Budget Airbnbs and eating half chickens.
Travel tips from a budget-minded, health and wellness lifestyle expert.
In the last two years, I’ve planned a handful of budget-minded trips to San Francisco CA, the northern CA redwoods area - Sonoma County, Pittsburgh PA, Fort Myers FL, Los Angeles CA, Milwaukee WI, and Seattle WA. I want to help you learn from my mistakes, and duplicate my wins. I’ve also made these trips living a more holistic lifestyle, being alcohol-free and eating pretty clean. My degree is in Hospitality management, so I’m pretty particular about travel experiences, but I think my tips will help you have a more pleasant trip!
Here’s what happened…
Budget-Friendly Activities
Do the boat tour. If you’re staying in a city with water (many major cities are built near water for transportation reasons) get on a boat. I prefer to book with a smaller company or individual versus getting on a big ferry or tourist-type outing. I have had great luck with Airbnb experiences. This is a tab you can explore on the regular site. You’ll get a more personalized experience and because these individuals don’t have to pay big advertising bills, you can usually get the experience more affordably. In Oakland, CA we hopped on a sailboat and cruised across the bay to San Francisco for only $100 per person. We got to see the entire city from the water. Breathtaking!
Rent your own boat. I can’t think of a place I’ve been near water that didn’t offer kayak rentals. Usually, you have a group option or an individual option. This is an opportunity to see the area in a different way. They’re pretty reasonable for the amount of time you get to spend out on the water. Usually around $75 for 2 hours.
Find weird museums. This is my literal Google search when I’m visiting a city. I have found so many fun tours and museums this way. In San Francisco, we visited the International Printing Museum. It has print media going back over 150 years. You’ll see many advertisements and posters. It was a good reflection of popular culture and trends. Admittance was $12. Milwaukee has a The Grohmann Museum, at the Milwaukee School of Engineering. It houses an art collection With more than 1,700 paintings, sculptures, and works on paper representing the evolution of human work $5. Seattle has underground walking tours. Guided subterranean walks amid ruins buried after an 1889 fire, including storefronts & sidewalks. Cool!
Look for free tours. Many state and National Parks will give at least one free tour per day at peak times. The tours usually integrate the human history of the area with the natural history. If you can’t catch a free one, the group tours are usually less than $15 per person. Many larger cities have state or National Parks grounds within them. While you’re there, explore! Most parks have great signage about the natural history of the area.
Be a kid again, go to the arcade. If you’re looking for nightlife that does not involve drinking, you may have to look a little harder. Luckily, many cities have arcades popping up that are open late. Pittsburg and Milwaukee did not disappoint!
Find local comedy clubs or music venues. Budding comedians and artists need practice. If you want to subject yourself to that, comedy shows and local concert sets are a fun way to spend an evening. The good news is, there are usually several performers per night at small clubs and you’re not likely to pay more than $20 to get in. Not bad for a [potential] full night of laughs or music.
Go to the farmers market. This is a great way to check out the local food scene, get some fresh food, and support local businesses. You can ask the vendors if they sell their food to any local restaurants and get dining recommendations. You’ll also find unique vendors. I’d rather take home a hand-crafted candle for a souvenir versus something touristy made overseas.
Visit the botanical gardens. This is a great way to escape the hustle and bustle vibes of the city. Most people vacation to relax some, not be busy the whole time. Take a brain break and go look at some plants.
Take the city tour. I recommend taking a city tour the day you arrive. Preferably in a motorized vehicle so you don’t get worn out on the first day. This will give you a layout of the city. It can save you time and energy getting around when you understand where everything is. The guides can also make recommendations for dining and steer you away from tourist traps.
Lodging
Add in extra time to get acquainted with your hosts. In Seattle, I stayed in a room in a house for the first time. I thought, I’m a single lady, only here for one night, why not stay in a $120 per night shared space? Previously, I’d only ever had the entire place to myself. Ahead of the trip, I saw myself just coming and going and not spending time with the hosts. They asked good questions, offered suggestions for the neighborhood, and really wanted to get to know me. I’m surprised to hear myself say, I think I would have enjoyed spending time with them [and their cute pup]. I also could have saved some time with my face in my phone, by not having to find places to go and restaurants on my own.
