Travelling can sometimes be a costly affair. Paying for flights, accommodation, insurance, souvenirs, activities it all adds up. But thankfully there are many websites out there that allow us to save money when it comes to booking travel.
Here are just 5 ways you can save money, whether you’re planning your travel route or already on the road.
Use Price Comparison Websites
There are price comparison websites for just about everything. In terms of flights, websites like Skyscanner are fantastic for discovering cheap and suitable routes.
Download the free Skyscanner mobile app for access to the best deals on flights at all times. It’s also, a good idea to use similar style websites when looking for travel Insurance. Booking.com is a great example of a price comparison website for accommodation.
These websites have one thing in common: they save you money by comparing the best prices in their field and saving you the trouble of doing the research yourself.
Trip Advisor
Trip Advisor is the leading website for reviews, and offers a lot of insight into attractions, restaurants, hotels, and so on. Utilizing the Trip Advisor community is a great way to gain tips and advice on what’s good to see and what you should avoid. This in turn saves you from wasting your money on overrated and overpriced places.
You can also use it to share your knowledge and experiences with other travellers.
Airbnb
If you haven’t already signed up to this excellent website I highly recommend that you do. Airbnb offers huge savings on accommodation by letting you rent a room in other people’s house, villas, apartments, houses etc.
One of the most advantageous reasons to use this website is it sometimes allows you to meet the locals and get insider tips. And of course, if you are lucky enough to have a big house with a spare room you could use Airbnb to rent it out and make extra cash to put towards travelling.
Lonely Planet
This knowledge intensive website is loaded with information on just about every destination in the world.
Use it to research and plan your journey in advance. It always easier to spend less when you know what you are doing and where you are going.
Groupon
One word: discounts! I presume by now you’ve heard of Groupon and probably have even used it. This awesome website gives you discounts on everything. From getting your hair to cut, to buying furniture, restaurants, sightseeing and so on. You can use this for deals while on the road, or before you leave to save money before you set off.
These websites are just the tip of the iceberg. So always take the time to do a bit of research before you set off and you will save yourself a few quid in the process.
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- Here are just 5 ways you can save money, whether you’re planning your travel route or already on the road.
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- Here are just 5 ways you can save money, whether you’re planning your travel route or already on the road.
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16 Comments
Awesome tips. I love signing up for Groupon in the local areas I am going. They usually have some really good off the beaten path ideas and local shops I would have never found on my own. I have to say my favorite price comparison option is now google flights though! They’re awesome.
I never think about using groupon, but it’s a tool that I need to look at using. I love AirBNB and Lonely Planet. Lonely Planet’s website often has a lot of the same info that their guides do! I never think of using booking either, I usually use Expedia because it’s so simple. Thanks for sharing some great tips!
These are great tips!I LOVE booking and Groupon. Not only are they great for finding something specific, they also just make great search tools if you’re trying to figure out where to stay or what to do somewhere.
Love these tips! I sign up to Groupon and use Airbnb when I travel and they are such a good way to find some unique neighbourhoods. I also like to try to volunteer (e.g. New York Cares) if there are places that let you volunteer short term, or Meetup. Meetup lets you join groups and do a whole range of activities – everything from photography to screenplay writing!
Great list! I absolutely love Airbnb and Skyscanner, and use them quite regularly. Had not heard of Shiply, thank you for sharing that! Another I’d add to the list is Hotel Tonight for last minute discounts on hotels in many cities.
Thanks for this list, Megan! I really love AirBnB – I just recently used it and love how well it is organised.
I cannot say the same for Trip Advisor, though. It seems almost any place can have a sticker from it which, imho, is not real.
What’s your insight?
I have a personal distaste for tripAdvisor as I find it a bit extreme however I do love Around ME and Foursquare apps which are great for helping out with things to do. Price comparison sites have saved me a fortune too
I use all of these! I haven’t used Groupon in a while though. I wonder how it stacks up lately! TripAdvisor can be hit or miss though. Their interface isn’t awesome in Korea.
Great selection, I particularly love Lonely Planet for inspiration.
The only one I’m not too sure about is Trip Advisor. Apart from a poor user experience, it’s often packed with fake reviews, gotta take everything with a pinch of salt there!
This is a great post for any traveler! I definitely use skyscanner and airbnb. This is a great article and I’m definitely bookmarking this! Thanks for sharing!
Who doesn’t love websites that save you money! I’ve used Groupon in my own town but never thought about using it while travelling – great idea! I use all the others & love saving the pennies :)
Amazing list, Meg! You might want to add HolidayPorch.com to a list soon. We offer Free cancellations and charge no booking fees on most rooms. Thanks for the list! Cheers
Great list of websites. I know a lot of people don’t like TripAdvisor but I find the reviews really helpful. To avoid fake reviews I ignore really great or awful reviews and reviews from people with only 1 or 2 contributions.
Hi Meg, I’ve been using Booking.com and Agoda.com for my current trip to Southeast Asia. I haven’t tried Groupon yet, but I’ll have a look.
I love Airbnb! I love skycanner too but don’t forget Momondo. If you want to use sites like skyscanner or Momondo, do it in incognito Mode and sometimes that can get you an even better flight deal!
Great tips that you shared! I had never heard of Shiply going to check them out now
I don’t think about using groupon, but it’s a tool that I need to look at using.