15 Tips for Cheap Travel: #13) Getting Around
This is the thirteenth post of the series “15 Tips for Cheap Travel.” You can navigate the rest of the series by going to the 15 Tips for Cheap Travel Index.
Yesterday’s post about about finding a cheap rental car. Today’s post is focused on how to get around if you don’t have a rental car. There are a few options for getting around a city (or country once you’re there.)
The cheapest form of transportation, and my personal favorite, is walking. Yes, this seems like an obvious solution, but not enough people do it. Walking is cheap, it’s good for you, and you get to see lots of cool stuff. When you walk you get to experience a city as it is from a resident’s perspective. You will often run into some really interesting places that you wouldn’t have otherwise found. I have found some of the best (and cheapest) restaurants by just stumbling upon them away from a touristy area. I highly recommend walking as a mode of transport. Next time you’re on vacation try to see as much of the town as you can by walking.
Like walking, biking is also a healthy and “off the beaten path” mode of transport. I’ve spent at least a day biking in several cities and countries I’ve visited and I really have enjoyed it.
Public transportation is a visitor’s best friend. Almost all major cities have buses and in the larger US cities and many international cities you will have a subway system. PublicRoutes.com is a helpful website that plots ways to get from one destination to the next via public transportation. It is currently available for several US cities and London. You should also search for the city’s public transportation website because most city’s transporation websites have door to door directions using public transportation. (See, for example, wmata.com, Washington DC’s public transportation website.)
Flying is an option if you are trying to get around countries in Europe. Both RyanAir and EasyJet have extremely cheap flights that can get you from one country to the next for often cheaper than the bus. (Last year I flew from Berlin to London for less than $40.)
I know what you mean when talking about cheap flights from companies like Easyjet and Ryanair. The deals available are amazing although you do have to perhaps work your holiday around the flights as they dont seem to run as often as scheduled flights. The other thing is I believe using these companies is more enviromentally friendly as you never fly on one of these budget airfare companies on a half empty plane - its always jampacked with tourists and business travellers alike!