Make sure your lifestyles align with the hosts. In the shared space in Seattle, the hosts were weed smokers. I generally do not have a problem with this, but I am not used to being around it. It stank. They did not smoke in front of me, but I could smell it in the whole house. I also woke up early and was making noise, which I felt funny about. That's a “me problem” because I’m paying them to stay there and move about the space as I wished, but it was still a bit uncomfortable. The basement apartment I stayed at in another place in Seattle had air fresheners, I’m sensitive to chemicals, and fragrances give me headaches. These are things you can ask about ahead of time by shooting a simple message to the host. Do y’all smoke weed in the house and do you use plug-in air fresheners? In the case of weed smoking, I may have chosen a different residence. With the air fresheners, I could have asked them to unplug them before my arrival.
Go crime scene investigation on the rental listing photos. Look for red flag details. If there is clutter or weird looking stuff laying around, don’t stay there. If there is clutter, they are unable to clean well. If they are unable to clean well because of clutter, they’re ok with other things not being super clean. You will be spending a week living with their dusty, grimy things. When I’m staying at someone else’s house, using their used shit, I want it to be super clean. If the listing is braggy, “We have these 1,972 amenities,” they’re distracting you from the basics, whether they mean to or not. Don’t get swept away by beautiful views and hot tubs. The most important things to me are, I want to know I’m going to have crisp clean linens, the space has uncluttered surface areas, and there are places to put my stuff.
If they do not show all areas of the place, that is a major red flag. It is especially important to view the bathrooms. Look for the listing to be bright, clutter-free, and easy to understand what they’re offering. I usually have good luck with places that appear to have been renovated in at least the last 5-10 years. If you’re seeing a bunch of outdated décor, chances are other things in the place are outdated as well. We stayed in a cabin nestled in the redwoods, on the Russian River in CA. It was one of the prettiest settings I’ve ever stayed in, but one of the weirdest because of all the personal items in the home. There was a dragon suspended over the dining room table. Nuff said.
Consider the walkability of your neighborhood. Do a Google street view, is it a place you’re comfortable walking around at all times of the day and night? Maybe you’re staying at the nicest house on the block, or the most renovated street in the neighborhood. Also, consider the energy level of the person you’re traveling with - they may not want to be as active as you. If you get restless, will you feel comfortable leaving and walking around by yourself? I’ve found hosts will use general language like, “Shops nearby.” Your idea of close and theirs might be different. Ask the host for their recommendations in the neighborhood and ask them specifically how long it takes them to walk there.
Transportation
Explore your options for getting around the area, and compare prices, BEFORE YOU GET THERE. What are public transportation, rideshare, and rental car rates? Uber rates have been trending higher, you can look them up on the app ahead of time. In Seattle this summer, I spent about $50 per ride. Four trips around the city in my one day stopover cost me about $200. If I was going to be there any longer, a rental car would have probably made more sense. I also could have upgraded my lodging and stayed in the city center and walked everywhere for what I “saved” on my shared Airbnb outside of the main downtown. Going forward, I will consider increasing my lodging budget to be able to afford to stay at hotels closer to the activities that interest me.
Check peak travel times around the activities you want to do. Look up travel times on Google Maps for weekdays and weekends. We bought tickets to a show and missed it because we did not want to make the effort to travel back and forth. Be realistic about what you can get to in a day, and you’ll experience less FOMO.
Are travel times too good to be true? San Francisco has a sister city, directly across the bay, Oakland. The Airbnb we stayed at did an excellent job of marketing its close proximity to San Francisco proper. They showed Google Maps overlays of the times it would take to use public transportation and personal cars to get across the bay. Only 12 minutes? Ya, maybe at 2 am on a hoverboard… The area is heavily populated, and there is almost always traffic, even beyond traditional rush hour spots in the morning and afternoon. The trip took 45 minutes one way and an hour and a half the way back in a car. There are only a few routes in and out of San Francisco. Just because something looks close on a map does not mean it is.
