Staying with my aunt and uncle down the Jersey Shore. No hotel cost and a few minutes to the board walk. We had a great time catching up and barbque’ing.

Baltimore: Bid on a hotel via priceline, snagged a 4 star in the Harbor for $62. It was for 2 nights and we drove so it ended up being a frugal and exciting long weekend for me and the kids.

I am having my first ever contest on my blog, please check it out.

1) Transportation #1 (Drive or fly) – If your destination is within a few hundred miles, driving can often actually take less time, especially if flying would require a lay-over. However, cost can depend on how many people are traveling with you. Often, when one evaluates the true cost of driving vs. flying, s/he will find flying is much less expensive (if only one or two airplane tickets are needed). For larger groups (E.g., families), driving may be cheaper.

2) Transportation #2 (Rental car, cab, or shuttle) – Especially if your destination is a large city, renting can be a huge waste of money. You’ll end up paying huge fees for parking, the rental itself, and will miss out on much of what you could see by “hoofing” it. As for cab vs. shuttle, it depends a lot on how many travelers. For one or two persons, an airport shuttle is an inexpensive option, but note there will be many stops on the way. If a family, nearly all US cities taxis (and many international) charge by the ride and not the person. It’s also more convenient than a shuttle.

3) Hotels #1 (international travel) – Unless you’re using points or miles to stay for free, stay in a local hotel rather than an American hotel. Local hotels are 2-4 times cheaper, plus you’ll also get a better experience in really learning the culture.

4) Hotels #2 – Whether for business or holiday, if you plan to stay for any length of time, insist on negotiating a rate with the hotel. Even though my business travel is reimbursed, I always seek to be a good steward. When I reserved a trip to Spain for a two-week stay through our company-required agent, I first compared the local vs. “American” prices. The local hotel was much cheaper. Since my stay was long, I asked the travel agent to contact the hotel directly, and we saved 50 Euro per night. Unfortunately, when I returned the next time with my boss, she insisted on staying at an American hotel for 3x the price. Even though a five-star hotel (begins with “H”), I enjoyed the local hotel much more and thought it was silly we wasted all that money.

5) Site-seeing #1 – Research the destination ahead of time. Every time I’ve traveled for pleasure, I’ve only had a few days. This can save a lot of time in helping determine the “must-sees.”

6) Site-seeing #2 – If the city is spread-out too much to cover all the highlights on foot, consider hop-on-off tours. Prices are cheap, and one can spend as much time as s/he wants before heading to the next place.

7) Site-seing #3 – City Passes – This is offered in some major US cities, but is much more common in Europe. Such a pass will most often allow free entrance into a site or at least major discounts. For example, the first time I visited Paris, I purchased a pass. Many sites were free. Sometimes I had to buy upgrades (but at a discount) for certain things like parts of Notre Dame. Using the pass, I saved several hundred Euros. (If you’re going to Paris, please note the Eiffel Tower is not included at all. You would need to pay full price and wait hours in line during travel season. But the Tower is definitely recommended — just plan to take a few hours!).

8) Missions travel — Saving money depends on which organization you’re serving and whether you travel with a group or are supposed to meet them at the destination. When meeting at the destination, one can use all kinds of frugal ideas for travel (sadly though, “missionary” discounts are nearly impossible to get). When the ogranization needs you to travel with the group, however, it is really out of your control.

When I go to FL, I stay with my folks and borrow one of their cars :)
Works for me.

Jodie R.’s last blog post..Gardening with the Aliens Among Us