane tickets.
Find my full article on the blog:How to book your plane tickets cheaper?
You want to go far away, discover another culture, another continent. The biggest expense is still airfare, but by choosing less expensive destinations, you can get away with an exotic family vacation at the right price.
Avoid the Nordic countries or North America. Even if you find offers with cut-price plane tickets, you will blow your budget with accommodation, meals and activities on site. Choose Asia and Latin America where accommodation and meals are at unbeatable prices. Eat for 200 Rupees in India at 4 (around €3!). Sleep for 30,000 Colons (about 40 €) for 4 people facing the Arenal volcano in Costa Rica or in the middle of a Cambodian village for 20 euros. You will not have the impression of depriving yourself during your family vacation.
You can get an idea of the cost of living in the different countries of the world via the Numbeo site. A gigantic database listing and ranking countries according to the average cost of living there. In particular based on the price of food, the price of the average rent, the cost of transport, the average salary… This database is exciting to browse.
Let's compare the cost of 10 days in Iceland and 10 days in India.
We start with Iceland, one of the countries with the highest cost of living in the world.
Airplane: You can find plane tickets for 4 to Iceland for 1,000 € round trip (during school holidays) departing from Paris, 250 € from London always for 4 (yes, yes! 250 euros for 4! I already gave you the link to find cheaper plane tickets!)
Accommodation: Renting accommodation in Iceland costs at least for 4 people 150 to 180 € per night in Airbnb or guesthouse. The island is not big, tourism is booming, the rental offer is not very varied, it is difficult to find cheaper.
On-site transport: To this must be added the rental of a car. A good city car if you stay on the main road or a 4×4 if you want to explore the land, especially in winter. That is 130 to 180 € on average per additional day, not including fuel. It would be a shame to stay in Reykjavik without exploring the rest of the country!
Visits: Access to natural sites in Iceland is free, that's a good point. On the other hand, access to the heated swimming pools is subject to payment. For the Blue Lagoon, count at least €98 for a family with 2 children under 13 (2018 rate). Access has been limited to a certain number of visitors for some years. This rate is valid on certain days and specific times, otherwise it is much more expensive! Admission to the Secret Lagoon, a more intimate natural pool, is around €40 for a family of 4.
Meals: The cost of meals, as in many Nordic countries, is horribly expensive. An average meal (burger) costs around €15. A meal in a more upmarket restaurant costs 30 to 40€. Even when shopping at the supermarket, meals in Iceland (also valid in Norway) remain a non-negligible and incompressible budget when traveling with the family.
Review: In short, taking an average, the plane at 1,000 €, accommodation at 1,500 €, the car at 1,500 €, outings at 150 €, meals at 700 € (without excess, with a restaurant and a well-stocked fresh in the evening bought at the supermarket). I am Will value the 10 day holiday in Iceland for a family with 2 children at a minimum cost between €4,800 and €5,000 being very careful with your budget.
Vala house on the backwaters of Cherai Beach, Kerala
We have the same experience with a week in Kerala in India, the country where the cost of living is the cheapest in the world.
Airplane: You can find plane tickets for 4 to Kerala around €2,300 for winter school holidays from Paris, €1,800 from London. This is the biggest expense.
Accommodation: The price of accommodation on site depends on the level of comfort you expect. You can find decent accommodation at €40 per night for 4 at Cherai Beach or Kumarakom overlooking the backwaters, and luxury bungalows at €300 per night. I would put the average at around 70 to 120€ per night for a hotel with a bit of charm, a swimming pool, a somewhat sophisticated decor or a rather nice environment.
On-site transport: In India, I advise against renting a car. Instead, use the tuk-tuk, taxi, train or car with driver. Clearly the journeys do not cost much. Short tuk-tuk trips cost €1-2 up to €10-15 a day. Count approximately 30 to 40 € for a trip of 3 to 4 hours between 2 stages by car with driver.
Meals: Food in India costs next to nothing. You can eat at 4 for 3 euros in the street, 10 € in a mid-range restaurant or for 50 € in a high-end restaurant, without depriving yourself.
Review: To sum up, the plane at €2,300, accommodation at €1,000 (compressible by half depending on your expectations in terms of comfort), transport at €100, all-you-can-eat meals at €400. 10 days in Kerala, for a family with 2 children costs between 3,500 and 3,800 € while having fun.
Anyway, do your math!
Youth hostels are no longer just for backpackers. You can now find family rooms in hostels at good prices. So in Funchal, during our trip to Madeira, we spent 2 nights in the superb Santa Maria youth hostel, in the heart of the historic district of Funchal. This former school transformed into a youth hostel welcomes single travelers and families. The toilets and living areas are shared, the atmosphere is family, it's a good plan to find cheaper accommodation!
Santa Maria Hostel Funchal, Madeira
Other Tips :negotiate the possibility of putting an extra-bed in a classic room and not systematically taking the breakfast option at the hotel. Find our tips for choosing the right kid-friendly accommodation when traveling!
Get out of your comfort zone, dare to eat local and avoid tourist restaurants. In Thailand, eat in the street for 100 Baths (about 3 €), you will enjoy more than eating in hotels for 10 times more expensive. Certainly there are hygiene rules to follow such as drinking bottled water, and making sure that food has been boiled in some countries. Our trick? Eating where the locals line up, we have never been disappointed!
Tico breakfast in Costa Rica, plantain, local cheese, rice, beans and eggs
Train, bus, boat. Choose land transport to get around rather than the plane. So certainly it is sometimes longer (although) but clearly the bus in Laos or the train in Thailand is a trip within the trip and it costs less!
Some activities are free so why pay when you can do without?
There is no need to "search" for activities to do with the children. Enjoy nature. Play adventurers. Children's imagination is limitless when they are in Nature.
You can also take advantage of being on a trip to take the time to hike with your family. The hike costs nothing, it allows you to get together around an outdoor activity, perfect for children. Find my article on the praise of family walking.
At the beach, swim, jump over the waves, do land art with shells or pebbles, our children's favorite activity.
In major cities, find out about discounts at museums. In London, most museums are free. In China, we took advantage of the “Sichuan Science and Technology Museum” free for foreigners, great for children! In France, take advantage of free access on the first Sunday of each month. There are also street tours organized by locals like in Berlin with the alternative tour, where you give what you want at the end of the tour.
In the countryside or in the mountains, farmers and artisans offer tours of their farms or workshops. Most often these visits are free, you are free to buy their products at the end. The girls particularly liked the visit to the Hutte goat farm during our stay in the Perche at the Country Lodge in Longny-au-Perche.
Walk in Norway among sheep and fjords
In some countries it is a national sport, so play the game and haggle! Within reason for you and for the person you have in front of you. You can haggle for products or services. It is easier, for example, to haggle over an excursion at the end of the day, or when tourists are scarce. You can also haggle over your accommodation by making your reservations on site as we were able to do in Amed in Bali. Ask to visit the rooms, look at the prices, always check the prices displayed on the internet, and negotiate whether it's the price, an upgrade or even breakfast!
The tuk-tuk, ideal for getting around India, the negotiation begins before getting on
What is expensive when traveling especially with family, are plane tickets. So if your dream is to travel above all, put aside the idea of a world tour and prefer to explore one continent at a time. We have indeed crossed China, Laos, Thailand and Cambodia only by land, taken a plane to Bali and then another to India, which allows us to travel with a reasonable budget of 20,000 euros approximately for 6 months of travel at 4.
Have a good trip!
