Hi, I am Oliver Bennett

I am the person who reads hotel price lists for fun. I have spent eight years tracking what travel actually costs — not what the brochures say, but what real people pay at the counter.

I live in Brighton, UK, in a flat that costs too much, with two cats named Biscuit and Gravy who have never left the country but have excellent taste in cardboard boxes.

MSc Economics, Sussex (2015) 8 Years Travel Cost Research 40+ Countries Visited 200+ Traveller Interviews

Why I Built This

In 2018, I planned a three-month trip to Southeast Asia. I budgeted £3,000 based on a blog post I found. I spent £4,800. The blog had not mentioned visa fees, ATM charges, or the fact that I would get food poisoning twice and need a pharmacy budget.

I came home annoyed, broke, and determined. I started interviewing every traveller I met. I collected spreadsheets. I built calculators. Eventually, I had enough data to build Travel Budget Pro.

My Approach

I do not guess. I use real booking data, interview real travellers, and update estimates quarterly. If a city gets more expensive, I raise the numbers. If a new budget airline opens a route, I lower them.

I also believe in honesty. If I make a mistake in an estimate, I fix it and admit it. If a tool is not working perfectly, I say so. Travel budgeting is messy. Pretending otherwise helps nobody.

When I Am Not Working

I run a local pub quiz in Brighton that is far too competitive. I bake sourdough bread with mixed success. I collect vintage travel guidebooks from the 1970s, mostly for the terrible advice about "exotic" destinations. I once got lost in a Tokyo subway station for 45 minutes despite having a map. I am still annoyed about it.

Get in Touch

If you have a travel budget story, a spreadsheet you are proud of, or a question about hidden costs, email me at contact@travelbudgetpro.org. I read everything. I reply slowly, but I reply.