6 Tips to Help Cut Down on Travel Costs

Travel can be scary to some because of the price tag that can come along with it. I completely understand, it use to make me very nervous and worried too. Until I discovered some small things that can make a big difference.

• The first thing can seem very obvious, watch what you are packing. As many of you are aware, if your suitcase weighs over a certain amount (depends on the airline or train system), you can be charged an extra fee. Think about what all you really need to bring with you. Do you really need that extra dress on the off chance that you go somewhere nice? or can you just add a jacket or a nicer necklace to one you’re already bringing and make it look nicer? Do you really need to bring golf shoes when you don’t even know if you’ll have time to golf? Ask yourself questions as you pack and look to see what the weather will be like so you don’t have to play the what-if game.

• Now, while we are on the subject of the packing, I recommend investing in reusable travel size shampoo, conditioner, and body wash bottles (I suggest this for smaller trips, I recommend bringing your actual bottles for longer trips, such as 8+ days). Having these reusable bottles saves you money from having to pay for all those little bottles that can add up despite how cheap they may seem and this way you can keep using your favorite products. I also love to use the travel pouches that go in your suitcases, it can help keep your stuff organized, prevent over packing, and save you some space for all your souvenirs! Also, look into what you can carry in your carry on bag when flying or taking a train. Items such as your sweater, makeup bag, and an extra change of clothes can go in there and give you easy access to items you need as well as save room in your luggage.

• Something else that is very handy in saving money when traveling is to not buy meals at the airports or train stations. Instead, I bring a water bottle (which I fill up after going through security in airports) and bring with me snack foods, such as granola bars, trail mix, the snack size crackers, and so on. TSA does have guidelines for what you can and cannot bring in your carry-on, so If you are concerned that something you are wanting to bring with you may be in violation then I would check with TSA. But my rule of thumb is to bring a transparent water bottle and prepackaged food, or, rather than buying the snack size, make sure that it is in a ziplock bag and is well known food (chex-mix, cheese-its, trail mix, etc).

• One of my favorite things to do when I travel is to rent a house. Yes, that sound like it is expensive, but it’s not as expensive as you think. Actually, sometimes it is even far cheaper than going to a hotel. It gives you privacy, more space, and, may favorite part, can make you feel more apart of where you are visiting rather than feeling like a tourist, especially when you are visiting a new country. Plus you can always sound fancy saying you rented a house!

• When it comes to the travel itself, make sure you check carefully and do the math for all ways of traveling. Look at the prices. It may be cheaper to take the train, buy two one way tickets rather than round trip, or even drive. Of course though you have to like road trips to consider driving for hours on end to save money. But if you’re like me, and love road trips and the stops you can make along the way, it won’t matter if it’s 3 hours or 48 hours.

• Now if you are flying or taking the train, you might not have a car. Now you could be going and stay with friends or family and will have a car to use that way, but that may not always be the case, look into renting car sure, but also consider how much it would cost to take a taxi/uber/lyft to go to the few destinations you need a car to get to and walk everywhere else, or look into a city pass for the time you’re there and use the public transportation. City passes can sometimes come at a cheaper rate if you are a student, military, elderly, or if you’re buying for family (4+ passes).

Now these are things that I actively do when I travel, as well as things that my own family and friends do. If you have any tips and/or tricks that you do, please share them in the comments to help add to the list!