1. Choosing a destination.
Depending on where you are traveling to, you could be in for your money. Certain places such as Thailand where the plane ticket will cost you, but once you’re there most things are inexpensive. The cheapest bowl of noodles you can buy in Thailand is 20 cents in USD. With that being said, you have to look at the currencies in the country you are traveling to. Do your research!
2.Time of the year.
Wherever you go, there is a high and low season for tourist. Right before or after the high seasons are the best and cheapest times to travel. When my boyfriend and I went to Rome, we went in early May, right before the high season began. For us, it was the perfect weather- time and still inexpensive. Coming back home in June we notice many tourists now filled the streets of Rome, compared with when we arrived we seemed to be the only Americans.
3. Stay in a hostel.
A Hostel is an establishment that provides inexpensive food and lodging for a specific group of people such as students, workers, or travelers. Although you may not get much privacy because you share room and bathroom, you do get to open up yourself to meet new friends across the world. This is ideal if you are looking for a local experience, you're a nomad, wanting to meet new people, to save money, and/or traveling alone. This is the cheapest way to travel.
4. Stay in an Airbnb.
Hotels can get very costly when staying over a period of time, such as a week or more. You can get the same quality and treatment staying in an Airbnb just as you would in a hotel. You'll avoid many fees that a hotel would charge you. Airbnb gives you the ability to live more like a local for less.
5. Plan as early as possible.
Most times waiting too long to book certain things will cost you and end up spending more money, especially booking activities you are choosing to do once you arrive on your vacation. Lots of times when i'm booking a scuba diving trip, if I purchase my dives online before I arrive I end up saving money rather then waiting when I get there to purchase. If you buy your flight, hotel, and excursions before arriving all you will need to worry about is food and drinks.
6. Package deals.
Sometimes when you buy a flight and hotel together you save money. At times this is not always the case. Always search hotels and flights separately first to make sure you are getting the deal you deserve! If your not looking to stay on an all-inclusive resort the whole stay, don’t book it. All-inclusive are ONLY worth your money if you use ALL the amenities at your hotel!
7. Travel with Kids.
Take advantage of free flights with children under 2 years of age on your lap. Many times when traveling with kids under a certain age, they’re free or get a discount.
8. Pack light.
Taking a carry- on bag saves you a ton of your money! A carry-on bag could cost 30$ and up just one way!! Did I mention, if you go over the weight limit you even have to pay extra!! Just imagine 60$ for a checked bag and that's if its not overweight. That could be the cost of riding a jet ski or doing something much more enjoyable on vacation rather than paying for luggage.
9. Credit Cards.
If you travel out of the country, frequently you might want to sign up for a credit card that you could swipe internationally. Numerous cards overseas have a foreign transaction fee your bank charges you. I'm not the person to carry around a lot of cash on me, so I wish I knew this when I first started traveling out of the country! Every time I swiped my card I was getting charged at least 5$ just to take out my OWN money!! What a robbery!
Get a new credit card! Banks will give you cash back and/or travel credit when opening up a new account! Recently, I opened up a Chase preferred card that allows me to use my card internationally without charging me a fee. After opening up the card you get 50,000 bonus points that equal to 625$ in travel credit! The only catch is in order to get these point you have to spend $4,000 within the first 3 months. If your planning to buy a big expense, you should consider putting it on the card you choose to open up to get the extra bonus! When applying for this card, I was already planning to have LASIK eye surgery, so I really didn’t have to do much shopping around. My advice is to NEVER open up A card unless you have at least half the money to avoid debt.
Search all travel credit cards before applying for a credit card. All cards are different! Choose one that goes according to your lifestyle. Look for a card that fits your budget because most do have an annual fee. The ones that do have annual fees, do give you a better offer for what you can get back. Pick one that you know you will use on frequent purchase to rack up reward points!
10. Spend money wisely.
Decide what you really want in life. There are many people that spend money on designer clothes and bags but ask how can they find money to travel. The same money spent on a Louis Vuitton bag is the same price you could have gone to Mexico with for a whole week or more! When you really want something you will find the money for it and save.
Traveling is the most rewarding experience. Why not travel more for less?!
