Many call them “Travel Hacks” and boy are there some good ones out there. Lets run through a collection of some of the best we’ve tried and found successful in saving a bit while we travel.
Some of the little more obvious.
1.) Book your accommodation early or last minute and use a comparison site to find the best deal.
We always book accommodation as early as possible, from our experience this is one of the best times to bag a deal. However, we cover all angles by always booking a free cancellation accommodation offer when booking so far in advance. This gives us the flexibility of locking in a great deal, changing our mind right up to a few days before as sometimes travel plans change. Plus this allows you to keep an eye out for any better accommodation bargains, while knowing you have something in the bag.
2.) Book accommodation with some kind of cooking equipment.
The minimum we look for is a fridge in any accommodation we book! If there is a microwave then happy days! Save a fortune on eating and drinking out by getting stuff from the supermarket and prepare your own meals. Many times we’ve taken the ingredients for a pretty good meal back with us for much less than a fiver!
3.) Avoid shopping and eating in the tourist centres.
Pretty obvious really but the number of times we’ve sat down at those cool seats for a photo opportunity in a main square of a city with a dish of tapas while sipping a beer, to be charge €15 or more! Take a cool quick selfie in the square and then head down one of the side streets where a beer and tapas will be a fraction of the price, that’s the answer!
4.) Take advantage of discounts and freebies.
As soon as we know we’re going to be staying somewhere we do our research and check out any discounts or freebies we might be able to get our hands on. Groupon and Smartsave can often be good for discount vouchers.
Contact the local tourist board for any voucher leaflets or local discount codes. Do an internet search “discounts and freebies” for the area you are visiting and you’ll be surprised what might come up. You’ll often find FREE walking tours and attractions such as art gallery entrance, but most cities are overflowing with free and low-cost offers, anything from restaurants to tourist attractions.
5.) Take advantage of the experts in the area.
Do an internet search for your area and look for travel blogs! You’ll find there will be some really informative blogs out there written by people who have already been to the area and have lots of tips of anything from cheap eats to must see’s! Bloggers are often on a budget too, so they’ll often recommend good value places.
Little less obvious ways to save while you travel.
1.) Save your paid data and find all the free wifi.
Check out Foursquare, the travel app where people share tips, ratings and reviews on places to go near you. Check out the tips section as you’ll often find posts on where to locate free wifi close to you and wifi passwords for some of those not so generous hotspots. Another great little App is wifimap – go surf for free!
2.) Travel light.
We can’t tell you the amount of times we’ve packed more clothes than we need and those just in case items, that just stay in the case! Travelling light has its obvious advantage that its easy to carry, but the lighter you travel the cheaper you travel you might well get away with just carry on luggage on flights or coach journey’s.
3.) Try and be flexible with your travel days.
Whether you need a bus, train or plane ticket try to be flexible with your departure date as a day or two’s difference can often bag a cheaper rate.
Another little hack to remember, when browsing for travel tickets make sure you use the nifty little “incognito browser”. If you’re using Windows, Linux, or Chrome OS: Press Ctrl + Shift + n. If you’re using a Mac: Press ⌘ + Shift + n. Amazingly, now days, websites can tell that you have visited them and been searching for transport and if you’re searching around and come back for a second search on the same site many of them have an automated system that will increase the fare prices that you see the second time. By browsing “Incognito” the website’s can’t track that you’ve visited them already and they can’t increase the prices. Not sure how long this will last before they find a loophole!
4.) Get the best exchange rates for your money.
We’ve been using Revolut for all our travel currency needs. Grab yourself one of their bank cards which you can load up in your local currency via the app, then each time you want to change currency you can get some of the best rates around. We find the advantages are that it’s free to use, great exchange rates on a number of currencies, you can transfer money from and to the card at the touch of a button and you even get a monthly allowance of free cash withdrawals.
5.) The Best way to save on accommodation costs.
Our final tip and one that has saved us thousands in accommodation costs, its not so much a travel hack but possibly one of the best ways to save while you travel. House and Pet Sitting, a great way to see new places, just pay for your transport and food, stay in some great locations and immerse yourself in local life! Read more at Tips For House and Pet Sitting.
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