If you haven’t already heard of the 11th Hour, it’s a documentary, narrated by Leonardo DiCaprio, being released across the United States today concerning the rapid and unsustainable environmental degradation our planet is currently facing. The documentary is meant to shock viewers with powerful images and statistics of all the damage we have already done, but in the end it’s goal is to inspire hope and action to really take control of our situation, and “become the the generation that changes the world”! The following description comes from the 11th Hour’s promotion team:

“The 11th Hour examines the human relationship with Earth from its earliest glimmers of innovation, to the challenges humanity faces in the present, to the possibilities of the future”. – 11thHourFilm.com

I think films like as this one are fantastic. Sure, we hear about global warming everyday on the news, and people have been preaching environmental degradation for the past 50 years. But films like the 11th Hour seem to be far more effective in motivating the masses.

It seems that global warming and environmental degradation are topics that have really captured everyone’s attention. A recent Worldchanging article even goes so far as to say that we have seen a global rebirth of community civic action similar to that in the United States during the 1960’s and 1970’s. I think they are right, and that’s a big deal! People coming together around the world (on their own mind you, often with little to no pressure by governments) to fight for the preservation of our planet!

My Concern:

My only problem with all the attention the media and society now pay to environmental issues in general, is what happened to all the other World Crises we used to be concerned with. What happened to:

• Darfur
• HIV in Africa
• Political instability in Africa
• World healthcare
• Continuous human rights infractions in countries like China
• Sweatshop labor
• Global economic disparities
• Poverty in general
• Fresh water rights
• The drug trade
• Rogue states such as North Korea and now Burma
• Global immigration

Have we already solved these global problems? Have we already marked them off our list of global crises and are now ready to move on to environmental degradation in our march to save the world?

Or is environmental degradation just the current “flavor of the week” in world crises, one that we’ll happily move on from in a couple of years when the buzz is dead and we realize that making any kind of dent in global crises requires decades of unfaltering attention?

Just a couple of days ago I was talking to a friend of mine who had been traveling through South America for the past 4 months. This friend is a little old fashioned in the way she manages her money, and instead of checking her bank statements online she simply writes all purchases and ATM withdrawals down in her checkbook. By the end of her trip she was pretty low on money, but thought she still had about $300 to get home on. She checked her online statement, just to see that this was the same amount her bank had, and was horrified to find that she was actually down to just $26 in her bank account. Had someone gotten a hold of her bank account information, and made fraudulent charges to her account? No. On closer inspection my friend found that the only person taking money out of her account was herself, and her bank. It turns out, because she was abroad, her bank had been charging her an additional $8 on every transaction made in a foreign country! $8 per transaction, which over 4 months had added up to near $300. Not what I would consider a negligible fee!

As we continue into the 21st century, most travelers would agree that international ATM’s are the best way to manage your money while abroad (in most regions of the world). They are convenient, safe, and provide travelers with the best exchange rate for their foreign currency. The only downside is the often overlooked fact that most domestic banks charge 1-3% or $1-$8 for every transaction made in a foreign country! These fees are charged to both direct purchases made to the account as well as ATM withdrawals, and can add up to a pretty hefty sum after a few months of travel.

Know your bank’s policies:

Most people have no idea what their banks charge for account transactions made on foreign soil, so the first step is to contact your bank and find out. The following chart should help you in deciding whether the fees charged by your bank are acceptable or excessive:

Consider Opening a Secondary Bank Account to use During your Travels:

If you are not happy with the fees charged by your bank for international transactions, then I would suggest opening up a secondary checking account to use while you are on the road. A basic checking account is normally very easy to open, and you can simply close the account upon return when you’re finished with it.

The following are two great options for US and UK residents. These accounts do not charge any fees for international transactions, and the Bank of Internet account even reimburses its customers for ATM owner fees (the occasional $0.25-$1.00 charge some ATM’s charge just to use their service). Both accounts also offer respectable interest rates considering they are just basic checking accounts.

As I said above, both these accounts are really good deals, and will never charge you a cent for transactions made to your account while abroad. Please let me know if you know of any other banking options that do not charge for international transactions, especially accounts that are open to Canadian, Australian, or even better World Residents!

