5 Ways to Make Travel Affordable
“But I can’t afford to travel”
This is the number one reason why people tell me they don’t travel (followed closely by lack of time, but that’s a WHOLE other post). I want to debunk this myth today. While travel does cost money, it doesn’t have to be overly expensive or unaffordable. In fact, there are so many ways to bring travel within your reach. Here are some of the ways I make traveling frequently a reality instead of just a dream.
One caveat for this post: I understand that I write this from a place of unbelievable blessing, having a job, home and no one depending on me financially. So what is affordable to me could be entirely different than what it means to you. If you truly don’t have the finances to go somewhere far, don’t be discouraged, there are ways to get the joys of travel within your own cities and circles for little to no money and I will be sure to write more about these kinds of trips soon!
1. Be Spontaneous and Flexible!
First things first, learn to be flexible and do some yoga. Just Keeeding. On the real though, being fluid and adaptable is my number one money saving tip. This doesn’t work for people who want to go somewhere for a specific event. If you want to see Christmas Markets in Vienna there’s no room for flexibility to travel in April because they just won’t be there. However, if you don’t mind a little spontaneity you can save ridiculous amounts of money. Being open with your dates based on when prices are low seems easy enough, but who has time to sit around and watch different deals from airlines or see when demand forces prices down temporarily. Luckily, there are sites that do the work for us. There are lots of them, some free and some paid that you can visit online and some will send you emails when there are great deals or mistake fares available. The one site that has given me the biggest return is Scotts Cheap Flights.
Anytime there’s a great deal, they will send their listserve the deal. If you pay $39 for premium membership, you can get the best deals sent to you first. If you utilize just one deal in a year, the money will be well spent. The catch is that the deals are usually only valid for a few hours or days and mistake fares are only good until the airline realizes (and sometimes they are not honored). You have to be willing to make travel decisions quickly, which if you’re depending on a lot of other people for input or are generally indecisive, won’t work. However, the payoff can be amazing. Last year, I got a Scotts Cheap Flights email and the very same day, booked a roundtrip nonstop ticket to Italy for under $350. Italy has always been on my “one day” lists and I had no plans to go in the present however, when the opportunity presented itself, I took it! The money I saved on flights meant there was more I could allocate to other things like food and experiences. (Ps: I’m not affiliated with Scott’s Cheap Flights, I just love their service!)
There are so many ways to be flexile with your travel plans besides flights. Here are three more that could be game changers.
- Try hostels or shared accommodations - This is definitely not one everyone will enjoy or use but these types of rooms are insanely cost effective.
- Consider overnight buses and trains - Instead of spending money on flights and then hotels, you could just make your transportation your lodging for the night
- Eat Street food - I would recommend this whether you're trying to save or not. It's not only much cheaper but it's often more authentic and in all likelihood super delicious.
Being a little impulsive and adaptable will not only save you money but some of my favorite travel memories are from my most impromptu decisions.
2. Give Travel the (cold) Shoulder
The best times to travel anywhere, in my opinion, are in the shoulder seasons. If you’re not familiar with that term, don’t worry I wasn’t either, but now that I’ve learned about it, I’m never going back. Shoulder seasons are the months between low and high seasons, the best typically being the month or two directly before and after peak travel season for that destination. So why travel in the shoulder season? There are so many reasons. First, because this whole post is about saving money, you will save significantly on flights and hotels. Since the tourists in troves haven’t arrived yet, resorts and hotels will offer special discounts and packages. They still want to fill their rooms so you might be able to score some sweet upgrades while you’re at it. My absolute favorite part of the shoulder seasons are the lack of crowds. The top sightseeing destinations will not be nearly as packed and you may be able to get reservations at some of the hottest restaurants in town. The downside to a shoulder season is that not everything may be set up and ready for tourists depending on how far from peak season you go. There are some places that will only be open dependent on the weather, so the shoulder season might affect what you can do. From my experience though, it’s the best way to find the best pricing while exploring cities when they are much less crowded.
