Save Money While On Vacation

By Author: Steve Robinson
Total Articles: 467
Comment this article

You shouldn’t assume that you will get the biggest bang out of your vacation dollars simply by reviewing cheap travel options such as cheap airplane tickets, discount hotel rooms, cheap auto rentals, and cheap vacation packages.

The following are additional ways to save while vacationing:

• Always ask travel providers, such as airlines, hotels and car rental agencies, if upgrades are available. While such upgrades may not always be free sometimes there are incredible last minutes deals for upgrades. Surveys have revealed that 98 percent of travelers never ask about upgrades.

Only by asking can you have a chance of being upgraded. Travelers have found that by mentioning they are celebrating a special event such as a birthday or anniversary that upgrades are sometimes more available.

• At hotels, don’t only inquire about upgrading your room. Often simply by asking (mind you, it helps when you can say you are a member of the hotel chain’s loyalty program) you can get hotel fees waived, free parking, free kids’ meals, free breakfast or free Wi-Fi.

• Prior to leaving on vacation ...
... keep checking to see if the price of your hotel room or airline ticket has dropped. If yes, then call the airline or hotel and ask what can be done. Often with hotels you can cancel your reservation and allow you to rebook at a cheaper price. Airlines such as Alaska Airlines JetBlue often offer travel vouchers for the difference in price. Some airlines however charge steep change fees to rebook a flight making any change too costly.

• Inquire about local deals for restaurants, spas and museums available at your destination before you depart by checking Internet sites such as Groupon and LivingSocial. Major discounts on meals, admission or services are often available. You should sign up well in advance of your trip at such websites to start tracking deals for your vacation destination. Another good source to find vacation deals is your hotel’s concierge.

• If you are considering taking a cruise and live reasonably near a cruise port, ask about the resident rate. Ports of departure for cruises are now available in over a dozen states. In-staters can save up to 25 percent on cruises.

• Find out if tourism cards (often referred to as “city passes”) are available by checking with the tourism office at your vacation destination. Cities such as London, Paris, and New York offer passes that include admission to popular attractions. Some include free public transportation or allow you to skip extremely long tourist lines to the most popular attractions.

• Ask tourism board center staffers for their own personal recommendations about restaurants and things to do. Such people can be excellent resources on how to find the best off the beaten path venues, restaurants popular with the locals, and cultural events, as well as which ones are running deals.
www.cheapfares.com