Other Resources

• Travel Independent.info’s “Before you go” tips

Just yesterday I stumbled across a couple of articles written last month regarding the practice of charging “tourist prices” in developing countries. The first is by Ben Groundwater of the Sydney Morning Herald, entitled “Tip the Scales: Can Excessive Tipping ‘Ruin’ a Destination”, and the second is from one of my daily reads The Traveller’s Point Blog, entitled “Why Getting Ripped Off is Alright”. These two articles were written over a month ago, but I think the debate is an interesting one, so I wanted to revive it here.

The two posts I have linked to above discuss the common practice of charging inflated prices to foreign tourists in developing countries. Both articles argue that there is nothing wrong with paying inflated “tourist prices”, and that the practice should even be seen as a type of “social justice” for the historical exploitation and current economic disparities that the developing world must endure.

The two articles don’t make this point explicitly, but commentators even took the idea so far as to say that it is unethical and even “sickening” for wealthy Western tourists to haggle with impoverished locals in developing countries.

I, however, disagree completely. I proudly admit to haggling with locals while traveling in developing countries. I WILL NOT pay inflated prices simply because I am a tourist, and will haggle until the price is lowered back down to the local standard.

Why do I haggle? Is it because I’m greedy?

Well to explain my stance I have to get into a little bit of basic economics, so please bear with me:

Like it or not, we live in a capitalist world. Now a capitalist system certainly has its faults, but for as long as we continue to use it, we must abide by its rules or inefficiencies will develop. Under a capitalist system prices are set by the market interaction between consumers and suppliers. Suppliers naturally want to charge the highest possible prices for their goods, and consumers naturally want to pay the lowest possible prices. This results in an equilibrium price that is high enough to please suppliers, but low enough that consumers are willing to pay it. However, this system only works when both parties follow the rules, meaning suppliers charge the highest possible prices, and consumers demand the lowest possible prices. When this does NOT happen, inefficiencies develop that spread through the system like a virus. In the case of tourists paying inflated prices, this creates inefficiency from the consumer side. Now I keep using the word inefficiency, but what does that actually mean? Well, in this case the inefficiency is that tourists are creating “false demand”.

The Sydney Morning Herald article describes a situation where the writer willingly paid an Indian vendor 5 times the price of a samosa, then tacked a 100% tip on top of that. His thinking was, “I am relatively wealthy when compared to this samosa vendor, why shouldn’t I pay him more?” The problem here, as I said above is this attitude creates “false demand” from the consumer side. Now do I think that by paying more for a samosa this writer is contributing to the downfall of the Indian economy? No, but when this attitude is multiplied by millions of tourists, this “false demand” is transformed into the “illusion of easy money” which is a real effect that can be seen today in dozens of developing economies around the world.

Please bear with me as I explain further. The problem with “false demand” is that it creates a spike in a previously stable pricing curve, that suppliers are extremely quick and eager to follow, or in other words the “illusion of easy money”. If this samosa dealer can continue to sell to foreign tourists for a 1200% mark-up, why not target foreigners exclusively for his product? In fact, why even limit himself to samosas? Why not start entire businesses targeted at tourists? Our samosa dealer recognizes the fact that he does not need to be price competitive or even product competitive when selling to foreign tourists, because they will “feel sorry for him” and pay what he charges (competitive or not), so why not take advantage of this?

Does it sound like I’m exaggerating? Let me continue. Anyone who has been through a developing country within the past 3-5 years has undoubtedly seen dozens of advertisements for locally run Eco-Tourism projects in that country. Now some of these projects are well organized, well managed, and priced competitively, in other words they are capable of competing at the global level. However, the vast majority are run by inexperienced locals, who have slapped together an unorganized, overpriced project, and are basically relying on “foreign tourists feeling sorry for them” as their means to profitability.

It doesn’t stop with a few communities starting Eco-Tourism projects either. The concept has filtered down into the education system. Take my current country of residence for example, Ecuador, Eco-Tourism is now among the top 5 most popular majors among University students in Ecuador. Why? Because it’s easy money! Why would you bust your ass studying to become an engineer, teacher, IT specialist, or health professional (professions that could directly advance the Ecuador’s infrastructure and the well being of its people), when you can study Eco-Tourism and take advantage of all the money the Gringos are handing out.

Basically, what I am saying is that paying “tourist prices” does not stop with the street vendor. As can be seen in a number of developing countries around the world, it distracts from a traditional “bricks and mortar” strategy to development, and creates a modern day “gold rush” to get a piece of the tourism pie.

