When you're travelling, you'll want to make your money stretch... Accommodation Let's talk dirty. Laundry. Do some handwashing in the sink of your hostel/hotel and hang them to dry on your shower rail. Socks, undies, and shirts are easiest to handwash. Hotel laundry is HUGELY expensive and laundromats take ages. Hostels are often the cheapest accommodation. Spain Alert: "Hostal" is actually a Hotel. Offer to do some work at the hostel you're staying in (if you're staying for a while) in exchange for room & board. Sleep overnight in an airport. It might sound crazy, but Singapore's Changi airport has been voted the best airport in the world when it comes to comfort and amenities. (Hong Kong, Athens, Kuala Lumpur,  Seoul Incheon and the brand new Beijing airport designed by Norman Foster also rank high. Whereas Paris, Moscow, Bombay, Cairo, Chicago, and Kiev rank amongst the worst airports to stay in - and many others are plain dangerous). Take overnight trains or ferries to your destination and you'll save on accommodation costs that night. Learn how to couch surf. Staying on someone's couch or in someone's corridor is called 'dossing' in London. This literally translates to 'to sleep roughly'! Eating Ask the real locals not involved in the tourist trade (not hotel managers etc!) where they eat - chances are it will be a lot cheaper and better than places that cater to tourists. Shop where the locals do - outdoor markets will often give you great prices on everything from souvenirs to local produce, and it's usually a very entertaining experience. Buy bottled water at grocery stores and supermarkets - prices can double or triple at tourist attractions! Buy food at grocery stores too - it's so much cheaper. Take cereal bars, trail mix, or fruit with you while you're sightseeing to snack on during the day. That way you won't have to succumb to expensive greasy street fare or overpriced convenience stores.

• Carry a water bottle and refill with tap water (if it's safe!) at cafes and restaurants to save on costs of soft drinks, alcohol, coffee and tea.

• Italy: The public fountains are there to drink from and refill your water bottle - I wish every city had these...

• If you're going to treat yourself to a nice meal at a pricier restaurant, do it at lunch time as you'll usually spend much less for the same amount and quality of food.

• If you enjoy cooking, offer to cook for people at your hostel, in exchange for them buying all the ingredients.

• Stay at hotels, B&Bs or hostels that include breakfast in their prices, and bring a plastic ziploc bag if there is food you can discreetly take to eat later.

Want to learn the language?

Here's the FREE way:

• Step 1: Go to a local university in the country you are visiting... Find the English Department.
  
  
• Step 2: Put up a sign offering one-for-one language classes!
  
  
• Step 3: You teach English for an hour and then you get an hour lesson in Swahili, Spanish, French, whatever! Bargain!

Moving around

• Stay in one place for a while - moving around costs more money.

• Use a backpack that also has wheels and a handle so you can easily get around without being tempted to blow your budget on expensive cab fares.

• Take advantage of free tourists buses that take you around a city, and if something is close enough -  just walk! You'll get a better feeling for the city that way too.

• Don't overpack! Lots of luggage or weight costs money - money for excess baggage (especially on budget airlines that don't allow you to bring much on board) but also money on transport. You won't want to walk to the train station if your bag weighs tons. (Best packing tip: "Remember, unless you are going to a desert island, you're not going to a desert island. Overseas, they have shops you know")
  

• Check to see if your hostel/hotel has a free airport pick-up - also called an airport transfer - this saves heaps of money, time and STRESS!
  

Staying in touch

• Don't use your normal sim card while overseas. Global roaming is unreliable and expensive. You pay for incoming calls too! Ok - if you are going for the global roaming option, you need to call your service provider a couple of days before you leave to make sure you have global roaming turned on by them.
  

• If you must use it then turn off your incoming call alerts (ring your service provider before you leave, and they'll do it for you). That way you can call out if necessary, and sms, but stop people calling you. If you'll be staying in one place for a while it is advisable that you buy a local cheapo sim card when you get there.
  

• For calling home use Skype.

Just for fun

• Research. Our contributors all agree - research saves you money - you'll find access to free festivals, public movie screenings, markets, and architectural walking tours. Some are free and some have an optional donation. These are all excellent ways to have some fun without spending a fortune on entry fees. Our contributors' favourite research tool was tripadvisor.com

• New York: You can buy a museum pass which entitles you to see 5 museums for the price of four. You can also get free entry to the Guggenheim at 6pm Friday night... but the trick is - you need to get there at 5pm and queue to ensure you actually get in.

• Many places will let you bungee jump for free if you do it naked! Just ask if you're game!

Dale	If you buy a big lunch, Have the rest for dinner!
Lori	That's funny, I do that almost everyday!
Gemma	Go to a bakery at close and they will give you free bread and pastries!

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