It’s a new year and a lot of people have plans, goals and dreams. Some people have travel goals but don’t know how to achieve them, while some others have long given up on their travel dreams
thinking that travelling is only for the rich people who have extra money to spare. The truth is, everyone can travel and everyone deserves to experience beautiful places, culture and adventures. The first step is to be open- minded. Here are some steps that will help you travel better this year –
- Plan ahead – We all know the saying, if you fail to plan, you plan to fail. This also applies to travelling. You have to consciously plan ahead, if not those trips will never take place. Create a calendar on the places you’ll like to visit this year and start working towards it.
La Campagne Tropicana Beach Resort, Lagos. - Save – Also in line with planning is saving. If you plan to visit Zanzibar in August for example and it would cost you about 400,000 naira, you can save 50,000 naira each month and you’ll reach your goal. If you are serious about travelling, you need to be deliberate, so you can have a separate account where you save for your travel goals.
Idanre hills, Ondo. - Use alternative accommodation options – One way to save money while travelling, is to get affordable accommodation options or free accommodation as the case may be. If you are visiting a particular location and hotel costs are high, or you’ll like to save money on hotels generally, you can look for family and friends who stay in that location and ask to stay with them or you can use platforms like Air bnb, Couch surfing etc.
Mapo Hall, Ibadan - Make good use of Public holidays and weekends – For some, the issue is time. The truth is there’s never enough time for anything, you have to create time and be deliberate. Public holidays, long weekends and even regular weekends are good opportunities to take short trips and explore your country.
Boat Cruise to Takwa Bay - Ditch expensive stuff for travelling – Many complain about not having enough money to travel, but in the end you will find that they are all about the designer life, always purchasing the highest of the high end products. Don’t get me wrong, having the nicest things and spending your money the way you want to, is not wrong, however, you have to choose between that Gucci handbag and that safari trip to Kenya. The truth is that experiences give your life more meaning than material things ever will.
Olumo rock, Abeokuta - Make use of work, wedding and family trips well – A lot of people have the privilege to take work trips and also attend weddings in other states or other countries or travel with their family, yet they complain about not having enough time to travel. How about adding one or two extra days to your work, wedding or family trip to explore on your own. Last year, I attended a wedding in another state and stayed a day extra to explore the zoo, and a resort there and it was an awesome experience.
Kwa Falls, Cross river - Travel locally – Explore your home country; it’s less expensive and you get to be proud of the rich culture and beautiful landscapes and places in your country. Using Nigeria as a case study, there are a lot of beautiful destinations and sites to explore and visit here.
Idanre Hills, Ondo - Take more group trips – Group trips are a great way to save cost as things get cheaper by the dozen. Also travelling with people is always a great idea. Social Prefect tours is a platform that organizes group tours monthly; it’s a total win-win as you get to make new friends and explore destinations together.
Erin Ijesha waterfalls, Osun