Now you may be thinking, so what if tourism in developing countries is inefficient and is based on accepting handouts from foreign tourists? Money is money, they can use it to further develop their infrastructure and advance into a developed nation.

Well, I agree, money is money, and to be honest there is very little that money CANNOT fix in the world of economics and business. However, the concern associated with building a tourism industry based on inefficiency is what happens when tourists no longer feel sorry for you. What happens 20 years down the road when India ranks among the most powerful economies in the world, and foreign tourists are no longer willing to give their money away? Their tourism industry, which has been built on inefficiency, will not be able to compete with well managed and competitively priced international tour operators, and will likely fail.

Conclusion:

While I do absolutely believe that the concept of “tourist prices” has a detrimental and real effect on developing economies, I don’t anticipate it is a practice that will end any time soon. It is simply another obstacle that developing economies will have to overcome in the modern global economic environment.

However, I DO NOT see anything wrong with Western tourists wanting to pay the same prices as locals. In my opinion it is not “sickening” or unethical, it is simply playing the part of a responsible consumer in a capitalist world.

The other day I read a post on Traveling Stories Magazine entitled “Things my Father Told me to Never Tell my Mother”. The article is about the unique, and strong bond that was formed by a young boy and his father during their trouble-making travels around the United States.

This article got me thinking about the benefits of traveling with a partner as opposed to independent travel. Usually when you hear people talk about world travel, and budget travel, they discuss the huge opportunities for personal growth and individual development. However, something that is often overlooked, is that travel is also an extremely powerful tool for developing bonds among travel partners.

The idea itself is as old as time, used by the military, sports teams, fraternities, outward bound, even corporations:

People stuck in strange, new, and/or difficult circumstances will grow closer together

The concept has been a part of military training for thousands of years, and simply involves putting training units through “virtual hell” as an effective strategy to developing incredibly strong bonds between people of all backgrounds, and to teach them to trust one another with their lives.

Obviously, most of us don’t travel as a means to put ourselves through “virtual hell”, but we do get out of our personal comfort zones. We face a number of challenges, and often find ourselves in many difficult or uncomfortable situations. This is where the die-hard independent traveler says the most personal development and learning occurs, however for travelers who prefer to travel with partners, this is where those traveling bonds are formed.

In my personal experience through travel, and work in sometimes dangerous developing world conditions, it is the times of shit that you really get to know a person, and when they make that magical transformation from somebody you’ve only known for a couple months to a lifelong friend. It’s a kind of friendship that usually takes years to form under normal, comfortable circumstances, and unfortunately, is the type of friendship that the die-hard independent traveler must learn to live without.

Related Posts:

• How to Find a Travel Partner

Today I have a guest blog submission from Giles Smith of Travel Independent.info. Giles is a British national who has been through close to 100 countries in the last 5 years alone. He is now based in Zurich, where he manages Travel Independent.info, a site that is literally packed with practical travel information, including everything from visas and immunizations, to handy tips on getting around, where to go, and how to do it all responsibly.

I have asked Giles to share his insight on some of the lesser known travel destinations around the world, namely Iran, Pakistan, Colombia, and Israel.

Travel and independent travel in particular is a scary thought to many, even to those who have made a few trips already. It’s obvious why. Turn on your TV, surf the web, listen to the radio – it’s a scary world out there, apparently the world hates Americans and isn’t too fond of many other nationalities either. It appears that extremists are taking over and any Islamic country is comparable to the Sunni Triangle. I know most intelligent individuals won’t believe the hype, but it’s difficult not to buy into it to some degree and give many destinations a wide berth – several of which in my view are some of most impressive (hidden) travel destination gems on earth. I’d list these as Iran, Colombia, Pakistan and Israel all of which I have had the good fortunate to visit over the last few years and can testify, if tackled correctly sticking to main tourist sites are safe, civilized, welcoming and stunning, not to mention culturally fantasizing and traveller gold!

Iran

Photo: WikiTravel.org - Iran

It’s amazing that such a traveler’s gem can induce so much fear in so many people. Give it a try: mention you are even thinking of going to Iran to friends and relatives and watch the reaction. Listen to them speak… ‘but there are terrorists’ (no that’s a global problem), ‘but women are second class citizens’ (no that’s Saudi Arabia - there are actually more women than men in University education), ‘didn’t they blow up those Buddhist statutes’ (no, that was the Taliban in Afghanistan)… it goes on. The ignorance Iran inspires can almost be painful. Even well traveled individuals get slightly nervous at even the name. There is absolutely no reason to be. The problem stems from many sources. First up is that most of us know nothing about Iran other than what we heard about the revolution and what a strict Islamic government chooses to present to us. The other error we all make is filling in the gaps ourselves. Iraq to the left, Pakistan and Afghanistan to the right (humm, not exactly the most instantly appealing destinations), it’s natural to assume Iran is somewhere in the middle. The reality is that even the most widely travelled and open-minded visitor is likely to have preconceived views shattered and find a country that truly is a marvel.

