5 Easy Ways to Save Money on Meals While Traveling

Food is a necessity, and so it will always be one of the major expenses for anyone going on a trip or vacation.

Along with hotel bills, food costs while traveling can quickly add up. Fortunately, there are many ways to please your palate on a trip without breaking the bank.

What is the secret? this is the 5 easy ways to save money on meals while traveling.

Eat like the locals, Hit the Streets

Some of the best budget food in the world comes from street vendors. It is hearty and cheap, and permits you to eat to your fill without shelling out too much money. Rather than patronize recommended tourist restaurants and cafes (which are usually overpriced) in the town you are visiting, ask questions and find out where the locals eat.

Ask the hotel staff or even your taxi driver about their favorite food joints, and you are more likely to end up with an affordable meal, also, you gain a more authentic dining experience as you savor local specialties. To avoid food poisoning, be sure the meal is served hot, check out the environs of the hotel or eatery as it will give you a hint on how thorough their hygiene routine is.

Lodge in accommodations with in-room kitchens

This option may seem stressful, but it is a very viable one. Instead of eating at restaurants for every breakfast, lunch, and dinner throughout your trip, consider booking a hotel room with a kitchenette and then visit the local market or grocery stores for ingredients to cook your own meals.

Staying in a place with a kitchen can do wonders for your budget, and your taste buds as well, as you get to have meals that suit your particular taste, seeing as you will be making them with the condiments that you prefer.

Search for discounts, deals and free vouchers

Meal deals and dining coupons are always available, you just need to find them and the internet is usually a big help.

Scour the internet. Scope out hotel deals and packages that include daily breakfast to help cut costs, or that offer credits towards meals at the hotel restaurant to offset the cost of dining out every time.

If you are in Nigeria, hellofood.com is a good start. You are bound to find discounts for meals and coupons for popular restaurants, grocery stores, and bars in the place you will be visiting.

Vouchers can also be found at your hotel, the airport, bus or train stations, or any other location that caters to tourists. Newspapers and magazines also include vouchers in ad sections for discounted meals and entertainment.

Keep alcohol intake on the low

Experiencing a unique, regional craft beer or wine might be high on your list but it is best to keep alcohol intake generally on the low. Alcohol has a way of making you stray from being budget-minded to splurging extravagantly.

The best way to keep on budget is to avoid alcoholic beverages altogether. To maximize your savings, stick to water or fruit juices. If you can, bring powdered drink mixes to compliment your meals.

Draft a detailed meal budget

Most people tend to neglect the cost of feeding while planning a budget for a trip. They focus on the price of airfares, hotels and transportation.

It is essential to research the place you are traveling to and consider available restaurant options, and estimate how much you could possibly spend per meal. By doing that, you will have a set amount to spend per meal and you will know how to regulate the frequency of the meals for the time you will be on the trip.

There will only be a slim chance of you blowing your budget on an impulsive dinner at that fancy restaurant you know is way out of your price range.

By Jovago team

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Travel Cuisine: 5 Nigerian meals you can make with $5 or less

Are you visiting in Nigeria and looking for ways to cut down expenses by sticking to a low budget meal? The key to achieving your goal would be to look for healthy foods that are versatile nutritious and can be made for $5 or less. Usually, with most of the staple items gotten from the local markets scattered around the country, you will be able to a variety of easy, inexpensive meals.

However, to make things easier, we, have a list of five dollar or less dinners, lunches or breakfast ideas that will help you feed yourself and maybe even a guest, delicious and nutritious meals that fit your budget.

Nigerian Jollof rice

‘Boring’ will never be a word to describe this popular Nigerian meal. Jollof rice is one of the most simple and the easy Nigerian foods to make . It is always a favorite option for the thrifty as it is not only delicious and nutritious , it comes together with ingredients that you already have. Also, it tastes good whether served hot or cold. To prepare this meal, you need: 1/2 Kg Chicken: costs about N300 ($1.20), 1 cup of rice: costs about N100 ($.50),  Ground fresh tomatoes: costs about N50($.25) per tin, ground fresh pepper Onions, spices, groundnut oil, salt, cubes of knorr/maggi and dried crayfish: optional. The meal takes about 45 minutes to 1 hour to get cooked, depending on your cooking methods. The end product however will have you clamouring back for seconds.  You definitely want to start with this meal if you are new to Nigerian foods.

