What are some ways to save money when travelling?

Answer 1

(1) If spending a lot of time on the road- ie touring around, hit the popular truck stops for a good feed on the cheap- truckies know when they are on agood thing. (2) Buy non perishables such as drinks, fruit etc at large supermarkets or if the opportunity arises at farm gate stalls as they are cheaper and stave off the need to stop at unsuitable places for food. (3) consider buying food marked down becasue it is near the use by date you will obviously be using it quickly so you save money. Similarly visit supermarkets late as they will mark down cooked food and bread to get rid of it before closing. The same aspplies to the end of a long weekend wher they often have excess items due to low demand (4) where ever possible make your own so if stopping some where for a while try to stay at accomodation that has kitchen facilities even if only used to make salad etc. (4) travel or visit places in the off season as you usually get cheaper rates. (5) Think outside the square to try to come up with accomodation etc that may be under utilised at certain times of the year... for example our local Uni has student accomodation which is mostly vacant during end of year school holidays and they offer the accomodation to the public (through their website) at really cheap rates during the holiday period (beats premium rates everywhere else). Also when "Uni is in" the cafeterias have good food on the cheap so dropping in for a feed while touring is another cheap option.
Well hope that this helps a little bit.

Answer 2

Backpacker Hostels Are A Great Way To Save Money As All Have Communal Kitchens So You Self Cater And Just Shop For Food As You Would Back Home In The Supermarket. You Could Also Check Out The Farmers Market For Really Fresh Home Grown Produce, If You're In Sydney There's One At Fox Studios Every Week I Think.
Above All Just Have A Great Holiday, You're Certainly In The Best Country For That Darl. Have A Gooday And A Beaut Stay!

Answer 3

Do research!! and don't always listen to what the Travel Agents say, they're trying to make money out of you.
I've been overseas quite a few times and there are so many savings you can find, especially if you go out of season. The internet is an amazing place to find bargains. It does take some time to research but you can really reap the rewards in your pocket. If you read some posts from other people who have been to the place you want to go, you can generally get some great tips. Where are you interested in going?

Answer 4

Stay at a backpackers or youth hostel (book well in advance!) Avoid eating at restaurants and also avoid "street food", unless you are SURE it's safe(don't buy bottled water in the street unless you check the plastic seal is intact). Every time you change currency, you will lose out. Don't buy the first "bargain" you see (travel LIGHT) use a moneybelt & keep your cash to a neccessary minimum (keep travellers cheques, credit cards, large denomination banknotes & passport in money belt) make two copies of your passport & be careful of who you hand the original to (show them a copy & tell them the original is elsewhere, but that you can get it if you have to). Theft from backpacks is common. Travel with friends and be wary of strangers. No jewellery; keep 2 cheap mobile phones charged ( or carry spare batteries), if you have a safe place to leave the second.

Answer 5

The single biggest cost is your accomodation. Often, if can eat 50-75% of your daily budget. You can follow the suggestions above for eating cheap, etc. And while hostels can be great, they can also be very noisy and still impersonal. So, to cut down your accomodation expense completely:

One possibility is to stay for FREE at people's homes.

This means you can splurge on shopping, sightseeing, food, etc.

The benefit of this is that you really get to make some friends, meet the locals, and so on.

To do so check out

www.couchsurfing.com

this website connects people all over the world who are traveling--basically you sign up to find hosts, and in return, if some traveler is stranded near you in the future you open your home to them, if you can.

It's an amazing website.

Good luck and happy travels!

Answer 6

Join the inernational youth hostels association and stay in youth hostels. Make use of swimming pools, not just to work out but to have showers. In Australia, make use of camping grounds/caravan parks which often have "on site " vans or cabins, which are frequently clean and well maintained. Eat lots of fresh fruit. Eat Italian food and Vietnamese food when you eat out rather than Thai or Japanese, Australia has a lot of great cuisines but some genres seem to be uniformly more expensive on average. Check "Flight Centres" for cheap airline tickets, but if there is no rush then go by bus or train, you see more of the countryside anyway. Make friends on the internet in the 6 months before you go, and if there are any you feel you know and get along with, sleep on their sofa :o) Fish and chips is always the cheapest take away food, and eating them in a park or on a beach enhances the experience. The student union building of any major university will often have good value food and often shower facilities. Eat chocolate. Drink more water.

Answer 7

Don't wait untill you get to your holiday destination to meet people - look for them on-line now.
What do you want to do in that city / country? Locals can tell you the easiest way to travel, find accomodation, eat out, and the best places to see without having to pay a tour group to see them.
If you speak the local language, (or show you are willing to learn) it helps too.

BEST ADVICE I got when travelling: -
"When you leave your country, you are leaving your country. Don't expect other places to be the same as home. If you want it to be the same, stay home. Otherwise, enjoy the experience of a different land, culture and people."

Also .... "Never travel with more luggage than you can carry by yourself at any one time. If you can't carry it, someone else may carry it away."

Answer 8

Check out the book "Europe through the back door". Even though you may be travelling elsewhere, Rick Steves' ideas about travelling are great and can be applied when travelling to other areas. He may even have a book for the area you're interested in traveling to. I use to work for a cruise line, some of the tricks is to travel during off season, or the season that borders peak. Check out packages on expedia.com. You can save quite a bit booking flight with hotel as opposed to booking seperately. Four years ago I took my kids to Disney World and I saved a considerable amount booking through AAA even though I was perfectly capable of booking it myself directly.

Answer 9

Research your destination- often there are discounts available for tourists, for such things as public transport, events, meals, etc.
Try to not eat out all the time- if you are staying somewhere that has kitchen facilities, make the most of them! Buying from a supermarket and cooking yourself will save you tonnes!
Also, be outgoing and socialise with as many people as possible. The more you network, the more offers and advice you will receive. Helping a traveller is something that it seems most people are willing to do if you are friendly, and grateful for the opportunities that come your way.

Answer 10

Ask the hotel (before making a reservation) if they offer lower rates for locals, of course you'll need I.D. to prove that you live within that state. If you have a friend living in the state/country that you're planning on going to they could book the hotel under their name so that you could get the local rate. It's also good to check travel sites like expedia.com or travelocity.com to compare the rates they offer with the local rates the hotel offers, sometimes websites like that have better rates than the local discount because they reserve rooms in bulk.

If you're familiar with the area you are travelling to I would suggest walking instead of taking a taxi while you're there. I often go to Honolulu, Oahu (I'm from Maui) and opt to walk from place to place instead of taking the taxi. It does take much longer than I would prefer but I saved up to $30 each time I decided to take a stroll instead!

Also, if you buy your tickets from smaller airlines their tickets are usually cheaper. For example I fly with Aloha Airlines instead of United Airlines when I want to go to California.

Well..I hope this helps a little...