Expect some of the most welcoming and truly hospitable people in the world (although that term is used far too often, here it is appropriate). Expect open-minded individuals who are about a millions miles away from religious fanatics who will be delighted to further your surprise in finding out the true nature of the place and go out of their way to help you. Expect some of the best value travel in the world. Expect virtually no hassle. Expect to feel extremely safe and welcomed and finally, expect to find a country where you can walk beside beautiful mountains streams below towering snow caps (even go skiing) one day, forests and rice paddies the next, harsh deserts the next and historic oases the next… the list goes on. Safe, civilized, cheap and reasonably efficient Iran is one of the last hidden gems of this nature. There is too much to share in a small intro like this so if you are even thinking about going it’s best to pick up the excellent LP for some more reading.

Not to be missed: Esfahan, Masule, Yazd, forgotten and well preserved history and atmospheric bazaars & tea shops where you will be the center of attention with seemly everyone wanting to be your friend.

To be missed: Getting a visa can be a real hassle and it’s best to use a service from a company like www.key2persia.com – if you travel on an American passport this is going to be very tough without a tour, but not impossible. Girls you will need to cover up, but this is really no big deal. You will find more details on getting a visa and acceptable dress on Travel Independent’s Iran page. While not essential it is best to avoid a visit to Chogo Zambil (a huge pyramid) which is in the area along side Iraq and the country’s religion capital Qom.

Colombia

Colombia has to be one of the most beautiful countries on earth. Think mountains meeting the sea, deserted beaches from two oceans, rolling hill and vast plains of coffee plantations – it’s also fairly vacant of tourists. Most travellers debate long and hard about visiting Colombia, finding only negative comments on the net, posted by those who have not visited. Those that have visited normally feel Colombia should not be missed, but will advise: just don’t get carried away exploring off the beaten track - Colombia is not like other Latin American countries with large sections controlled by very nasty, unpredictable rebel groups. Certainly violent crime and bus hold ups are more common than elsewhere in the Americas. Nevertheless by sailing/flying into Cartagena and traveling to Ecuador or vice-versa, with commonsense, it is unlikely you will have any problems other than the all present threat of theft – so travel light and in the day, talk to locals and watch your belongings! Both Lonely Planet and Footprint have excellent guidebooks and can steer you in the right direction. Safety has improved dramatically over the last few years and 2006 was one of the best years for internal and external tourism. Colombia is civilized and in places simply spectacular.

Not to be missed: Cartagena old town, San Agustin, Zona Cafetera north of Cali, Sierra Nevada and limited tourists.

To be missed: Continued kidnappings make many rural areas unsafe, and travellers are advised to avoid excursions that include Choco, Putumayo, Meta and Caqueta and the rural areas of Antioquia, Cauca, Narino, and Norte de Santander.

Pakistan

How to describe Pakistan? If you want a one-worder then you need no more than three letters: WOW. India without the hassle, Nepal without the crowds. Then again it’s a little more complicated than that and probably more than any other country on the planet your opinion will depend on what part(s) you see. Whereas the three letters of ‘wow’ is undoubtedly the impression most will have visiting Northern areas, others might be forgiven for thinking of a few four letter words after making trips through the south of the country where travel is quite different. Pakistan’s main attractions are the mind boggling market town of Peshawar and the amazing, stunning and accessible jagged mountain scenery in the far north. Few travellers venture to Pakistan – it even seems to have become a bad word on traveller circuits. A poor media image, tension with India, terrorism, earthquakes, poverty… it’s quite clear why so many neglect it, particularly with the likes of India and Nepal on its doorstep. Shame.

