Last Updated on October 23, 2020
Travel is expensive, right? Something you can do maybe once or twice a year because you need to save up for it. WRONG. Travel can be really affordable, and since moving to Europe, I am a big proponent of the weekend getaways in addition to the longer, one-week + trips. JC thinks I’m addicted to searching for cheap flights (and he’s right). Find below some of my most money-saving travel hacks and learn how you too can travel for cheap.
How to Travel for Cheap: Use Flight Comparison Sites
It may not be a novel idea to many of you, but using sites like Skyscanner and Google Flights is a big money saving tip for finding the cheapest flights. One new trick I learned is that flights on Skyscanner.es, the Spanish version of Skyscanner, is actually cheaper than all the other Skyscanner country sites. If you don’t speak Spanish, don’t worry! You can still choose English as your language. Also be sure to compare prices on the app versus desktop, as I have also found that these can vary. Another price comparison site is Momondo. I would recommend looking at all three sites to find the best deal. Sometimes Momondo will have some airlines that the other two do not offer, which is why you are safest comparing the three of them.
Search ‘Everywhere’ Function
One of my favorite features on Skyscanner is the search ‘Everywhere’ function. This way you can see the cheapest countries/cities to fly to from your airport for the specific timeframe you choose:
Google Flights has another great function, where you can, for instance, search ‘weekend trips for the next 6 months’ and see the best weekend deals for all cities/countries in the upcoming 6 months. The map view is also super handy and you can adjust your view based on your budget.
Set up Alert Emails
I usually use a combination of Skyscanner and Google Flights, as I like the map view of Google Flights, but I sometimes find better prices on Skyscanner. Also, if you find a flight you are interested in on Skyscanner, but aren’t ready to pull the trigger, set up an email alert:
Skyscanner will send you really helpful emails that alert you when prices go up or down, as well as whether prices are lower, higher, or just about average for that destination at that time of year, which can also advise you on whether now is a good time to buy or not.
You can also subscribe to price updates via Google Flights. Google Flights also has a super handy price graph which will show you whether if you leave one day earlier, for instance, you could save money on the flight.
How to Travel for Cheap: Subscribe to Deal Hunting Websites
I am a subscriber of both Scott’s Cheap Flights* and Jack’s Flight Club. Both have a free membership option as well as a premium membership (both 39EUR/year). With premium you get 4-5X more deals than the free membership. Scott’s is working on a more international level, whereas Jack’s is focusing on flights departing from Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, Sweden, Norway, Denmark & the UK. They simply alert you of mistake flights and great deals, you don’t pay them any extra commission, as you book the flight yourself through the normal channels (Skyscanner, Google Flights, Momondo, etc). Here is an example of one of their emails:
*Scott’s Cheap Flights unfortunately now only serves customers flying out of the US, so if you are based in Europe, like me, you can only use Jack’s Flight Club.
How to Travel for Cheap: Use Airbnb
Nowadays, Airbnb is so widespread, I honestly don’t know why anyone uses hotels. For the same cost as one night in a tiny hotel room, you can have an entire house or two-bedroom apartment to yourself. Cook a few meals at your Airbnb instead of eating out, and you’ve saved a lot of money right there. JC & I often book only a room in an Airbnb, instead of the entire apartment, which also saves us a lot of money. We have also just started hosting guests in our apartment (we have a two-bedroom), and that money goes straight into our travel fund. Just one booking of two nights is already 1-2 plane tickets for a weekend getaway. If you have only a one-bedroom or studio apartment, consider putting it on airbnb for the days you are traveling. That way you may be traveling for free, or even earning money to travel 🙂
Go Straight to the Source and Travel Cheaper
When booking hotels and trains, that is. Going to Prague? Book your train on the Prague train site. Find a hotel on booking.com? Go directly to the hotel’s website and get a better deal, bypassing the 3rd party fees.
Save Money by Eating Local
Eating out can get pretty expensive, especially when you are dining at the biggest tourist traps. We usually try to eat at local places, either recommended by our Airbnb hosts or found on sites like Culture Trip.
These are some of the travel hacks JC and I use to save the most money. If you have any great money saving travel hacks, please do share below in the comments!
