Travel-Saving Tips for Explorers
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Do you find yourself being stingy or overspending on a vacation?
Whether unconscious or not, it affects your experience.
Read on for ways to have fun within a healthy budget.
Scrooges leave the soda crackers at home, while excessive spenders think hard before booking a private boat for $300 an hour.
Hi, Faye here, a mother of two who has tried both ways above and failed at having a good time without the guilt of my behavior.
To quote Mickey Rooney, “You always pass failure on your way to success.”
I overdid it, saying yes, sure, okay, why not, hell yeah, only live once, of course, we’re on vacation to almost every desire before I nearly maxed out the credit card.
Once the vacation was over, the burden of debt and guilt of acting financially irresponsible hit me like a bullet train.
On the other spectrum, I acted like my mom and rationed out oddly warm boxes of raisins.
I was irritated using my mom’s cliche responses like: no, no, no, because I said so, no, do you have money for that? Sigh.
“Your present circumstances don’t determine where you can go; they merely determine where you start. ”
Let’s get to the five ways I’ve learned to travel and save within my budget guilt-free while keeping the fun factor of the destination!
Creating a healthy budget is everything.
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5 Easy Ways to Save on Your Next Trip
An experience-a-day
Public transportation
BONUS: Travel in the off-season
Home Vacation Rentals
Expedia, Vrbo, and Travelocity are great options for families to save with a home vacation rental and have a more local experience.
Imagine a family of five cramming into a standard-size hotel room for $200 a night. It feels tight, right?
Now imagine the same family in a three-bedroom condo that sleeps eight and has all the amenities of a hotel for the same price.
The second option is the money saver: not only do you have more space to relax in, but there's also a kitchen to prepare meals that can save a bunch of money.
If your kids are anything like mine, they are constantly grazing, attempting to fill their bottomless stomachs.
Eating out can be quite an expense on vacation, so eliminate some of the cost!
Get creative with where you sleep - a cabin in the mountains, a condo on the beach, or a house with a private pool; so many possibilities.
Discount apps for activities and attractions
Many are familiar with GROUPON’s local discount marketplace for events, dining, activities, and services.
I research Groupon for budget-friendly activities to do on my trips.
Sightseeing Pass specializes in attraction passes, an option for people who want more of a tourist-focused option.
Another option is LivingSocial, similar to Groupon, which offers local deals and events.
An experience a day
For the experienced traveler, the urge to see and do as much as possible in a new destination is similar to that of a child in a candy store wanting to pick up everything.
However, with some research, you can plan what you’d like to do ahead of the trip and budget accordingly.
For help with budgeting tips, check out my blog, Savvy Traveler’s Secrets.
For the more spontaneous travelers, wake up and pick an activity within your planned daily budget.
For budget-friendly activities, my blog, Thrifty’s Travelers Guide, can help.
For example, if you go to a waterfall, bring food and toys like a drone, an underwater camera case, or a snorkel set.
You can save money with this simple practice and engage more in the activity.
There will be less rush to move on to the next thing when you make a day out of it.
Use public transportation
Depending on the location, renting a car can be expensive and unnecessary.
For example, hotels charge between $15-$45 a day for parking, and cities can charge $4 an hour for street parking, and that’s if you can find a parking space.
The alternative is public transportation including trolleys, trains, bikes, buses, ride-share, and motorized scooters.
For example, Miami Beach, FL, hotels offer a complimentary bike service (check with your hotel).
Citibike is another option to rent bikes from stations around the city.
Glamping
If you’re considering taking a road trip, save money by glamping in an RV.
Driving in a car?
Consider staying in a mini cabin at a lux KOA campground that offers showers, a pool, a store, and activities for the kids (each location varies). They also offer an RV park.
Did I mention how much kids like it?
If you’d rather glamp inside an RV, the cost is similar to a hotel, ranging between $100-$500 a day, depending on the size and location.
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They sleep between 5-10 people and can save money by cooking in the camper or on the grill.
RVShare.com is the Airbnb of RVs, rentals by owners.
It’s worth looking for a lower price than companies like Cruise America RV, the most popular RV rental company in the United States and often the most expensive.
BONUS: Travel in the off-season
Many places like Florida, New York, Nashville, Costa Rica, Europe, and Puerto Rico have an off-season. Check bundles on Travelocity or Expedia for discounts.
In the U.S. the North’s off-season is November - February when the weather is cooler and the South’s off-season is June-September when the weather is hot.
Costa Rica’s rainy season begins in May and ends in November, this is considered off-season there.
The cheapest time to fly to Europe is November, January, and February during its cold months.
Imagine planning a trip to Miami when it’s half the price in September than in November, not to mention less crowded.
No fighting for beach chairs, no lines for gelato, jet ski rentals a quarter of the regular price, and so much more for cheaper.
Off-season travel saves several hundred or even thousands of dollars when you combine savings for airfare, accommodations, food, and activities.
Staying within your budget doesn’t have to ruin an experience. It can make it more fun!
Cheers to your Happy Travels and a Happy Wallet.
Remember to Subscribe for a FREE Travel Planning Guide! Get free resources to make traveling planning on a budget easy and more fun.