Not to be missed: The main feature and highlight of Pakistan is the Karakoram Highway (KKH) which neither crosses the Karakoram Pass nor is anything close to a smooth highway. This incredibly useful road is the only dependable overland route between China and the Subcontinent. Originating in Islamabad and terminating in Kashgar, China, the KKH is something that every traveller should aspire to see. The area often referred to as Pakistani Kashmir (incl. the Gilgit province in the far north) is a great place to hang-out, walk, cycle or simply look dumbstruck out of a bus/jeep window. It’s brilliantly accessible from the KKH with 7000+ meter peaks and glaciers practically by the road side. Away from the KKH, to name a few highlights - Islamabad is about the gentlest introduction to the continent you could get. Women travellers will notice considerably less hassle in the north.

Not to be missed (but then again maybe – the following places are in tribal controlled areas and while typically safe some may wish to avoid): Peshawar is a photogenic, hectic meddle of cultures and people – it’s also the jumping point for the a trip up the Khyber Pass and a view of Afghanistan. Spots like the Kalash valley in the Hindu Kush are stunning and culturally fascinating. The north is a patchwork of languages and culture (40% are tolerant Muslim) that change from one town to the next with few locals thinking of themselves as Pakistani. Steep mountains and deep valleys make travel awe inspiring.

To be missed: The rest of Pakistan is not quite such a dream. Lahore and the area directly below Islamabad can be loosely compared to India and are not of great interest. Further south the tone of the country changes. Ancient wonders can be hard to appreciate and the heat is oppressive as the country and the people begin to change. Islamic tones are stronger and cities like Karachi are inherently violent and not a place for backpackers. Pakistan has several areas of instability and possible danger which you should avoid. Here’s a quick summary: Off the beaten track near the Line of control aka Kashmir, Balochistan - this region encompasses most of the south-west of the country, Karachi and the Sindh - a small square region surrounding Karachi, bordering India. Not a place for travellers, to be avoided, intense communal violence. Karachi airport is safe enough, but it’s best to jump straight on a cheap internal flight to Islamabad or Lahore. The North West Frontier Province- commonly known as the NWFP, the area bordering Afghanistan from around Peshawar north to China. For more details see the Pakistani summary information page on Travel Independent.

Israel

While it would be easy to wax lyrical about the fascinating and currently very out of vogue countries that border Israel: Lebanon, Syria, Jordon and Egypt, all of which I would recommended highly – the focus of this article shouldn’t be predominately on Islamic countries. Israel, as a multi-religious and at times downright secular country has been off the mainstream travelers map for some time now as tensions simmer and often boil over with it’s neighbors and occupied territories. Visitors to Israel virtually stopped during the last nadir, but things have started to stabilize a little and tourist numbers have climbed. The Palestinian elections, Hamas’ victory, a subsequent suicide bomb in Tel Aviv - Israeli retaliation, missiles from Lebanon and it’s business as usual again? Who knows, but it’s easy to understand why many are a little nervous about visiting. Coupled with this Israel can be a little raw and unwelcoming, but does nevertheless contain one of the world’s most incredible places: Jerusalem. Jerusalem and it’s surroundings is quite simply amazing and worth braving terrorist attacks for any day. Don’ t let terrorism scare you, the risks of injury is far below most bus travel in Asia. Many of Israel’s sights will blow your mind, when reflected on. Tel Aviv has a laid-back beach culture to rival Sydney or Rio and like many cities is mainly secular: great parties, bars, hot guys/girls, great set of hostels… - all things you might not of expected. This new country is fascinating to get an understanding of and has a history like no other.

What not to miss: Jerusalem. Few places in the world inspire quite as much passion as Jerusalem (Yerushalayim in Hebrew, Al-Quds in Arabic), the 3000-year-old capital of Israel. Tel Aviv has a lot to offer if you have time to kick back and there a many other notable sites in the north and along the Dead Sea.

What to miss: That passport stamp which makes visiting many other Islamic countries impossible on the same passport. Gaza is now firmly off limits and while many report very positive experiences in the West Bank most more feel comfortable avoiding it or minimizing their travel through it.

Summary/Conclusion:

Remember, where ever you go in the world: developed or developing; Jewish, secular, Islamic or whatever you should always do your own research, travel with commonsense and stay aware of current events. It’s easy even in the most popular travels destinations to find yourself in the wrong place if you travel total unaware and off a well beaten track. Remember there is nothing big, brave or exciting about risking your well-being heading into regions of any country where really it’s best to avoid.

And lastly, a word to the wise… don’t judge something from second/third hand reports. Notions of whole populations out to get you when you step of the plane are ridiculous, American or not (say you are Canadian if it really makes you feel better – no one will care. For the record I’m British, then again it’s where you are at not where you are from). Free your mind, it works like a parachute – much better when open!