3. Keep Tabs on Your Flights
Flights are often the most daunting cost of a trip, especially when you’re going somewhere far away. Having specific dates and destination might make you think you’re stuck with the price you’re seeing but that’s not true. Before you dive in, you should know how far in advance to start looking. Every travel guru and source has different ideas on what the magic number of weeks is, and many of them are backed by flight data. I have zero data but based on my experiences, domestic flights are best booked between 4-8 weeks ahead and international 6-10 weeks. I know for some people that might give them anxiety, but flights fluctuate often, especially domestic, so it might be worth waiting it out a bit. There are some key exceptions such as Christmas, or traveling to Japan when the cherry blossoms bloom or wherever the Olympics are aka the kinds of events that common sense tells you to book as early as you can. Now that you know when you want to book, you should track your flights.
There’s quite a few sites that will do the work for you. The simplest, and the one I use most often, is Google Flights. You just search for the flights you want and then right above the flight options there’s a little toggle button you click that says “Track Flight”. Google will track the flights as they go up and down and send you emails when the price jumps or drops. The other two sites I use pretty frequently are Skyscanner and Airfarewatchdog but there are a lot of options if you simply search for them. It’s all about personal preference but no matter which you use, if you start tracking your flights early enough, you’ll have a great chance at getting the best pricing available.
4. Utilize Your Current Spend
If you have a credit card but no travel rewards card, you’re doing it all wrong. You are already going to spend the money, you may as well get rewarded for it. In case you never had one, the way reward cards work is that for every dollar you spend, you will get a certain number of points that can be redeemed for certain products. A travel rewards card typically rewards you more points for travel related expenses and gives you a better redemption rate for travel purchases. If you travel for work, or have a preference for a specific airline, you might consider getting a co-branded card with an airline partner. If there’s a hotel chain you absolutely love, you could also get a hotel co-branded card. But if you’re like me and cost is the major factor in which travel you choose, then I suggest getting a general travel points card so that you can use your points on flights, hotels, cars, and almost anything travel related. I could (and probably will in the future) write an entire blog post on the pros and cons of various travel cards but for now I’ll just give you a quick look at 3 great choices and tell you do your own research.
- Chase Sapphire Reserve - best for earning and redeeming travel points + plenty of perks
- American Express Platinum Card - exceptional customer service and great luxury hotel deals
- Capitol One Venture Rewards Card - no fee, no frills and 10 points per dollar on hotels.com spend
If you’re looking for a place to start you should check out The Points Guy because it’s the most comprehensive card review website out there. Your points can help you pay for a flights and hotels or upgrades for better seats or rooms or even purchase exclusive destination experiences only available with your credit card company. You will always be spending money so you may as well get the most out of every cent you spend. (Disclaimer: I am a current employee of American Express).
5. Do the Little Things
Okay, this is more than one, oh well. There are a ton of other ways that you can make travel more affordable but I find that it’s the little things that do the most for me. Here are some of my most common things I do almost every trip that takes minimal effort and provides maximum savings.
- Sign up for loyalty programs with airlines and hotels. It takes no more than 5 minutes and most of them are free to join and some even come with benefits or upgrades even before you've hit any kind of milestone.
- Go to the grocery store. Stock up on snacks for the longer days at cheaper prices. Plus you can pregame concerts or nights out with grocery store alcohol. This might sound like college days, but if you're planning to go out it can get pricy and $12 for a 12 pack sounds better than $12 for one beer.
- Pack light. Not having to check in bags not only potentially saves you money but also time. Mix and match your outfits and if it's a longer trip, figure out a place to do laundry. I usually just bring a backpack for domestic trips under 5 days and add a carry on for international trips up to 10 days.
- See if there is a local market Groupon site and search for dining or tourist deals. I really wanted to go to high tea in London, and scored the cutest place for 1/2 the price I was seeing anywhere else.
- Download free audioguides and walking tours. Many museums and tourist attractions will try to charge you for audioguides but there's usually some free version online you can download and listen to on your phone. I don't get art on my own, but with the context and history so much comes to life.
- Bring a reusable water bottle. Not only is it good for the environment, you won't get gauged at the attractions.
- Bring your student ID. There are almost always student discounts. If you're a student, or you have an ID that has no date, utilize it.
My hope is that somewhere in this article is something of value to make you feel like travel is within your reach. My dad used to tell me a dollar saved is a dollar earned. My variation on that is a dollar saved is a dollar that can be used to explore the world. I’d love to hear about any tips and tricks you use to make travel more affordable, so leave a comment below.
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