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Featured Budgeting Articles

Budget Travel Tips 101
Everyone loves to travel (almost everyone). I certainly do. Believe it or not, doing it right and doing it on a budget takes a little skill, knowledge and practice. But the required skills are not difficult, the knowledge required is easy to obtain, and ...

Create and Maintain a Budget
The first step to avoiding the troubles of financial debt is to create and maintain a budget. It's not as intimidating as it sounds, don't worry. First off, create a list of all your monthly income and also a list of your monthly expenses. When ...

Home Based Business Marketing On a Tight Budget
Of course new home businesses have some monetary restraints, however that does not mean that marketing should be overlooked. In fact, marketing is the best way to get your company and services noticed and to increase revenue. So, marketing on a tight ...




Lightweight backpacking for the budget traveler
 
When most people hear the term budget travel, they often think first of the hordes of young backpackers who traverse Europe on shoestring budgets each summer. This image is very true, and backpacking is one of the best ways to see the most sights, in the shortest amount of time and for the smallest amount of money.

Backpacking is one of the very best ways to travel light, and traveling light often allows you to travel more cheaply. Learning how to back your backpack the right way and to pack as lightly as possible, is an important skill, whether you are trekking through Europe for a month or just enjoying a weekend in the country.

The first thing is to start with a lightweight but well built backpack that is able to withstand the rigors of travel. A quality backpack should have heavy zippers, pockets and flaps that close easily and stay closed, and lots of easy accessible compartments. Buying a backpack with a lock can be important as well, particularly if your backpack will be out of sight often, such as when you are on a crowded train or staying at a hotel or hostel.

Another good alternative for many backpackers and other budget traveler is to buy a backpack that has wheels. The upside of such a design, of course, is that the backpack will be easy to wheel from place to place, and will function much like a rolling carryon suitcase, but without the bulk.

The downside of the rolling backpack, however, is that such backpacks are considerably heavier when you do have to use them as backpacks. Whether or not a backpack on wheels is right for you will depend on your style of travel and your personal preferences.

Of course what you put in your backpack is just as important as the backpack itself. It is important to pack wisely when planning for your backpack adventure. A good approach is to pack only a few quality and versatile items of clothing and combine them in new ways for variety. Packing a few accessories, such as scarves, ties and jewelry, are a great way to make the clothes you pack go further. They take up little room in the backpack, and they can provide new ways to wear the same clothes.

It is also important to pack travel size toiletry items into your backpack. Shampoos, conditioners, deodorants, toothpaste and even toothbrushes all come in small travel sizes, so be sure to gather these travel size items for your trip. These travel size items are a great way to keep the weight of your backpack to a minimum.

It is also important to buy a good pair of comfortable walking shoes, since you will be wearing them for a long time. Shoes take up a great deal of space in a suitcase or backpack, so stick with one pair of good shoes, and use the rest of your backpack for clothes and other items.

One good rule of thumb when deciding what to pack and what to leave at home is to pack those items that are not easily or cheaply purchased at your destination, and leave behind those items you can easily purchase once you arrive.

One important consideration for those who wear glasses is to pack an extra pair of eyeglasses. The importance of this tip will depend on the strength of your prescription and how important your glasses are go getting around. Most people who wear glasses have at least one extra pair. Investing in a hard sided case and packing it in your backpack could potentially save you a lot of money and trouble if you lose or break your glasses.









About the author:

Tony Robinson has travelled extensively throughout this wonderful planet with his family in tow. For great travel saving tips, techniques and articles on visit http://www.budget-travel-site.com



Budgeting News


Water Sector Calls for Accurate Budgeting, Local Experts Utilization
AllAfrica.com
By Bilham Kimati, 19 May 2012 ACCURATE budgeting of water projects away from exaggeration of the estimates together with effective utilization of local experts is among strategies proposed to end water blues in Dar es Salaam before end of next year.

and more »

Christian Science Monitor

How to fix flawed Medicare budgeting
Christian Science Monitor
Budgeting for Medicare's hospital insurance program is flawed. Here are two ways to fix it (and one way not to). By Donald Marron, Guest blogger / May 18, 2012 This 2005 file photo shows of trays of printed social security checks waiting to be mailed ...
Fixing Medicare's Double-Counting ProblemForbes

all 40 news articles »

Budgeting in Times of Uncertainty: Insight From 3 Hospital CFOs
Becker's Hospital Review
In a session moderated by Holly Carnell, JD, associate at McGuireWoods at the Becker's Hospital Review Annual Meeting on May 17 in Chicago, three hospital CFOs shared their insights on the most challenging aspects of budgeting and managing finances ...

and more »

Students learn about budgeting during Reality Town
News Virginian
Created in 1997 by Jane Parker, a middle school business teacher, Reality Town was developed to teach students about budgeting, fiscal responsibility and the importance of education. “I think it's great,” said Marsha Sensabaugh, an economics and ...


Poor Budgeting Crippled Company
AllAfrica.com
By Jan Poolman, 18 May 2012 THE financial mess that TransNamib finds itself in cannot only be attributed to poor control and ignorance of policy guidelines, but started with a number of weaknesses identified during the annual preparation of its budget.

and more »