Vacations are wonderful – and also expensive. Here are some tips for saving big on your next getaway:
Contemplate Your Accommodations
Your hotel can either be a steal, or the biggest part of your travel budget. Which will it be? That depends largely on what you’re looking for in a hotel. If you want something fully-featured and fun for the whole family – or romantic and exciting for you and your partner – you’ll typically pay more. Just need a place to lay your head between seeing the sights? Plan accordingly and book a cheaper hotel to keep that cash to spend elsewhere.
Think About Food
You know how you’re always telling your family – and yourself, honestly – that you need to eat less fast food? You need to dine at home to save money. But when you’re on vacation, that’s not typically an option. Factoring food costs into your travel budget will help you ensure that everyone has what they need to eat.
You have two options on the road: eating out for every meal, and preparing meals at your hotel or other accommodations. Some hotels or resorts offer meals as part of the stay, or which you can purchase without leaving the location. Others offer kitchenettes that you can use to prepare homemade food and stretch your budget even further. These features are often more expensive, though, so weigh all of that when choosing your sleeping arrangements for the trip.
Consider Transportation Costs
Many people forget the cost of transportation when planning their vacation, but this can be a costly mistake. Even calculating the cost of a ferry from Vancouver to Victoria can help you make your dollar stretch that much further during your British Columbia getaway. Don’t stop the budgeting with gas money to get yourself there and back. Whether you have to take taxies, hop on buses or trains, catch flights, or ride ferries, you’ll have transportation costs once you get where you’re going.
