How to find a cheap place to stay literally anywhere in the world

&#x200B;<br><br>So this is my first post, and I hope you enjoy it. Over the past 3 years I’ve been literally all over the world from the United States, to Central and South America, Europe, Australia and the Middle East, whether it’s working, traveling, or studying abroad. I am also currently on a trip in South America right now, so this is also in real time to help anyone who needs fast advice. I have literally stayed everywhere. From terrible hostels, great hostels, cheap hotels, great hotels, great and bad Airbnb’s, the list goes on. I’ve also figured out how to find a cheap place to stay both last minute and well in advance in literally any city. I know there are a million and one travel guides, but I’m hoping to make this one as comprehensive as possible, and it literally covers everything.<br><br>&#x200B;<br><br>**Introduction**<br><br>My goal for this post it make you realize you don’t have to break the bank to find a place to stay. I literally know people who will pay $150 a night for a hotel, or spend $40,000 a year to live in a terrible studio that’s in the city. Knowing how and where to look will literally save you thousands of dollars both in the short and long run. I’ve also literally stayed everywhere. From dirt cheap hostels, great hostels, Airbnb’s, hotels, the list goes on, and I wish I knew most of this both when I started traveling and when I moved to a new city for work. I will go over literally every single option. Also, some cities will be more difficult to find cheap places to stay. Examples are cities that attract a lot of business or a city that is a major tourist hub. An example of this are cities like New York City or San Francisco. If you ever get the feeling that you aren’t finding anywhere cheap, it’s always good to expand out of the city a bit. There is a city about 30 minutes outside of Buenos Aires called Luján that is both safer and cheaper than the capital itself. Also, I’m currently staying in a 2 bedroom apartment with an in suite bathroom, full kitchen, dining room, living room, and private balcony overlooking the ocean for $250 a month. Yes, some places are more expensive, but you can find deals anywhere.<br><br>&#x200B;<br><br>**Hostels**<br><br>Hostels are a great way to stay cheap, meet people, and most of the time have good locations. I’ve met some life long friends staying in hostels and get a lot of recommendations from them. You can obviously stay in a hostel anywhere, but they are more prominent in cities popular with young travelers. For example it would be difficult to stay at a hostel in a small town in the middle of nowhere. The best places to find hostels are either on booking or Hostelworld. There’s also a lot of other websites to find hostels, but these two are the most prominent. Hostels usually range from $8-25 a night depending on the location and amenities the hostel has. Good hostels will also usually have good reviews, and if they have bad reviews you will know right away. Some hostels will also have private rooms, and some will only have dorms. The private rooms can be a great place to stay if you’re looking for a cheaper place to stay by yourself and don’t mind staying in a hostel. If you look on Hostelworld they have a map view, so you can pick hostels based on their location. I really like using hostelworld to find hostels, but sometimes booking will have cheaper prices, so it’s good to check there too. The one good thing about booking is that they usually don’t have a deposit fee. My least favorite thing about hostels is having to pay a YHA membership fee. This is something you’ll only find in Hostelworld hostels, and is usually a onetime annual fee of $30 or so that you only have to pay once. The reason I don’t like it is that some hostels will only be listed on Hostelworld, so if you find one you have interest in but have to pay the fee it’s annoying. This is why I always check booking for cheaper prices and no membership fee.<br><br>&#x200B;<br><br>**Hotels**<br><br>Hotels are better if you want to stay by yourself, or you find a cheap one. It’s also easier to get a hotel last minute than a hostel. Sometimes hotels will also have cheaper prices than hostels, especially if you’re staying in a not so popular city. Most of the time however, hotels will be more expensive than hostels. There are also a lot of different types of hotels ranging from a 5 star resort, to a Motel 6 on the side of the highway. Hotels will also have private rooms, and can be a better place to stay if you have a family. Usually though to get cheap hotels you will be staying outside of the city, and won’t have as many amenities as a hostel. I stayed in a hotel for 6 months when I moved to New York for work to have somewhere to stay until I found a lease. It was expensive, but worth it. Sometimes hotels will also have deals, and will offer cheaper nightly rate if you stay longer. I’ve only stayed in a couple hotels in my life, and I don’t really know anyone who stays in hotels. Knowing how to find a cheap hotel is nice, but shouldn’t be your go to option unless you find a cheap one.<br><br>&#x200B;<br><br>**Airbnb**<br><br>I love Airbnb, and I think it’s a better option than staying in a hotel. The one downside is you have to wait for the owner to approve you to stay there, and there will usually be a deposit fee. This is why I usually try to stay away from booking an Airbnb last minute. It’s 100% easier to find somewhere to stay last minute in hostels and hotels. There’s also literally endless options for Airbnb’s, so it can be overwhelming. I find the best way to search for an Airbnb is to look at the map view. This will show you where all the Airbnb’s are in relation to the city. The only downside is you can’t see the price in map view, so you have to click on each one to see how much it costs. A lot of Airbnb’s will also be in the city, but there will usually be a bigger selection outside of the city. There’s also endless types of Airbnb’s, from a private room, to a 5 bedroom villa. There will also usually be more fees when booking an Airbnb. The fees are usually a cleaning fee, service fee, and an Airbnb fee. These can add hundreds of dollars onto a booking, so it’s good to calculate those fees in when searching for an Airbnb. Sometimes an Airbnb will look really cheap, but the fees will make the booking a lot more expensive. This is also why it’s good to calculate in the fees when searching for an Airbnb. I usually don’t book an Airbnb right away. I will usually put the city or town I’m heading to into the search bar, and then filter by lowest to highest price. I will then look through literally every single booking. I also usually look for stays that are a little outside of the city, but still have good reviews. A lot of the time you will find places that are significantly cheaper if you stay outside of the city. I also usually only stay in private Airbnb’s because I personally don’t like staying with other people, and like having a place to myself. If you’re traveling with friends or your family it might make more sense to stay in a whole house or apartment. I also don’t like booking with owners who don’t have any other rentals. When you see an owner who has 10 different rentals, you can trust that they have experience, and it’s a good place to stay. Those are just a few tips to get you started. Always make sure to read the reviews, and if it seems too good to be true it usually is. What I mean by this is if an Airbnb is significantly cheaper than the rest of the Airbnb’s in the city, there’s probably something wrong with it.<br><br>&#x200B;<br><br>**Booking**<br><br>Booking is another great way to find a place to stay. Whether it’s a hostel, hotel, or someone’s house, booking has it all. I use booking a lot, especially if I’m staying somewhere for just a night or two. Booking also has a lot of last minute deals, so if you show up to a city without anywhere to stay you can almost always find somewhere to stay on booking. One thing with booking is they have something called Genius. If you stay a certain number of nights you can become a Genius member, which will give you discounts on almost every booking. I’m currently a Genius+ member, and get 20% off almost every booking. Booking also doesn’t have any membership fees, so that’s a bonus. Literally all you have to do is make an account and you get the discounts. If you look on the map view, you will be able to see all the different types of bookings and where they’re located. If you look at the picture below you can see the legend. You can also filter by lowest to highest price. There is also usually more options on booking than any other platform, and the prices will also usually be cheaper. The only downside is sometimes you get booked into a random persons house, but they can usually direct you to a hotel or something. I still trust booking more than Airbnb, and use it way more often. I’ve also had way fewer issues with booking compared to Airbnb. I will definitely send you to a random persons house, but the owner usually speaks good English and can direct you to your stay. I will say though it’s nice because on booking the prices