With the world economy down the tubes, everyone wants to know how to travel cheaply. Many people think there is some special secret to traveling on a budget, but the fact is, most people can travel cheaply if they put their minds to it. These five steps for budget travel should help you take off on a new adventure without completely bankrupting you.

The first thing that you need to remember about budget travel is that it’s going to require some sacrifices from the things that you might normally expect on a vacation. You’ll want to try to wrap your head around this early on, or else you probably won’t have a very enjoyable trip. It’s no harm to splurge, but learning to do it in moderation is the trick to keeping your travels within budget.

Step 1: Make a budget. This is actually the step that most travelers fail to include, and it’s one of the most important. You absolutely must know how much money you have to spend before you start spending it! Check into your destination and see what prices are like for hotels or hostels, restaurants and daily necessities. Make up a general plan for how much you hope to spend, taking into account your preferences. Are you capable of roughing it in a hostel or do you need a swanky hotel? What will your monetary arrangements allow for? Remember what I said – sometimes you have to sacrifice on things you’re used to, like fancy hotels or dinners out in nice restaurants, to make your budget work.

Step 2: Plan in advance. Budget travel requires some footwork. You need to decide on hostels or hotel rooms early to get good rates. Same goes for plane tickets, as most airline companies raise ticket prices closer to the date of travel. You should book all of this stuff at least three weeks in advance, but you’re better off aiming for two months in advance, to be sure.

Step 3: Don’t pack too much. Overweight luggage costs a pretty penny now. Instead of overfilling your bags with unnecessary extras, plan to buy a few things on the ground when you arrive, such as toiletries. Believe it or not, this is will usually turn out cheaper than paying overweight luggage fees.

Step 4: Eat on the street. I’m serious. Most of the world’s cheapest and best food can be found on the street, and I’m not talking about greasy burgers or grody hot dogs. Think beautiful bread, cheese and wine in France, amazing fresh noodles in China and delicious fish ‘n’ chips in England.

Step 5: Skip the luxuries. I can’t say it enough: budget travel really requires you to skip the extras. You don’t need massages, fancy dinners, swanky cocktails and expensive tours to make your trip wonderful. In fact, most of those things will probably get in the way of really discovering the local treasures.

Instead, opt for free walking tours or take yourself on a self-guided map exploration of the city.

Take the train rather than renting a car, use public transportation and opt for a mid-level hotel (or even a private hostel room) instead of a fancy boutique hotel – they are usually just as nice, if not friendlier.