For more information on all the above destination (plus about 70 others) you are referred to Travel Independent . Info. You will also find a lot of information for more ‘normal’ destinations and advice to get you started on any trip. What to pack, where to go, before you go and just about everything you might need to know if you are setting off, particularly if for the first time.

The following resources will provide you with some additional information about drying fruit, vegetables, and even meat.

• Backwoods Home Magazine - Food Drying
• Virginia Cooperative Extension - Drying Fruits and Vegetables
• Farm Gal - How to Dry Fruits and Vegetables
• Food Reference Website - Dried Fruit

*Most resources claim that you need high temperatures of 95 to 100 degrees Fahrenheit for solar drying to be effective. However, I dry fruit every week in temperatures that never make it over 80 Fahrenheit, so it is my opinion that these figures are a little high.

So, you’ve just gotten back from a 2 year budget travel escapade around the world. It was the most memorable experience of your life, but now it’s over and time for the difficult transition back into “real life”. You find yourself with a million things to do. You have to find somewhere to live, buy a car, and most importantly GET A JOB!

In my experience, most employers look favorably on an applicant who has taken time out of their life to travel the world, learn new languages, and adapt to new cultures. However, not all employers are as progressive and worldly as the ones I have had experience with, and regardless of their outlook on world budget travel, you WILL have to explain and even defend what you have been up to for the past 2 years. Most long term travelers learn more in their years of travel than they do in any job or in any school, but you need to prove this to prospective employers so that they don’t think you’ve simply been partying for the last 2 years of your life (even if you have)!

Your resume will be a prospective employer’s first glance into your work and life history. The point of a resume is to make you stand out enough to get to the interview stage. A period of long-term travel should make you stand out in one way or another, so you just need to assure that your travel experience makes you stand out in a positive way.

In general employers are looking for tangible experience that you have had in the past, that would make you well suited for a position in their organization. Therefore you must look at your travel experience, and write about it as if it were a job. What specific things did you do that made you a successful traveler? Like any other past work experience, your description of travel section should not take up more than 4-5 lines, and should highlight points relative to the job you are applying for.

Below I have compiled a list of good, action verb descriptions that can be used to describe most long-term traveling ventures, and highlight commonly valued skills such as leadership, teamwork, dependability, creativity, and adaptability.

20 Blurbs to Describe Travel on your Resume:

These blurbs are meant to inspire thought on the many different aspects of travel you can highlight on your resume. They should NOT be simply copied and pasted into your resume, but rather combined with specific and honest travel experiences to emphasize all that you learned and accomplished.

1. Adapted to foreign cultures and ways of life
2. Mastered local languages
3. Recognized key resources to aid in my travel goals
4. Collaborated with local institutions to investigate travel options
5. Incorporated local customs into my daily routine
6. Encouraged open communication between foreigners and locals
7. Budgeted ____ months of world travel on just $____
8. Promoted intercultural exchange
9. Forged lasting friendships and relationships with people of all backgrounds
10. Inspired impoverished communities to take control of their lives
11. Overcame societal differences to promote cultural understanding
12. Motivated fellow travelers to share in local ways of life
13. Equipped impoverished locals with western methodologies to achieve their goals
14. Developed creative solutions to maximize travel experience on a limited budget
15. Led fellow travelers through unknown regions of the world
16. Modified my way of life to maximize exposure and opportunities for learning among foreign cultures
17. Developed a deeper understanding for what is really important in life
18. Organized fellow travelers to pursue travel goals that were of interest all involved
19. Meticulously observed everything around me to ensure safe travel at all times
20. Overcame ethnocentric tendencies to better understand foreign cultures within their own unique contexts

Note:

The following advice is mainly applicable to travelers looking to either start or end their travel in North America.

Budget travelers have a unique advantage over other types of travelers, as in most cases we are extremely flexible when it comes to making plans for travel. There are very few places on the planet we wouldn’t like to visit at least once, and if the price is right we are usually willing to take off any time of year.

