How to Slash Vacation Costs
Posted: Friday, September 17, 2010
by Chuck Clayton
http://www.inexpensive-vacation-ideas.com
Having a little flexibility and common sense can save you a great deal of money on your vacations.
The competition for your vacation dollar is fierce and this is good for you. Think of it this way, every day cruise lines, hotels, car companies, restaurants and more are competing to get new customers.
You are in the driver's seat to get great deals if you do your homework are flexible and know where to look.
1. Travel during the off or shoulder season. Many people travel during the peak season and pay peak prices. On the off season you can save 20-50% in many cases on airline tickets, hotels and more. A great compromise is the shoulder season. It is between the high and low season. The rates are better than the high season, and the weather is usually good as well.
Note: Be careful of traveling during potential inclement weather times of the year. For example, if you are traveling to the Caribbean, be cautious of the hurricane season. Make sure you check what happens if you get caught in bad weather.
2. Tours Tours are a great way to get a Smorgasbord of different areas of the world. Because they are a package deal, prices are frequently less than if you booked everything yourself. I have been on several tours over the years to Europe, China, on dive trips and more. They make a lot of sense for certain vacations.
For example traveling in China would be difficult without a tour due to language and custom barriers. Another example is dive tours. A trip to the Great Barrier Reef on a tour makes a lot of sense for safety, and companionship reasons.
3. Cruising Cruising is an inexpensive way to see an area of the world you are not familiar with. The costs start extremely cheap and stay that way if you are careful! Your room, food, great locations, entertainment and more are included in cruise packages. For some people, this is a wonderful option.
4. Learn your way around the travel sites. Examples are Travelocity.com, Hotels.com, and Orbiz.com. This knowledge will pay off is saving you hundreds (or thousands) of dollars. Travel sites have become very user friendly. You can do many "What if Scenarios" to find the best times to travel and the lowest prices.
5. Last minute deals. Flexibility and spontaneity are key here. When a hotel, or cruise, or airlines has to fill bookings they would rather have a paying customer (even if it is less), than no customer at all. If you can get up and go on a moments notice and be extremely flexible where you are going, there are some dynamite deals.
6. Purchase a good guide book. Guide books pay for themselves many times over. Look for one with detailed maps, things to do, insider tips, history, great restaurants, hotels, shopping, nightlife and more. Many times I will purchase two guidebooks to get different perspectives on an area.
These books are full of money saving tips and things that shouldn't miss. Consider Frommer's guides. I have used several of them and have been very pleased. There are other good ones as well.
7. Purchase an Insiders secrets book Disneyworld/Disneyland, cruises and certain other vacations have a wide array of prices and hidden costs. Purchasing an insiders guide can save you hundreds if not thousands of dollars!
8. Book early to get great rates. By booking early you have the advantage of checking rates over a period of time and jumping on the best rates when they appear.
Today you can be staying at a hotel, or sitting on an airplane where the person next to you has exactly the same arrangements, but paid half as much (or twice as much). The savvy traveler who is willing to do the right research does best on prices.
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