Yam porridge

Yet another simple meal, yam porridge will make a great main dish for midweek lunch. A staple food in Nigeria, it is quite popular in the western part of Nigeria and is known as Asaro or Ebe. Mainly yam cooked with few ingredients and little or no vegetable, the resulting dish contains some soupy liquid. Main Ingredient include White Puna yam: costs about N300 ($1.20)for a medium size tuber, Red palm Oil: costs about N200($1) for 50c, smoked mackerel fish : costs about N300 per whole fish($1.50), onion, ground crayfish, fresh green vegetable (eg pumpkin, parsley, scent leaf or green amaranth), habanero or chili Pepper & Salt (to taste), and of course, stock cubes. This meal is satisfying both taste- and budget-wise.

Okro soup

This meal is the perfect perfection as  it is very easy to prepare and likely the cheapest soup in Nigeria. Also known as the Lady finger’s soup, or locally referred to as Ofe okwuru (ibo), Obe ila(Yoruba) or Miyan Kubewa(hausa), this soup can be made chunky or smooth and eaten alone (if you are a weight watcher), or paired with Eba or pounded yam. To prepare  this meal, you need the following ingredients: Okra (a medium size bowl full), Fluted Pumpkin leaves (optional), Stock fish, meat (beef, chicken, turkey, etc), dry fish or smoked fish(optional), stock cubes, palm oil, salt, ground crayfish and pepper to taste. You can get quantities of each of the main ingredient from the local market for as low as N100($.50) each, except for meat which you can get ½ kilo from as low as N200 ($1). Throw this simple but satisfying meal together and your wallet will thank you.

Yam and Garden egg sauce

Get your dose of protein and fibre with yam and garden egg sauce. A great choice for a quick weeknight dinner, the meal is quick, easy and flavorful. For the sauce, you can make use of any type of garden egg available to you, including Aubergines. You will also need the following ingredients:  Garden eggs, palm oil, onion, smoked mackerels, Habanero Pepper & Salt (to taste), ogiri okpei/ iru(optional). Like the Okro soup, you can get quantities of the main ingredients from the local market for as low as N100($.50) .For the yam, you  will need a tuber of yam which you will just have to peel, cut and boil separately with salt. The entire meal takes about 45 minutes to prepare. The perfect meal for weight watchers and a budget friendly meal option, some of the benefits of this mean include effective weight loss as well as lowering blood cholesterol and eye pressure in glaucoma.

Moi Moi

This high-protein meal will have you salivating. One of the most popular dishes in Nigeria, Moi Moi is made from pureed beans. The process of making this meal is a bit complicated, but the end result is always a delight. Usually, a special kind of beans (Black eyed beans) is used for making beans pudding in Nigeria, but you can substitute with any other type of beans if you live outside Nigeria. Other ingredients include: Onions,Red bell pepper (Tatashe),Scotch bonnet pepper (ata rodo), Ground crayfish , Palm oil, stock cubes (Maggi) and Salt . Purchasing all ingredients will cost less than $4 at the local market. Moi Moi can be eaten alone or paired with other meals such as Pap (akamu, Ogi) or soaked garri; or it can also be served as a side to such meals as fried rice e.t.c

By Rita

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Food from around the continent- Jovago

We took a tour of Africa to explore its people and cuisine and discovered some of the most spectacular dishes across the land. In the spirit of camaraderie, Africa’s largest hotel booking website – Jovago.com – showcases mouthwatering delicacies to look out for on a visit to Nigeria, where Ofada rice is a favourite, Kenya with its array of Nyoma Choma as well as other countries listed below.

Enjoy!

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