Determine whether you’ll want to use the public transportation offered. Are the routes complicated, do you have to switch trains, how long will you have to wait at the stop, and how long will it take you to walk to the stop to catch the transportation? In San Francisco, we checked public transportation routes, they were complicated, lengthy, and often had delays. I’ve found many Airbnb listings will say they are close tato public transportation when in reality, they are just the first stop of many to get to the major attraction areas of the city. There are bonuses for staying outside the city. If you’re in a more residential area, it can be much quieter. You may also have access to some outdoor space, which can come in handy if you’re in a climate where you want to take advantage of the weather.
Add 20%-30% walking time to Google Maps walking suggestions. If traveling with others, you’ll probably be chatting and walking slower. You might stop to look at things, snap pics, or encounter traffic. Take the terrain of the city into account. If it is hilly, a mile could take you 1-2x longer than a normal walk. Pittsburgh is full of hills! A half a mile walk can take 30 minutes. Environmental factors could also slow you down, you may not be able to hoof it in the heat.
Check out local festivals, conferences, and events in the area the week[end] you’re there. This summer we ended up in Milwaukee during Harley Davidson’s anniversary party [Harley is headquartered there]. It increased the population of the city by 100k people, definitely increased the travel time to get places, and affected the outdoor ambiance everywhere, vroom vroom. When I was looking for hotels, the rates seemed unusually high. I did look briefly at a city calendar, but it did not click for me that a Harley festival could overtake a city. You can call the concierge desk at a hotel and ask about what’s going on in the city ahead of time. Now, if there was a food festival, that might have been more my speed. Those are my people.
Food & Drink
When choosing your neighborhood for lodging, consider the type of dining establishments and shops available to you. I eat clean, natural foods whenever possible. I also choose to stay away from certain food groups due to food sensitivity and the desire to reduce inflammation in my body. I am unable to go into most convenient, quick-service shops, and restaurants and find food I want to eat. There are too many ingredients in most name-brand and prepared foods. I prefer to stay in a neighborhood that has a natural-type grocery store (I usually shop and prepare some meals), a coffee shop with dairy and gluten-free options, and a few restaurants that follow those guidelines as well. If you have a more natural food lifestyle, I recommend checking out the menus of neighborhood places before you book your lodging. Many touristy areas have establishments trying to please the masses, not health-minded travelers. I usually find luck staying in smaller, more residential areas with locally run businesses and a cute, historic downtown. I also have good luck in neighborhoods undergoing a revitalization. Young, fresh, small business owners are often the first to take root in these type of neighborhoods.
These days, most larger cities will have a food-hall-type market. Milwaukee’s Public Market or Pike Place in Seattle are examples. You’ll find prepared foods, restaurant-type places, and some grocery items. I picked up a half chicken from a deli-style vendor in Milwaukee that came in handy during my trip. With my diet, breakfast options are challenging at restaurants. I ate a handful of chicken before leaving the condo each day, that kept me full and happy. I would not have made it without that half chicken!
How does the culture of the city affect the food and beverage offerings? The farm-to-table movement started on the west coast. The stereotypes are true, people are more fit there and they care about what goes in their bodies. I don’t usually worry about finding restaurants and shops that serve clean food north of LA. Milwaukee was a different story, it was Midwest wheat and cow country. There were very few gluten and dairy-free options at restaurants [that I could see anyway]. We had the best luck seeking food from restaurants with diverse cultural backgrounds. My husband ate more rice than he wanted to. Check out the food culture of the city before you visit.
I’ve been alcohol-free for about two years now. I chose to stop drinking because I needed to. I do not usually get cravings or think about drinking much at this point in my journey. I did find it difficult to be in a city surrounded by beer/booze culture in Milwaukee. It made me feel like I was missing out on something. I did not like the headspace this put me in. Something to consider, does the city have a boozy reputation?
Conclusion:
There are no real bargains anymore with lodging. If you’re farther away from attractions, your transportation costs are likely to increase. Go for one less day to save or budget a bit more for lodging. The old saying is true, you get what you pay for.
If you choose to stay in a rental versus a hotel, get super specific about what they’re offering. Make sure the place is going to be comfortable for you.
If you have a healthier lifestyle, travel is going to require more planning. You may need to get groceries delivered or pick lodging in a neighborhood that has options that meet your dietary needs.
Do weird stuff! Try to find activities that fit your personality. You don’t have to do the touristy things in the city.