While most budget travelers abide by this philosophy, I am often surprised to see that more budget travelers don’t use this flexibility to save themselves money. While the airline industry has made a science out of screwing people over who need to fly on specific dates, the flexible traveler can often find hundreds of great deals every month if they take advantage of their flexibility. The problem in the past was that nobody, not even budget travelers, had time to check internet airline fares every single day to hundreds of different destinations around the world for hundreds of different date combinations. In this situation the airlines won out, charging high fares for popular travel dates, and making it too difficult to stay on top of more flexible options. However, today things are different. There are now a number of services available on the web that take all the work out of monitoring flexible airfares, and pass that information on to you.

How it works:

The basic idea here is that airfares go on sale every single day. Sometimes these discounts are negligible, but sometimes the fare drops as much as 50%. The problem is that, usually, the only people that notice cheap fares are the people that were already looking to travel to that destination on those particular dates. This is because most travelers choose a destination and time frame first, then search for flights. Budget travelers, however, are different. We’ll go pretty much anywhere, and are usually willing to go at any time of year. This gives us a great edge in taking advantage of discounted airline fares, if only we can stay abreast of all the deals.

Requirements to using flexibility to get cheap airfares:

The only real requirement, is that you must truly be flexible. You can still use the following advice if you are not a flexible traveler, but you will really limit yourself as to the number of deals you can take advantage of if you are not willing to travel any time of the year (many great discounts can be found in low season) and to anywhere on the globe (not just Europe, N. America, and Australia).

The Services:

As I stated in the disclaimer above, the following two services are best used if you are traveling either to or from North America. You will only be able to use FareCompare.com if either your origin or destination city is in North America, and while you can use Kayak.com for searches outside of North America, they do not currently include many of the European and Asian discount operators in their search, which means you will not always be informed of the cheapest fares available.

Kayak’s Buzz: Kayak.com’s Buzz feature is a great tool for monitoring airfares around the world. All you do is register to Kayak’s website and input the fares you would like to track. Kayak will then contact you with the frequency you request for all fares that fall under a particular price level that you set. You can track specific point to point itineraries, for example I track fares from Quito, Ecuador to Washington DC. Or you can track fares from a specific city to an entire region, or popular cities around the world. I currently track fares from Washington DC and New York to Europe and Asia. Every couple of days I receive an email from Kayak informing me of the recent deals that have been found for the itineraries I am interested in. The big downside to Kayak’s service is that it only recognizes low fares to add to its Buzz database AFTER they have been searched for by another user. This means that you may not hear about a discount fare for a few days after it has been released because no Kayak users have searched for it. This also means that a range of dates for which the low fare is offered is not available, only the specific dates that other users have searched for.

Sign Up:

1. Go to Kayak.com, and click on register in the upper right hand corner
2. Fill in the registration page
3. Confirm your email address
4. Sign in to your new account and click on the “Buzz” link at the top of the page
5. Create the fare alerts you want to track, specifying origin, destination, max price, and how often you’d like to receive email alerts
6. Sit back and let the low fares come to you

Farecompare: Farecompare is a new site with a fantastic feature for tracking discounted airfares. The system works much like Kayak’s in that you sign-up, list the itineraries you are interested in tracking, and sit back and wait for them to contact you with great fares. The difference is that while Kayak only reports fares that have already been searched by other users, Farecompare automatically performs it’s own comprehensive searches for all destinations and dates to compile a list that is more accurate and up-to-date than Kayak’s. In fact, because Farecompare works so closely with the airlines, they are actually able to release discounted fares before the airlines themselves do. By staying on top of Farecompare’s listings, customers can ensure they are the first to hear about hot new fares, and can be first in line to purchase, as opposed to finding out a few days later after all the cheap tickets have already sold out.

Sign Up:

1. Go to the Farecompare.com homepage, and enter your email address to signup for “Airfare Deal Alerts” (right side of the screen)
2. You will then be taken to your personal Email Alerts Summary page (no email confirmation required)
3. Create the fare alerts you want to track
4. Sit back and let the low fares come to you

The traveler’s moral dilemma is an issue that all travelers, from backpackers to luxury travel enthusiasts must deal with at some level or another.

The basic idea is that travel/tourism is an exploitative process. Travelers visit sites around the world looking for new experiences, however each new experience involves some level of exploitative consumption or either human resources, environmental resources, or both. In effect the traveler takes something from local ecosystems or communities, without sticking around long enough to give anything back.

The effect itself is obviously quite difficult to quantitatively define, and there are many sides to the argument. Most members of the traveling community, myself included, believe that tourism can be incredibly beneficial to all parties involved if practiced in a responsible manner. However, what does that actually mean, to travel responsibly? What does a responsible traveler do that an irresponsible traveler does not? How can you effectively determine if your unique travel footprint is having a positive effect or a negative one?

