Travel can be an expensive yet extremely rewarding and worthwhile hobby. With summer coming up, no doubt, you’ll be looking forward to melting away your stress on a summer getaway, however, if you’re on a tight budget the prospect of a summer holiday can feel somewhat stress inducing.
You might dream of going somewhere stunning like the Fiji Marriott Resort Momi Bay but in reality, you need to make your travel budget stretch as far as possible, particularly if you’re traveling as a family.
In this vein, this article uncovers some of the most effective ways to travel in a way that conserves cash, meaning you will have more to spend at the destination, and perhaps you might be able to afford something much nicer than you were originally thinking as a result of being savvy with your travel booking.
- PREPARATION IS KEY
The earlier you book your trip, the cheaper it will tend to be as the more availability there will be for flights and accommodation. Flights tend to be sold in pricing bands, as an example, band 1A might have twenty seats for $100, once these are sold band 1B might have forty seats at $150, and 1F might be $600. Airfares work on the basis of supply and demand.
A decade ago, the practice of going standby for a flight, where you might have to wait around in the airport for a few hours, or even a few days, to get a substantially discounted flight; but today, with low-cost carriers disrupting the market and changing pricing strategy forever, the day of departure is usually the most expensive time you can buy a ticket.
The other aspect to consider in terms of early preparation is to pack light as some low-cost airlines charge more for excess baggage than they do for the airfare.
- FIND CHEAP HOTELS
If you’re booking your holiday independently, which is advisable to get the cheapest deal, then be sure to visit comparison sites such as travelsupermarket that will compare hotel listings from multiple providers. This is often the cheapest way to find a good deal as it shows the various prices across the web for the same hotel room.
- FIND CHEAP FLIGHTS
If you’re planning to travel internationally, flights will take a large chunk of money from your travel budget.
That said, if you can be flexible with your flight dates then you can find some great deals by searching for cheap flights via comparison engines such as skyscanner. This way, you get to compare hundreds of flights to find the cheapest and most convenient option for you.
You might also want to consider flying into a cheaper hub airport then getting a low-cost domestic flight to your final destination; as this can work out much cheaper than a through ticket – particularly if you’re thinking of traveling somewhere exotic, or far away.
For instance, a return flight from LA to Bangkok is around $750, but let’s say you’re flying to Phuket, in the south of Thailand. A round-trip from LA to Phuket will be in excess of $1,200 yet if you get it to Bangkok, and then arrange your own flight to Phuket (about $10 each way) you can save an absolute fortune.
