Planning a training trip to Brazil is as expensive as you want to make it. If you’re on a budget, here are two of my best tips to still be able to go and live the jiu jitsu lifestyle:
Getting the cheapest flights
There is an art to finding the cheapest flights. First you will use a comparison site like Kayak.com, skyscanner.net or Google Flights. Be flexible with your dates. Most of these sites will show you which days the flights are cheaper. The more flexible you are, the easier it is to find a cheap flight.
When you’ve found the flight, the best option is usually to go to the site of the airline and book it there instead of clicking-through on Kayak or Skyscanner. These sites will usually gain a fee for every person that buys a flight through their site, making it more expensive for you. I like to find my flights through these websites and then book the cheapest option straight from the airline’s site. Make sure that the flight is still the cheapest when you include luggage, service fees and sometimes even the fee of paying by credit card.
Eating cheap and healthy foods
It’s very cheap to eat healthy in Brazil. You will have to do most of the cooking yourself though. When eating out, healthy options can be very expensive. I like to use Sunday’s to prepare my meals for the week. They consist of at least three ingredients:
- A protein (minced meat, steak, chicken)
2. A starch (Rice, potatoes, sweet potatoes)
3. Vegetables (carrots, collard greens, zucchini, bell peppers)
Season well with salt, pepper and a broth cube and you’ll eat healthy and cheap for the rest of your stay. You can come up with endless variations with these options alone, and of course you can swap out any of the options I gave you for something else. Prepping like this shouldn’t cost you much more than R$5 per meal. Eat eggs with bread for breakfast, the prepped meal for lunch and maybe some pasta with chicken/minced meat and tomato sauce for dinner. R$10 to R$15 for a full day of nutritious food.
In the guide there are several other tips for travelers with a budget. Where to stay, how to have fun for free, how to get around and even how to make money on your trip.
To learn more, get the free e-book on Brazil’s best places here:
https://www.degrootbjj.com/train-in-brazil
