Ah money, a common worry for all backpackers, new and old, how much money should I take? How do I access money abroad? Which money card should I take? Should I use a money belt?

This is just the tip of the iceberg. But seriously, calm down, if you plan accordingly you really shouldn't have too many money worries, I'm not including the un-foreseeable stuff, totalling a moped in Koh Samui for instance, this will set you back allot, and I'm not just talking about the medical bills.

I've never really worked on a daily budget, I use a rough estimate and it works for me. I have seen people with detailed note books of their daily transactions, hey, each to their own, what ever works for you, just try and figure out a daily budget, and stick to it, more or less.

How much should your daily budget be? Well that really depends on where you are? If you're in Se Asia, especially Vietnam or Laos, you can survive on $10 a day, $15's and you'll be more comfortable. If you're in Hong Kong, well, you'll need around $30 - $40 a day. Accommodation's a killer in this town.

The trick is to live where you can afford, I've seen allot of fresh faced backpackers blow most of their one year budget in a few months in Sydney, Australia... Yes, it's a fun city, but you're paying western prices for it. So, unless you're minted, best to move on to South East Asia, why pay $5 for a beer when you can pay $1, sometimes even less, ah Vietnam.

I'd also recommend sorting out a decent bank card before you go, transaction fees can range form 1% to 3.5%, if you're budget's $15,000, that's the difference between $150 $525 in fees.

Make sure you have 2 bank cards, and keep them separate, you really don't want to be dealing with the hassle of having them sent from the other side of the world. This is how Money Transfer companies make their money, their fees are almost 10%, they've saved my ass on 2 occasions, but I wouldn't like to make a habit of it.

As for Money belts, don't bother, you really shouldn't have all your cash, passports on your person anyway, they should be secure in you main backpack, or hand luggage.

I hope this has cleared up some of the issues with using money abroad.

If you'd like some more easily digestible advice on backpacking, or to read some of my tales from the road, head on over to my blog, http://www.planitbackpacker.com/

There's lots of things I could have done better when I first set out on the big solo backpacking adventure. You learn by your mistakes I guess. If you're new to backpacking, why not learn from mine.

Happy Backpacking!