Traveling On a Budget

Traveling: (defined as) going or being transported from place to place.

Whether by plane, train, or automobile you can get to wherever you want to go on any date, at whatever time. Near or far its all within your reach. From the Rocky Mountains in Colorado, to the hiking trails in California, or the sunny, warm, and clear beaches in Florida, all is a trip away. The various memorable sites and cuisines of the world are awaiting your arrival.

However, our norm is to go to work and go home and if you have children, go to wherever they pull you. Seeing the same things is great for routine but not necessarily for decompressing and relaxing. Doing and seeing something different is a step in the right direction to taking care of self…. and of course I mean traveling. Seeing different parts of the world is indescribable. Photos, whether in magazines, websites, or posters try to capture nature’s beauty but nothing captures it better than the human eye. The memories and experiences taken from each encounter are beyond measure and comprehension. That may sound expensive, but it’s not… you can travel on a budget.

So, first decide where you want to go. What do you want to see? The beach, mountains, sand dunes, pyramids, or trails? What do you want to do? See a play, take a tour, climb the Eiffel Tower? What’s on your list? What’s holding you back? If it’s money, let’s talk. Traveling on a budget is possible. It’s not quite how it use to be. The Cities, States, Countries, hotels, and airlines, all want your money, so they have made it easy to plan a trip.

Getting what you want is not impossible. Planning is key so you don’t have a trip of regret or worry. Deciding where you want to go by what you want to see is half the planning. But you don’t have to go when everyone else travels or do what everyone else does.

Here are some tips and tricks:

If it’s the beach, go on the off season, the time when everyone else is not going. The normal vacation time is during the summer, when schools are out, the months from May to August. Watch out for spring break, which varies between March and April. Let me guess, you are thinking why would I go to the beach during the fall or winter? Well the fall and winter in some states have perfect sunny and warm weather, like Florida and California. You get the beauty of the beach, without sweating ridiculously and paying for higher prices. Let me ask you… If you could use more of your money to enjoy your vacation rather than getting there and sleeping in sub par places, would you choose to do something different than everyone else?

Here are some sites and Apps that can help you decide the best time to travel at a low price.

Orbitz

Hopper

Hotels.com

Travelocity

Skyscanner

Kayak

And many more…

I personally like to monitor travel prices using the Hopper App. If you don’t care about the frills, Spirit airlines usually has the lowest prices. If you have flown with Spirit you know they keep it to the bare minimum, but I must say Spirit is surpassing even Southwest on their seat’s roominess… I know crazy right. I never thought I would say that, but I recently had a chance to compare them on my flights to and from California. But I digress… back to what I was saying… if you care to save just a little more, Spirit airlines is the only airline that will drop the price at the ticket counter. I say this from experience… if you thought you couldn’t go cheaper, you can… the discount is between $14-$20. I once paid a little under $20 for a flight to Las Vegas by going to the airport ticket counter.

For your restful stay… there are many choices, from friends and family to AirBnBs, hotels, motels, and hostels… go with what you are comfortable with. There are many search engine sites to check for hotel deals. But also check to see you are getting the very best deal by going to the hotel’s website. The hotels sometime have better discounts, especially if you are visiting the site for the first time. Also, don’t forget to sign up with the hotel’s reward program. The points you rack up can be used for a free stay. Even search engine sites, like Orbitz, gives you points/money towards an hotel stay. I personally like checking Orbitz to see the reviews and great pictures of the hotels so I can choose the best place to stay. Google is another great place for reviews and real pictures of the location. Ok, reeling it back in…. there is also the option that very few people think of… timeshares. Now I’m not saying go get a timeshare but check if family or friends have one and are not planning to use their week. Yes they can bank it for a later time, but maybe they might feel generous towards you or even want to join you on the trip. Now you have a travel body. Hey, I’m just giving options…flexibility and choices are always better.

Ok, so one more time for the people in the back, reward programs with airlines and hotels are still a great thing. They are all still willing to reward loyal members with free room stays, upgrades, discounts, and flights.

And now my last little tidbit to keep this short and simple…

Travel with groups, whether friends, family, or travel groups. The more the cheaper, at least in some places, especially if you want to rent a house (cough.. AirBnB… cough).

Think about short trips with very little scheduled activities. Keep it simple so you can get the maximum amount of rest. Nerdwallet recommends skipping overpriced tours.

Than there is the obvious, but the least done… Pack all that you need, but find the balance of packing light. What do I mean? Let’s not gravitate to buying your toiletries when you get to your vacation location or even assume the hotel will have it for free (hardly ever in this day and age). Bring snacks, don’t buy it at the airport (way too expensive). Make sure you have your phone chargers, universal plug, and wired headphones (all planes do not have wifi and sometimes when they do its not working), so that you can avoid the high prices at the airport. And BYOB, if you plan to party, rather than get robbed by the local liquor store prices (Make sure you wrap the bottle so it doesn’t break in your suitcase… oh and now you have to check your bag). And, ummm…in order to fit what you really need and pack lighter… don’t pack 10 pairs of shoes for a 3 day vacation, and not even for a 10 day vacation.

Hopefully this has been helpful…. At least remember traveling should be fun and exciting, but with a little bit of strategy. Go somewhere new or go back to the place you love to visit. Take pictures. Create memories. Just don’t let the get away make you want to get away from your bills because you over spent on the trip. All is possible with a little planning.