These are difficult questions to answer, and ones that I plan to write about in the future. Today, however, I would like to help get the idea of the Traveler’s Moral Dilemma out there, and invite all breeds of traveler to give a little more thought to the concept and how it relates them and their travel style.

The following links contain some great food for thought regarding the concept, and I recommend all my readers check them out, and always keep the Traveler’s Moral Dilemma in the back of your mind:

• Where the Hell is Matt: Traveling Matt’s personal struggle regarding the ethics of travel.
• Privilege and Responsibility: The Role of the 21st Century Traveler: Brave New Traveler article on the responsibilities of the 21st Century Traveler
• The 9 Paradoxes of Modern Tourism: Another Brave New Traveler article exploring the contradictions of modern tourism.
• The True Cost of Travel: World Hum interview with Leo Hickman (author of The Final Call) as he recounts his experience exploring the ugly side of tourism around the world, and gives his opinions on the future of travel.

It’s a common response, after traveling the world, many travelers want to give something back to the communities that so graciously hosted them throughout their journey. This often comes in the form of a monetary donation, but it is important to realize that all donations are NOT equal. Some donations go to wonderful, need-fulfilling, sustainable projects, while others go to unplanned, poorly managed projects, that will likely fail within the next 5 years. Sound like an exaggeration? Well it’s really not. A big problem facing the international development community is not just lack of funding, but mismanagement of the funds that they do have. Just look at this article by World Changing regarding a recent donation by Bicycling Magazine and Kona Bicycles to Botswana, Africa. The donation, in large part was a failure, and a waste of money that could have gone to other programs that really do help poor communities in Botswana. The main problem was simply that Bicycling Magazine and Kona Bicycles did not do any of the necessary research before implementing their project, and committed the cardinal sin in international development, introduced a project that did not have strong local support.

What is a donation?

Before you can make a responsible donation, you have to understand what a donation is. A donation is a purchase, like any other. The only difference is that, with a donation, you are not purchasing a good or service for yourself, but rather for someone else. In most cases this involves donating money to a development organization with the assumption that they will put your money to the most possible good. The problem here is that most people assume that all development organizations are extremely competent, experienced, and make informed decisions. However, the reality is that development organizations are run by the same type service workers that run law offices, banks, or even your local barbershop. Some of them are outstanding, dedicated, and experienced workers who are extremely good at what they do. But the majority are simply average workers living from paycheck to paycheck. Therefore, your goal as a responsible donator is the same as any other responsible consumer, do your homework and ensure that you make a donation to one of the really outstanding organizations that will give you the most bang for your buck.

How to find an Exceptional Project to Donate to:

• Learn: The very first step is to learn as much as possible about the community you are interested in helping. Talk to locals as well as outsiders that have been living and working in those communities for years, and try to get a feel for the real problems facing the community. What are their strengths, weaknesses, what social, or political obstacles need to be overcome, what has worked in the past, and more importantly what has failed in the past?
• Research the product: Research the work that is currently being done in these communities to determine what your different options are as a donator. Most donators simply unload their money on the first organization they find without first researching what all the other options are. Don’t make this mistake, approach this purchase like you would any other, and research the market as opposed to making an impulse buy.
• Assess Need: Is the work being done actually necessary, or does it just sound nice? Building playground equipment sounds like a nice idea, but when people are chronically malnourished and dieing of AIDS, it may not be the best use of your money.
• Assess Competence: Development work is NOT easy. If it were, we would have solved problems like poverty, overpopulation, and environmental degradation a long time a go. The reality is that these are extremely complicated problems, that require complex, and creative solutions from very dedicated and experienced workers in the field. As a responsible donator, you MUST research these organizations. You need to determine who has been around for a while, who is actually in touch with the community, who is realistic, and who has been successful in the past. You will likely find that the number of organizations that meet these 4 requirements compose a very short list, so don’t make the mistake of donating to someone who does not.
• Consider Sustainability: If you can narrow your choice down to one good development organization, you will probably find that they are very concerned with the sustainability of their work. If the modern international development field has taught us one thing, it is that one time aid donations DO NOT work. With any development project a long term plan must be calculated to ensure that systems are set in place and that people are trained in a sustainable way, so that the entire project (and all funding involved) does not fall apart 5-10 years down the road.