Tips on Planning a budget vacation

kidslovevacations · Joined: 11 Aug 2006 Posts: 2

I would like to share some tips on planning a vacation on a budget :

Always compare flight and hotel deals. Look out for lowest rates and what they are offering. However, do check out for their cancellation policy before booking.
Book a flight and hotel bundle which will save you money.
Always read hotel reviews before you book your accommodation. You know what it means to make a wrong choice.
It always pays to look into local tour operators for activities and tours. As local operators, they specialise in their destinations and more often able to provide better or competitive deals than the rest. For instance, if you are visiting Europe, look into travel operators who specialise in Europe.
Spend wisely and work on a budget by prebooking your tours.
Grab a railpass to make travelling easier and hassle-free and money saving. Check out offers by rail companies.
Always look out for sightseeing passes, combo packages which provide discounted admission to tourist attractions. These passes can save you tons. By prebooking them on the web, you may be able to join the 'fast entry' instead of queuing to purchase tickets at the attraction.
Go for sightseeing buses to minimize transfers and maximise sightseeing. Sightseeing buses provides interesting commentary, unless you want to miss it.
Read travelogues or blogs to find out more about the destination. It's worth to check out how other travellers have made it in each destination. Travellers are likely to comment on their experience for each activity or tour. This will help you in planning your vacation.
Read travel forums. Usually for travel forum, there are experts in each destination to answer all your questions. Get ideas from travel forums and post your question.
If you do not have an idea of where to go, you can begin with travel deals. Also, suggested itineraries from tourism boards offer excellent ideas can faciliate your planning.
Consider hostels or hotels with free nights.
Check out attractions which offer free entry on certain days.
Check out coupons provided by attractions, tourism businesses or restaurants. Destinations such as Japan offers Welcome Cards which provides visitors with discounted admission to many attractions. For UK, check out http://www.2for1entry.co.uk/, london pass, travel passes by london tube or national rail.