By Racheal M Lewis
When it comes to taking a vacation, do not spend the next year paying for it nor spend it having buyer's remorse. The primary reason behind a vacation is relaxation. You should not come home to piles of debit due to taking a relaxing and/or luxurious vacation. The most successful vacations taken are the one's that are paid in full prior to going and money is saved. Now there are also ways to make money while vacationing but I'll go into detail later in Blog "How To Earn Money Traveling." Besides making money traveling, there are many ways to save on your next vacation, whether you save on hotels, transportation, meals and/or adventures. Reducing travel expenses can be simple and fun which I'll discuss in this blog.
To effectively manage your expenses it will be very effective to categorize your travel plans and create a budget for each section. Transportation, lodging, food, entertainment and shopping categories are all appilcable. Remember, just because you are on vacation doesn't give you the full permission to blow all the money in your bank account. By creating sub-categories for your excursion, it will provide you with more details in relation to specific information in each category. This type of systematic planning enables you to find various ways to save money on your next vacation.
These 6 tips listed will assist in helping you save on vacation expenses:
1. Frequent flyer miles
2. AAA Auto Club discounts
3. Rebates
4. Travel promotions
5. Travel Club
6. Alternative Transportation (ex. Trains & Buses)
By mapping out your excursion and / or sightseeing in addition to utilizing alternative transportation (if available) will cut expenses greatly. If car rental seems like the only option available for transportaion, then lessen your car rental usage or use the shuttle bus to and from the airport to the hotel. When taken into consideration, utilizing car rental for transportation to and from the airport is money not well spent for only a week vacation.
Stop in your neighborhood library to find specials, promotions, and offers in the local newspapers of your destination. By doing so, you will find newspaper promotions and offers that you will not find when visiting the newspaper website. Also, housing exchange programs is another way to save on lodging if you're willing to live in someone else's home. If or not comfotable with that idea (which most of us are not), then try using a hostel, one that is definitely for travelers.
When you arrive at your destination, stop in at the local grocery store to stock up on snacks, small meals, drinks, etc. This way you will cut your restaurant expenses during your trip. Not many individuals envision taking vacation without dining out so plan to have a couple of meals in restaurants, but enjoy cooking (if possible) and/or eating stocked groceries, so that while out, you are enjoying your vacation and not blowing your bank account. Finally, visit the Chamber of Commerce to request information that will enable you making decisions that will save you money on your destination. These strategies discussed, not only can you use in your home town to save money on your local adventure or mini-getaway but can also save you money while you're on vacation, no matter where you are.
Now for me, honestly, due to me joining a travel club World Ventures, LLC, there are many tips that I don't have to take into consideration. The travel club has so many trips that are all-inclusive, included in DreamTrips, that cuts my expenses compared to the average person. Instead of me having to find coupons, offers, deals, cut retail prices, the prices that I pay are wholesale prices. For example I planned a 5 day 4 night trip to a luxurious hotel in Los Angeles, CA for my friend's birthday for only $300 per person. The only deal that I had to find was airfare, which was not included in the $300 but that's still great savings when you think about it. I mean with that particular hotel, the price was over $150/night so we got the same room for 5 days 4 nights for $300/person. And I can't begin to tell you about all the other DreamTrips available via World Ventures, LLC but I get some pretty good deals on vacations through this travel club. So in the end if you want to take a vacation and you want to save money, there are various ways to do it. Some methods are more involved than others, but it's worth it.
More Involved - Sounds more like a chore than a vacation
1. Clipping Coupons
2. Newspaper Promotions
3. Grocery Shopping
4. Chamber of Commerce
5. and more
Easy Way (Less Involved) - More like a REAL VACATION
1. Wholesale Priced Vacations
2. All-Inclusive
3. Air-Transfer Fees, Port Fees, etc included
4. Relax, Enjoy, Eat, & Drink
Find out more about discounted travel, by visiting World Ventures to plan your next vacation.
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