I spent the better part of my weekend sorting out travel plans for our little family. It was more fun than I care to admit. My only problem, okay, a couple of problems. The school calendar puts a kink in my dreaming and my champagne taste means I have to slow my roll a bit! Unless of course, we do what my girls have long referred to as “Mommy Math”. I can justify just about any purchase. It’s kind of a gift. I ‘m now taking this mad skill of mine and putting it to use in a new and better way. I’ve created Travel Math. Beyond the normal planning and saving for a trip, I implement a few little tricks to make the final numbers all work out in my favour. It’s my very own version of balancing a budget. If I save $360 in luggage fees that’s like a free flight right? This special travel math has morphed into my straight forward list of 10 travel hacks to help you save money on your next vacation.
- Collect all the points. Join the frequent flyer clubs, sign up for hotel loyalty programs, earn those points and upgrades. It may take you a little while but it will pay off eventually.
- Be flexible with your flights. If you can adjust your flight times and/days be you can sometimes save hundreds of dollars. I’m not kidding. Hundred of dollars. A Thursday to Thursday trip may save you big money and give you a sweet 10-day vacay from work.
- Clear your cookies. It’s not your imagination. If you keep checking the same flight over and over again the price of that flight may go up! Clear your history, cookies and cache, before you press purchase – you may just save a few bucks.
- Pack Light. If you think you can manage to go carry-on only go for it! Some airlines are now charging $45.00 each way, for luggage! That’s $90.00 round trip for your bag. Hello! Poor family of four paying $360.00 for just your bags. Look at the money you can save if you can pack carry-on only.
- Think outside the box. Want to go somewhere fabulous but don’t love the idea of putting your entire family in one hotel room. Two hotel rooms might break the bank? Check out VRBO, CyberRentals or an Airbnb and look at renting an entire condo or house. You might be pleasantly surprised at the amount of space you get – and sometimes beautiful accommodations can be found for less than the price of a hotel room!
- Breakfast Included. If you are staying in a hotel (because those are fun too!) try and book one that includes a fabulous breakfast. After all, breakfast is the most important meal of the day!
- Stay hydrated the smart way. How many bottles/glasses of water do you drink in a day? Purchasing all that water adds up fast. Pack a re-usable water bottle with a built-in water filter and you have instant savings.
- Pack Snacks! You may feel a bit silly taking up precious packing space for snack foods but both your family and your wallet will thank you when the snack attack hits! Granola bars for the win.
- See The FREE Things! Before you travel and set your itinerary check out the websites of the sites, parks or museums you plan to visit to see if they are offering any free days while you are there. You might be pleasantly surprised.
- Find The Free Wifi – Many restaurants, libraries, and coffee shops now offer free wifi. So when you pop in for a visit, simply ask for their password.
If a penny saved is a penny earned, these travel hacks should help to get you on your next vacay sooner.
Happy Travels!
These are great tips. I haven’t travelled for awhile and didn’t know about the baggage fees. This is great information. Thank you.
Now to start looking! Excellent travel hacks!!
great tips! Thank you.
I haven’t traveled in a long time but these tips would have been a big help.
I know lots who are travelling this season, good to know, will share.
Super tips. We will often pack only one bag if it is just the two of us so we save baggage fees.
Great tips. If it is just the two of us going we will only pack one bag leaving one person not paying luggage fees.
I have my first vacation coming up. Great tips!
Clearing your cookies is a great tip. And going incognito on your browser can help, too.
Solid tips. Need to get back into traveling. Our house renovations kind of took over for a year and we definitely could use a break. The good thing is, we were smart about our renovation purchases and it got us enough points for two return flights to Hawaii :).
Fantastic hacks! Bookmarking this for our next trip 🙂
You are making me want to travel again. I love these.
My tip: If breakfast isn’t included we shop for breakfast at the local grocery store. Fresh fruit and pastries from the grocery store is a lot cheaper in the grocery aisle than it is in a restaurant!
We went on a trip to Paris and when I got back I added up how much we spent on snacks – just water, pop and little things like bags of chips and chocolate bars. I was SHOCKED. I really wish I’d taken the time to throw in a few treats and thought to pack a reusable bottle. Genius!
It adds up fast – pulling a Cliff bar out of your purse not only makes you a hero to your hungry family but saves you money!
Also, I remember being stunned in Rome that my daughters Coke was more expensive than my glass of wine. Ha.
I LOVE your tips. I agree. Whatever gets me on that trip faster. 🙂
You are my people 🙂 In our house – I even ask for “coupons” towards the next trip vs gifts at Birthdays and Christmas etc. Travel is always a good idea!
Great tips! I have occasionally booked flights with separate airlines – say my home to destination a one way flight with Airline A and return one way with Airline B. Sometimes that is a better deal than a roundtrip!
I agree though with flexibility being huge with saving some moolah!
That is a fantastic tip! I’ve done the same thing. So often avoiding the “round-trip” ticket saves you money.