Eating out can easily add up when you are on vacation. If you are unfamiliar with the area, you may easily fall into “tourist trap” restaurants and spend at least $100 a day on food. Budget-conscious individuals can easily save $700 or more on a week-long vacation by choosing to eat in instead. The Huffington Post recommends eating in as one of its top money-saving tips for those who want to save up for a vacation. If you still want to eat out during your vacation, you may want to consider making reservations for one special dinner or researching restaurant menus ahead of time. Doing your homework on restaurants in a new area can ensure that you aren’t surprised by an overly-excessive restaurant bill.
Choose a Budget-Friendly Location
Choosing your travel location ahead of time will help you in saving your money for the trip. You will be able to anticipate the total cost of your trip and have a hard figure to use in saving your cash. Also, you may want to research which cities have a low cost of living or provide affordable trips. Places like Guatemala or Haiti can be great places to take a vacation due to their low cost. Traditionally, tourist areas such as Paris will likely be more expensive than vacationing in Third World countries or islands. You may also enjoy a socially responsible trip and do your part to stimulate the local economy or contribute your own time to helping the local community.
Learn How to Use Public Transportation During Your Trip
Consider using public transportation to get around during your time in a new city. Most major cities around the world have implemented a bike-sharing program, bus system, train or other mass-transit system that is aimed at helping commuters and tourists save on transportation costs. Renting a city bike can also be an excellent way to get some much-needed exercise during a trip. Using rental cars in other countries can be expensive and easily add to the cost of your vacation. You can also avoid the hassle of hiring a taxi driver during your trip if you understand how to use the public transportation system of your city. Another way to easily save costs on transportation is to stay in a hostel that is located near a major city. This way, you may be able to walk to most of the locations that you wish to visit instead of hiring a cab driver.
Get a Travel Credit Card
A quick look-up on the comparison tool from MileCards.com reveals that travel credit cards like the Delta SkyMiles Card can help you earn miles to use on Expedia Canada flights. When you use the Delta SkyMiles Card, you can earn Delta miles and other perks to cut down on the costs of air travel. You may receive points that can be used toward the payment of SkyClub access or your checked-bag fees.
Cut Costs in Your Daily Life
When you are saving for a big trip, it is important to think of how you will cut down on costs in your daily life. Instead of spending $20 or $40 going out at your local pub, maybe you decide to have a few beers for a couple dollars at home with your friends. You may try to lower certain bills that you have such as your phone or Internet bill. Maybe you cut back on your spending for massages, cosmetic appointments or clothing. Eliminating unnecessary expenses will help you to save up faster for your trip.
Use a Money Market Account
Using a money market account is an excellent way to profit from any savings that you already have. Money market accounts typically have higher interest rates than savings accounts. The starting interest rate for a money market account is usually 2 to 5 percent. With a monthly money market account, you will be able to receive passive income from the savings that you typically hold in an account.
Open an Account Specifically for Your Travel Fund
Those who plan on traveling a lot may want to open a savings account that is specifically for travel expenses. Having a savings account dedicated to saving up for a trip may help motivate you to contribute to the fund when you see the funds grow over an extended period of time.