TripHip - Travel Tips and Advice for Traveling on a Budget

Well, first of all, it is technically illegal to work in a foreign country without the proper work visa. But with that said, it is possible to get work under the table. You will basically need a "cash in hand" job, and the only people willing to pay you like that will be small, independent business owners or individuals. Your best bet for finding cash in hand work is through word of mouth. You can try housecleaning, babysitting, dog walking, etc. They won’t pay much though. Sometimes in the UK you can get a cash in hand job working in a pub. It all depends on who you know and whether you get lucky. Do you have any skills? You can offer someone help in their garden, or cook meals for an elderly person. Sometimes you can get jobs picking grapes in the vineyards of France or Italy (or so I’ve heard).

If your finances are tight, you definitely don’t want to rely on getting a cash in hand job while you’re traveling in Europe. Make sure your finances are in order before you leave.

If you plan to use your credit or debit cards during a trip abroad, it's a good idea to let your bank and/or credit card companies know that you will be traveling.

If they don't know that you are traveling, they may lock your account, thinking that your purchases and withdrawals are suspicious because they are out of the ordinary compared with your usual use. This can not only be embarrassing, it can also leave you out in the cold when you most need the cash!

No matter where on earth you go, whether it's New Orleans or Timbuktu, you will always experience a more rich and revealing journey if you educate yourself beforehand about the culture, traditions, and history of the place you are about to visit.

If you are going to visit Ireland, read some books by famous Irish authors.

If you are going to Thailand, watch a documentary about Thai Buddhist monks.

If you are going to Kenya, educate yourself about Kenya's political history.

If you take the time beforehand to fill yourself in on what makes a place special, you will be better enabled to truly soak in the vibe and essence of the place that you are visiting.

When you travel abroad to a country where you don't speak the language, you need to prepare yourself for the sudden shock of not being able to communicate easily with others.

You can prepare yourself beforehand by listening to some language-learning CDs or mp3s and by flipping through a language guide. However, nothing will prepare you for the real thing - suddenly finding yourself in a country where you can't understand them, and they can't understand you!

There's no reason to get overwhelmed though. You can turn it into a fun learning experience. When people realize you can't speak their language, most often than not they will bend over backwards to try to help you out. Remember that you are just as exotic and interesting to them as they are to you!

For those who like gadgets, there are some talking translators available that allow you to type in a word or phrase, and it will actually "speak" that sentence for you in the other language. These translators tend to cost anywhere from $50 - $550. Are they worth it? For most travelers, probably not. You might want to get a cheaper one and program it to say some emergency phrases, just in case. Other than that, you're pretty safe just carrying a guidebook, using sign language and hoping for the best.

You can often get the best exchange rates abroad simply by pulling money out of the ATM.

When you pull money out of the ATM, you will usually get hit up with a fee from your bank as well as from the bank you are using. Did you know that you can sometimes avoid these bank fees?

Before you leave the country, find out if your bank has any agreements with any banks abroad. If it does, this might mean that you can use your debit card abroad at those affiliated banks, and avoid an ATM fee from either bank.

For example, I belong to Bank of America. Bank of America has affiliations with Barclays in the UK and BNP Paribas in France, so I can use either of those banks when I am in the UK or France without getting hit with ATM fees.

Considering that ATM fees can be anywhere from $2-5, and that they really add up - it's well-worth finding out if your bank has any agreements with banks overseas!

If you plan to drive while you're abroad, check to make sure that your driver's license is actually valid at your destination. There is no guarantee that it will be!

If you want to be sure that you can legally drive at your destination, get an International Driving Permit. You can get these through AAA for only $15. Be very wary of other, official-looking sites that may try to sell you an International Driving Permit for more money.

If you plan to travel to lots of different countries during your trip, an IDP is definitely handy because it is recognized at over 150 countries!

If you plan on traveling to a foreign country, it's a good idea to check whether or not you need a visa for that country.

For some countries, you may be eligible to enter without acquiring a visa beforehand. These will be countries that are part of the Visa Waiver Program.

For other countries, you will need to obtain a visa before departure. Check the website of the country's embassy to see what you will need to do.

This is really important, because you don't want to show up at the airport and find out that you can't fly because you don't have the right visa for your destination!

If you are planning to travel to a foreign country, one thing you need to check is how long you are legally allowed to stay in that country. For some countries, like the UK, you are allowed to stay up to 6 months. For other countries, like Thailand, you are only allowed to stay for 4 weeks. Therefore it's best to check the length of time that you are allowed to stay in the country that you plan on visiting.

You can check for these details on the country's embassy website.

Remember that whenever you travel to a foreign country, you are a guest in that country. Whether you want to or not, you are essentially representing the country where you are from.

Because America has been the major world power for so long, many Americans have a narrow, Ameri-centric point of view that rears its ugly head when they go overseas.

Not everyone is like this of course, but if you've traveled abroad, you've probably seen them: binge-drinking American college students abroad being loud and raucous; ditzy Americans who wonder why foreigners don't understand English and so they raise their voice several octaves in the hopes that volume will somehow serve as a magical language translator; and those who get angry when things simply aren't done the way they are in America - ("2 hour afternoon siestas every weekday where all the businesses are shut?! What kind of place is this!!")

Please don't be one of these people. It only further cements the stereotype that people in other countries have of Americans.

Culture shock is perfectly natural when you are suddenly immersed in a strange place where everyone has an unfamiliar way of doing things. Don't let it overwhelm you in a bad way. Just relax, open up and go with the flow.

Remember: When in Rome, do as the Romans!

Have you ever heard of "voluntourism"? It's a combination of "volunteering" and "tourism", and it's rapidly becoming more popular as more and more people seek out meaningful travel experiences and cultural exchanges.

Voluntourism revolves around the concept that instead of going someplace and sitting on the beach all day and buying trinkets, you can actually get involved in the local community and make a difference in the lives of the people who live there.

If you search the Internet, you can find tons of different vacation packages all over the world for voluntourism experiences. For example, you can help build a house in Sri Lanka, or look after some kids at an orphanage in the Czech Republic.

Whatever you choose, if you spend your vacation volunteering instead of vegetating at the beach, you are sure to have an enriching experience that will be with you for the rest of your life.