On the road? Dine in tonight

One of the biggest (and most variable) cost centres of travelling is your food. Your food costs can literally make or break your piggy bank when you are travelling.

 

You already know the huge cost savings when you’re eating in at home, but what about if you applied some of the same strategy when you are on the road.

Pick your room carefully

Do your room research carefully.  Wherever possible, get yourself a room with some kitchen facilities in it. This can vary widely as room descriptions can be very subjective (i.e. one man’s kitchenette is another man’s mini fridge and microwave).

It’s helpful to have somewhere to store and reheat food, as a baseline.

Not just for coffee

While your in-room coffee pot is great for brewing your cup of morning joe before you venture out, it has many uses. Fancy a warm bowl of oatmeal? Pour water in the reservoir and oatmeal in the carafe.

You can even poach chicken, by covering a boneless chicken breast with water with seasonings in the carafe. You’ll need to flip it after about 10 minutes to make sure it cooks evenly. You can also steam veggies in the basket for a full meal.

Bring your slow cooker

Planning ahead can really save you money, and this is particularly true when it comes to your slow cooker. Pour a bag of frozen meatballs in your slow cooker and cover with BBQ sauce. Dinner is served when you return to your hotel room. Microwave a bag of rice and add a bagged salad and you are good to go.

Bring your cooler

Make sure that you’ve got something with you that you can pack snacks and drinks- or even lunch- for when you are out touring.

Your cooler can even do double duty if you are low on fridge space (or if you don’t have one at all).