More Ways To Save When Traveling Abroad

By Author: Steve Robinson
Total Articles: 467
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Many travelers know that one of the best ways to access cheap travel deals, including cheap airplane tickets, discount hotel rooms, and cheap vacation packages is to visit one of the major travel Internet sites, such as Cheapfares or Expedia.

The following are additional ways to save even more, according to the Frugal Traveler:

• Be open to visiting cheap countries such as Bolivia or Costa Rica vs. expensive countries such as France or Norway. The cheapest room in Zurich will get you a very nice room in Bangkok. The same is true when you compare tour guides, museum entries, food, and other expenses.

• Don’t assume that simply because you want to save money when traveling that you should never splurge. Be willing to splurge on a couple of special occasions, such as eating at a fine restaurant while staying budget conscious on the rest of your trip.

• Find a local paper and look for coupons or specials that you would otherwise miss.

• Instead of swapping out SIM cards in your mobile phone as you cross borders or choosing from confusing options for international SIM cards sign up ...
... for a major phone carrier’s international cell phone package. Make a point of putting money in your Skype or Google Voice accounts to call and make restaurant reservations.

• Adjust how you view your expenses when traveling. While a trip may cost $1,000, the true additional cost is usually less when you consider that if you had stayed home you would have gone out for dinner and a movie one night as well as paid for gas, groceries, electricity, and whatever other daily expenses you normally incur.

• Create your own guidebook by accessing free information online. Ideally you should copy and paste valuable travel information into a PDF file and then send it to your tablet device. A website called “Stay” helps users create a guide with maps that can be printed or retrieved on mobile devices. TripAdvisor’s “City Guides” allows users to download 60 cities’ worth of maps, information, and users reviews that can be viewed offline for free.

• Plan a less frantic trip whereby you spend a week in no more than a couple of places vs. trying to visit up to five different countries and/or cities. This will reduce your transportation costs, allow you to access discounts on metro passes, and qualify for longer term lodging discounts.

Best of all, not rushing around to take in as many different sites as possible will allow you to enjoy local spots that you might never come across if you were trying to see all the top tourist attractions in a limited amount of time.
www.cheapfares.com