If you're anything like me, you love to travel but don't always have the funds to do so. If I wasn’t “college poor” and had more than three dollars in my wallet this week, I would probably be halfway to China right now. Traveling is expensive; it is also a necessity when you’re in college. We’ve all heard the phrase “travel while you’re young and still have time," and although we have time on our side, money is the main issue. If you travel smart, you can travel anywhere.
You can cut down your costs by:
Doing your research
This is the most important step before traveling anywhere. You can find cheap and fun things to do in every city. Map out where the local hot spots are and look for inexpensive or free places to go such as beaches, museums, and interesting landmarks. If you do your research before hitting the road, you can efficiently plan out the places you want to go.
Travel apps are your friend
Gas prices vary by area. Since you have no way of knowing which areas have cheap gas, download Gas Buddy. This app gives you a breakdown of every gas station around you and the gas prices at each one.
Need a hotel? You can cut your costs in half and still stay at a four star hotel by downloading the app Hotel Tonight. The app provides users with a wide variety of hotels at discounted rates, and the only catch is you need to book the hotel just a couple days in advance.
You can also use Air BnB which is a website that allows you to rent out homeowners houses and apartments for rates cheaper than that of a hotel.
Travel with friends
The more people you travel with, the more opportunities there are to split costs. Traveling with a full car of people can tremendously cut your gas costs down, and splitting a hotel room makes hotel costs more affordable for everyone.
Travel smart
Wanna get away? If you’re booking a flight somewhere clear the “cookies” folder on your computer. Cookies are files stored in your Internet browser that track the websites and purchases that you make. For example, if you book a flight to Vegas then try to book a flight to LA, the site will track your cookies and make your ticket more expensive.
Traveling by car? Pick the car in your group with the best gas mileage in order to save money on gas. Map out your route in advance and take the route without tolls, this way you save money on an unnecessary stop.
Food & Water
Typically on trips you spend the most money on food and beverages. Bring a refillable water bottle to avoid spending money on overpriced water bottles wherever you go (and help save the environment). Pack snacks to eat on the car ride so you can avoid having to stop for food on the way to your destination. If your group wants to go out to dinner, check local restaurant happy hours so you can take full advantage of half priced drinks and food.
So next time you want to take a road trip or just want to fly to Vegas, pick up your phone, do your research and travel smart. Adventure is out there my friends, so go out and explore.
