Transportation, accommodation, sightseeing spots and of course your holiday budget should all be a part of your travel preparation plan no matter if you are going abroad or traveling locally.
If you would like to travel on a budget the key is to plan your trip in advance, this way you will not only be able to book discount tickets and cheaper flights, but will also have more flexibility in planning your experience.
However, lets start with the basics.
In order to save money you should start by looking at different ways you could travel without spending money. Or in other words, analyze what free services you could get from the companies you currently use.
Saving money on your holiday flights
A good example of something you can save up on would be credit card points.
Some credit cards have a great bonus system where you can exchange your points for one of the products offered by credit card company partners.
You could even go as far as getting a special airline designated credit card. This type of credit card will convert your credit card points into bonus miles every time you buy something.
In a nutshell, you will be using your credit card to buy whatever you need to buy and at the same time you will be collecting miles with an airline of your choice.
In a year you will be able to collect enough to exchange for your next holiday destination airplane tickets.
Nonetheless, airplane tickets is not all, you need somewhere to live, right?
Free accommodation
Now when you have your flight it is important to decide where you want to stay. The more social you are the cheaper it will be. Staying on your own in a big room is a luxury, but if you ever stayed in a Hostel you must know that.
It might come as a surprise, but you can actually find accommodation that is free of charge.
For example couchsurfing is a website where you can look for people who are willing to let you stay with them free of charge.
Basically, you enter the location you want to go to and look through the list of hosts. You can send messages, exchange photos or event join a group of people who are going on a journey somewhere in the world.
If you like meeting people from abroad you can also become a host and allow people to stay at your place.
All you need is a free couch.
Now couch surfers prefer people who also host others. This way you will not only find your free accommodation but will also contribute to the couch surfing community.
So we have your flights and accommodation sorted.
Lets think of entertainment.
Sightseeing
Since you are already staying with the locals you can always ask them to help you with sightseeing as well.
We all love our cities, that why we live there. Moreover, this is how you will most likely be able to escape money grabbing tourist traps.
There are also a variety of experiences available to tourist free of charge. For example most towns have free excursions. Just Google: Free excursions in “Enter location you need”.
You will see that you’ll find quite a few, but be ready to tip the guide if he does a great job, as this is would be the only source of income for the person.
Lastly, use travel blogs to read about insider tips to your destination. All places are unique and in most cases spending a lot on a vacation is just a matter of not knowing the right places to go to.
If you are looking for more budget travel tips read this “how to travel on a budget guide” that provides some great tips on how to save money when you already arrived to your holiday destination.
Do you have any tips for traveling on the cheap? Drop us a line in the comment section.
Photo: Flickr: Moyan Brenn
Like Saving Advice? Subscribe!
Subscribe to get the latest Saving Advice content via email.