5 Pro Tips From Wellness Bloggers for Healthy and Cheap Travel

Nicole Jenet of the Healthy Travel Blog notes that vacations can positively impact health and increase productivity. But how can travelers incorporate wellness into a getaway while keeping finances in check?

1. Take a walking tour

Walking tours are a great two-in-one. They are a way to affordably see a new area, and incorporate physical activity into the day. Mary Kalymnou of Maryhop, Jia Singh of Wandering for Wellness and Rebecca Shern of Minimal Wellness all write that walking tours help maintain fitness while traveling, in addition to the potential cost savings of skipping taxis or subway fares. Travel to Wellness highlights running tours, too, for a more vigorous workout.

2. Pack your own healthy snacks from home

It can be tempting to want to save money by eating at the airport lounge or free hotel breakfast buffet. While these can sometimes hit the spot, they can also sometimes hit the unhealthy meter too hard — often with carb-laden pastries or other sugary snacks. Augment those meals with other healthy items that are compact enough to pack in our carry-on, such as beef jerky or protein bars.

And if you're heading to a humid area — or will simply be sweating more than usual — it's extra-important to stay hydrated. Drink extra water, but consider supplementing with electrolyte powders you can mix into your glass, too.

3. Keep your travel budget separate

Stressing about money on your trip isn’t relaxing. Alexandria Drake says it’s a good idea to open a separate savings account for travel and to set up an automatic transfer with each paycheck. Keeping your finances separate can help maintain your peace of mind as you save for travel. A great way to cut back on expenses is to redeem travel rewards credit cards points when booking. Keeping your travel budget separate also allows you to really unplug when you travel, and Sam Wormser from The Salty Twig reminds us there’s nothing worse than ruining a trip because you’re overwhelmed with other things.

4. Get a side hustle while you're traveling

Wondering how to fund that separate savings account? Amie Tollefsrud for MindBodyGreen suggests starting a location-independent business, otherwise known as a #sidehustle. One fun idea is housesitting or pet-sitting in the location you are visiting.

Olivia Christine Perez, who blogs about her travels on O. Christine, frequently housesits for weeks at a time. Even for short getaways, pet- or housesitting can give homeowners peace of mind and allows the sitter to save on accommodation costs.

5. Don't just side hustle — work fully abroad

If you wish to go beyond a side hustle, you could work full time abroad as well. Alex Jaskolowska from Travel and Keep Fit has traveled to 75 countries and counting while working as a psychologist and doing research. Mairead Denton of the Healthy Travel Blog talks about becoming a yoga instructor and taking those classes abroad, too.

But above all, it’s important to remember that time is as important as money while traveling. While that doesn’t mean go wild with spending, it does mean to relax and enjoy what comes your way while traveling. Ed Harrold for Pravassa recommends if times do get chaotic, try breathing exercises or meditation. This will allow you to reset and get your mind back into why you are traveling in the first place.

How to maximize your rewards

You want a travel credit card that prioritizes what’s important to you. Here are our picks for the best travel credit cards of 2022, including those best for: