People travel all the time.
Travel is lovely.
Travel is expensive.
Wrong.
Here are 25 ways to travel for free.
Volunteering in order to travel:
- Wwoof – Get free room and board for working on a farm.
- Peace Corps.– 2 year travel opportunity abroad.
- Global Giving – volunteer for a variety of programs.
- United Nations volunteer program
- Couch Surf – stay for free in homes in areas of interest to you
- Global Freeloader – you’ll also have to host travelers in return
- Servas Internation volunteer program
- Hospitality Club – cultural exchange program
- Americorps – volunteer and earn a stipend or get free room and board.
(more below)
Let's go! 25 ways to #TravelTheWorld for free! #LetsGoEverywhere #TravelAddict Click To TweetOther cheap options for traveling:
- Become a tour guide. Organize trips for other groups and be the tour leader. You’ll get paid to travel 😉
- Become a house sitter and care for houses in areas you’d like to travel to.
- Work as crew on a cruise line.
- Relocate vehicles. Many travel cross country.
- Carpool.
- Work for a room. Hostels often offer opportunities to work in exchange for a free place to stay.
- Swap houses.
- Work Seasonal at a ski resort. Just imagine a picturesque resort in the mountains…
- Teach English as a second language in another country
- Work as a nanny in a location you’d like to travel to
- Hitchhike, probably not the safest option.
- Go human powered. Bike/walk/run across the country.
- Work at summer camp. They’re all across the states and also in other countries too!
- Enter contests, you never know what you could win.
- Get free flights by cashing in on credit card deals
- Be a secret shopper or reviewer. You’ll get to check out travel locations in exchange for your review.
Paul (@luxury__travel)
January 7, 2016 at 2:51 am26. Become a travel blogger
Charles McCool
January 4, 2016 at 8:32 amGreat stuff.
Kathleen
January 1, 2016 at 9:04 amFor those with racetrack experience, one can ride with the horses across country with the big horse riggs. Or even on equine air transports, not always safe, but it’s the job of the traveler to keep the horse calm..lol..
Shannon Gurnee
December 27, 2015 at 1:34 amI’d never heard of some of these before! Sounds like creative and interesting ways to travel for free!
The Bonfire Dream
December 24, 2015 at 11:32 amI would go to Amazon rainforest. It’s been my dream since my early teenage 😉
Jenn
December 24, 2015 at 12:38 pmI like watching things about the Amazon on tv… But I know going in person, I’d probably not enjoy it as much as you 😉 I don’t handle bugs well. Lol!
Eileen
December 24, 2015 at 2:09 amI was a flight attendant for a long time and then worked at the airport, not necessarily free, but worked for free travel 🙂 I always wanted to work a cruise ship. Great tips – have to work these into my life
Jenn
December 24, 2015 at 12:39 pmGreat idea! I forgot about that!
Josh C
December 23, 2015 at 10:16 pmLove the Peace Corps idea. I did it, lived in Ukraine. It was an amazing experience.
Jenn
December 24, 2015 at 12:39 pmI’d love to go to Ukraine someday!
angie
December 23, 2015 at 9:44 pmwow never thought anyone could travel for free thank for sharing
Jenn
December 24, 2015 at 12:39 pmThanks for stopping by, Angie!
Ave
December 23, 2015 at 3:38 pmSo many great ways to travel free and I had no idea about most of them! I had no idea you could travel being a secret shopper.
Jenn
December 24, 2015 at 12:40 pmThanks, Ave. I’ve been looking into the secret shopper route. That would be a dream 🙂
Rachel Mouton
December 23, 2015 at 12:46 pmWhat an awesome list! Thanks so much 🙂
Jenn
December 24, 2015 at 12:40 pmThanks for stopping by, Rachel!
Claudette
December 23, 2015 at 12:35 pmI have travelled a fair bit and travelling for free do have strings – ones that I am not sure I would like to pull or cut. When I was a youth, and had no other way, maybe. Not now.
Jenn
December 24, 2015 at 12:41 pmVery true. If you’re young and have a lot of flexibility and independence, it’s much “easier” to pull off. Thanks for stopping in, Claudette 🙂
Lexie Lane
December 23, 2015 at 11:43 amThese are great choices, I’d love to spread this into my friends.
michelle
December 23, 2015 at 9:43 ami want to travel to Alaska for free
Jenn
December 24, 2015 at 12:41 pmI’d love to go to Alaska too! Thanks for stopping by, Michelle 🙂
Liz Mays
December 23, 2015 at 9:07 amIf I was pre-family, I would do several of those things! There are some super ideas here.
Jenn
December 24, 2015 at 12:42 pmI know what you mean! I just have a husband and a dog. No kids yet. So… we could still try some of these 🙂 Thanks for stopping by, Liz!
Mardene Carr
December 23, 2015 at 8:49 amI think I would like to travel to Italy for free
Jenn
December 24, 2015 at 12:42 pmItaly would be fantastic! Thanks for stopping by, Mardene 🙂
Ana De- Jesus
December 23, 2015 at 4:01 amI would like to be a tour guide or secret shopper in exchange for a free trip, how do I go about doing that?
Jenn
December 24, 2015 at 12:43 pmHi Ana, I’m actually still doing some research on the secret shopping. There is a site called Amusement Advantage that you can apply for secret shopping gigs. It’s mostly theme parks, but it’s the first legit one I’ve found 🙂 As for working as a tour guide, find a destination and look up wanted ads. Or create your own tour guide service and post in classifieds!
Victoria
December 23, 2015 at 3:32 amSUch a great idea. I am going to try this
Jenn
December 24, 2015 at 12:43 pmThanks for stopping by, Victoria!
Krystal Miller (@hhtfamilyblog)
December 23, 2015 at 12:38 amI’d love to go to Australia for free! Only a few of those suggestions would work for me, though, since I’d want to take my kids. I wish I had known about all of those earlier in life!
Jenn
December 24, 2015 at 12:46 pmAustralia would be amazing! Thank you for stopping by, Krystal 🙂
Elizabeth O.
December 23, 2015 at 12:34 amThose are awesome suggestions. It sure would be great to be able to travel without spending too much!
Jenn
December 24, 2015 at 12:46 pmYes definitely! Thanks for stopping by, Elizabeth 🙂
Glenda
December 22, 2015 at 9:31 pmGreat tips! A few there I had not thought of. I am looking a relocating a camper van next year. Not free in my part of the world, but certainly at a reduced price and good incentives to do so.
You can also do Relocation Cruises which are at a reduced cost if you are interested. Google it and you will see plenty to choose from. They are normally offered for countries that are just about to have their Summer.
Merry Christmas!
Jenn
December 24, 2015 at 12:47 pmI’d love to relocate a camper. In the US, road trips could be very epic. I’ll have to look into relocation cruises. Sounds intriguing! Thanks for stopping by, Glenda 🙂 And for your super helpful comment!
Melanie
December 22, 2015 at 9:23 pmThese are great ideas! Are any of these available in Bora Bora?
Robin Rue (@massholemommy)
December 22, 2015 at 7:25 pmI am going to have to try some of these! I would love to save some money on travel.
Jenn
December 24, 2015 at 12:47 pmThanks for stopping by, Robin 🙂
Faye
December 22, 2015 at 4:53 pmGreat list! I’ve always wanted to join the Peace Corps – never too late.
Jenn
December 24, 2015 at 12:48 pmSo true! Thanks for stopping by, Faye 🙂
tara pittman
December 22, 2015 at 3:28 pmGreat ways to travel for free. I need to check some out.