How much would it cost to travel the world for 13 months?
‘How much would it cost to travel the world?’
The question we’re asked the most.
Since returning from our first 13 month round the world trip, we have been asked ‘how can you afford to travel like that?’ ‘how much did your world tour cost, it must have cost a fortune?’ or ‘how did you save up to travel the world?’
We all have a part of us that wants to travel, it’s in our blood. By exploring new places and experiencing new sensations, you are truly living life to its fullest.
The main aim of our blog is to help and inspire our readers to fulfill their dream to travel.
The two biggest barriers facing those who want to travel are usually fear and/or money. Some people fear leaving a comfortable and ‘settled’ lifestyle in exchange for a life on the road.
Whatever you doubt, we can reassure you that if you decide to travel the world, it will be the best decision you will ever make in your entire life. Fear will be lost when you minimalize and leave your life behind. Every day travelling is a whole new adventure.
If your fear is financially related, we’re here to reassure our visitors and we have provided budget breakdown that will show the cost of travelling the world.
Here is a detailed summary of how much is cost for 2 people to travel the world based on our experience:
376 Days on the road
28 Countries
80 places
Accommodation costs
Without making an active effort to couch surf or house sit often, we mixed and matched hostels, hotels and camping across the world.
| Accommodation Type | Nights | Total Cost (2 people) | Average Nightly Cost (2 people) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hostel | 76 | £1,962 | £26 |
| Hotel | 147 | £4,758 | £32.50 |
| Motel | 12 | £410 | £34 |
| Apartment | 51 | £1,722 | £34 |
| Guesthouse | 16 | £482 | £30 |
| Camping | 19 | £305 | £16 |
| Sleeping in the car | 3 | FREE | FREE |
| Sleeping in the Airport | 1 | FREE | FREE |
| Staying with friends and family | 9 | FREE | FREE |
| Hotel loyalty Points | 23 | FREE | FREE |
| House Sitting | 5 | FREE | FREE |
Accommodation total = £9,639 (2 people)
Cheapest Hostel
Guatemala, Hostal El Portal de Semuc Champey – £10 per night for a double room.
Cheapest Hotel
Beijing, China – Jade Garden Hotel – £12 per night for a double room.
Cheapest Motel
Las Vegas, USA – Americas Best Value Inn Motel £25.50 for a double room.
Cheapest Apartment
Crete, Greece, Anna Maria Village – £11 per night
Cheapest Guesthouse
Budapest, Hungary, Deep Guest House – £15 per night
Cheapest campsite
Backcountry camping in Yellowstone National Park –
Not only was this the most exciting place to sleep but it was also the cheapest at £4 per night. This was the cheapest ‘paid for’ accommodation but we did have 41 free nights of accommodation during our travels due to loyalty rewards from credit cards.
Transport costs
Flying really took a big bite out of our budget, even with a stack of airline miles.
| Transport Type | Total | Total Cost (2 people) | Average Cost (2 people) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flights | 17 | £3,174.40 | £186.72 |
| Bus – International/Interstate | 23 | £1,100 | £47.80 |
| Bus – Internal/Domestic | 48 | £430 | £8.95 |
| Train/Underground – Internal/Domestic | 50 | £494.60 | £9.89 |
| Taxi | 18 | £184 | £10.20 |
| Boat | 14 | £218.65 | £15.60 |
| Car Hire | 31 | £832 | £26.80 |
| Tuk Tuk | 2 | £4 | £2 |
Transport total = £6,437.65 (2 people)
Cheapest Flight
Gran Canaria, Spain – Austria, Vienna £21. We used BA points for this flight and the £21 was for taxes.
Cheapest External Bus
Bratislava, Slovakia – Budapest, Hungary £14
Cheapest Internal Bus
Hong Kong 80p
Cheapest Train
Shanghai, China £1
Cheapest Taxi
Nashville, Tennessee 50p Uber ride, due to free credit.
Cheapest Boat
Hong Kong 50p
Cheapest Car Hire
Nashville, Tennessee £17
Cheapest Tuk Tuk
Hong Kong £1
Food and drink costs
Of course, you have to eat during your travels and this was the smallest part of our budget though we could have dined cheaper if we had tried harder.
| Food and Drink Type | Total | Total Cost (2 people) | Average Cost (2 people) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eating Out | 269 | £4,227 | £16 |
| Supermarket | 194 | £1,791 | £9 |
| Nights out (Alcohol) | 74 | £768 | £10 |
Food and Drink total = £6,786 (2 people)
Cheapest Place to Eat out
There are many cheap places to eat in every city of the world, here are some destinations where you can enjoy a cheap meal out.
Here are the average meal prices per person when eating out-
Supermarket shop
Look at the difference in price of eating out and buying from the supermarket.
Purchasing groceries from a supermarket is a great way to save money when travelling the world. An average meal eating out for 2 people can cost around £25 but choosing to eat in can save you 80% on your travel food bill.
Cheapest beer
Tulum Mexico £1
Additional costs
| Additional Cost Type | Total | Total Cost (2 people) | Average Cost (2 people) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Entertainment | 36 | £763 | £21.19 |
| Excursions | 34 | £1,261.50 | £37.10 |
| Tips | 6 | £16.50 | £2.75 |
| Laundry | 14 | £67.50 | £4.81 |
| Extras | 71 | £941 | £13.25 |
| Gas | 16 | £256.50 | £16 |
| Entrance Tax | 1 | £5 | £5 |
| Visa | 1 | £110 | £110 |
Additional costs total = £3,353.50 (2 people)
Entertainment
Entertainment costs include the following activities-
Excursions
Tipping
This includes some tips, the majority of tips were included in with food and drinks costs.
Laundry
We took advantage of free laundry when house sitting and in Air Bnb accommodation.
Extras
This included costs of sending parcels home, a train fine in Berlin, costs to use the toilet in Europe, toiletries and medication, memorabilia, jewelry and clothing.
Visa
The only visa we required on our world trip was for China. We applied for this and collected it at the embassy in Hong Kong.
How much would it cost two people to travel the world for 13 months?
The answer is £26,216.15
This is a rough guide of how much it cost 2 people to travel the world for 376 days to 28 Countries.
How much would it cost one person to travel the world for 13 months
That is just over £13,000 for 13 months of travel.
How much would it cost to travel the world for 1 month?
This would average out to cost £1000 for one person to travel for one month.
How much would it cost to travel the world – Average daily cost?
The average daily cost is around £69 for 2 people or £34.50 per person.
Like ‘How much would it cost to travel the world?’ Pin it!
Wow that’s something I’ll keep in my favorites as it is really helping to actually really make a good specific financial plan. Really great!
Thanks so much, hope your planning goes well and you live your life to the fullest. Please let us know if you have any queries, we’d love to help any way we can.
Loving this, will be stalking now for all the tips haha just need some more pennies but going to be planning our trip real soon thanks xxx
Any time you need to know anything just ask us, we’re trying to be as transparent as possible. This breakdown was without really trying to save money so it can definitely be done cheaper. Happy planning xxx