Money for the Rest of Us

There’s a big pieces in travel news this week:
Skybus- an ultra-low cost ($10 plus taxes) airline opened their website for ticket sales this week. They start flying in May. There’s a really good post about it over at Upgrade Travel, so I’ll defer you to him for the details. But, when it comes down to it, this is truly a no-frills airline. For instance, you pay to check luggage and aren’t allowed to bring ANY food or drink on the plane.

I’m flying to Seattle later this summer for a wedding so I did a quick look into flying there from Richmond (a 2 hour drive from DC, but the closest airport they fly from.) You have to fly through Columbus, OH and buy your tickets separately. To get right to the point, it wouldn’t be worth it to me to save the $120 bucks that I would save by flying with them. Richmond is out of the way, as is the closest Seattle airport they fly to (Bellingham). Plus, based on the flight times, I would have to stay over night in Columbus.

I can see this being a great deal for people who live in Columbus, but that’s about it. Hopefully, though, the low prices will drive other airlines’ prices down.

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The 15 Tips for Cheap Travel series is now over. I really enjoyed writing it and I hope that everyone enjoyed the tips the series offered. For those of you who want an easy to navigate format here it is.

15 Tips for Cheap Travel:

1. Ask What’s Fixed and What’s Flexible
2. a. How to Find Cheap Tickets and b. How to Find Cheap Plane Tickets
3. How to Find Cheap Lodging
4. Consider a Package Deal
5. Creating a Travel Budget
6. Doing Research Before You Go
7. How to Save at Home While You’re Away
8. What to Pack
9. How to Get to (and from) the Airport
10. Enjoy Yourself While You’re There
11. How to Exchange Money
12. How to Get a Cheap Rental Car
13. Getting Around
14. How to Find Cheap Eats
15. Getting Home- VAT Taxes, Ordering Photos, and More

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HotelsCombined.com

If you are sick from your hotel job and want to relax then you must visit adorable destination like Asia, there are several companies who are providing you complete information about flights schedule and they also provide you flight reservation services on cheap airlines and almost all Asia airlines are affordable and packages offered by them are best for spending family vacations on marvelous beach resorts with your complete family. If you are traveling with Australian airline then these resorts are best for your vacations or if you can’t afford airline then you can chose train travel package in which some companies offer car rental facility on their behalf.

This is the fifteenth 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.

Once your trip is over, it’s time to return home. Unfortunately, getting back home will cost money too. Here are some things to think about when returning home:

VAT Taxes. A number of countries (including every country in the European Union) charge a form of sales-like tax which is called the Value Added Tax (VAT). (Here’s the Wikipedia article about VAT Taxes if you don’t know much about them.) This tax may be up to 25% and is charged on everything from jewelery to hotel rooms. Luckily, as a foreigner you can get this payment back on major purchases. When you do make a major purchase, ask for the VAT documents. They will give you some paperwork and special stamps and receipts. Once you are back at the airport ready to go home you will go to the VAT reclaim counter to get your money back. I’ve done it before and it’s not as hard as it sounds. The complicated part is finding out the specific VAT rules for each country and finding the VAT reclaim office in the airport. To find out the country’s specific VAT tax rules ask someone who works at your hotel or consult a guidebook as the VAT Tax laws vary from country to country. Then, just get to the airport a 1/2 hour earlier than normal and ask where the VAT reclaim office is. Usually there is a short line. You also have the option of using a VAT reclaim service through the mail, but these services take a lot longer than just showing up at the airport’s office.

Getting home from the airport. Check out the previous tip about getting to and from the airport to ensure that you’re traveling in the cheapest manner.

Filling out your budget. To know that you have traveled within your budget, fill it out within a week of returning home. If you haven’t already downloaded the sample travel budget that I created, you can download it here.

Photos. Remember the days of film cameras? I couldn’t wait to go to Target and get my pictures developed to see how they all turned out. With the advent of the digital camera, we no longer have to wait as long or pay as much. With digital cameras you can just order the photos you want and you don’t have to order the one you accidentally took of your foot. (Unfortunately, with this philosophy, I sometimes take too many pictures because I know I can just delete them later. But, then I don’t want to actually delete the bad ones– because they’re also the fun and funny pictures.)

So, where do you go to get your digital pictures developed? What do you use to post them online? Several years ago after doing a lot of research I decided on Winkflash. They only charge 12 cents a photo and the shipping is a flat rate of $0.99. I had used Snapfish, but hated paying $5 or $10 for shipping. Plus, Winkflash stores your photos indefinitely. (Make sure you still keep your own backup copy.) I’ve been very happy with Winkflash and would definitely recommend them. But, that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t switch if I found a better deal somewhere else.

I would love some comments on this one. What online photo service do you use to get your pictures developed?

This is the fourteenth 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.

When you visit a new city you will want to try all the local foods that the city has to offer, but you will also want to keep within your budget. Here are some ways to cut down on costs, while still enjoying tasty foods:

• If your hotel has a fridge:
• Get milk, cereal and yogurt and make breakfast in your room
• Save leftovers from restaurants
• If your hotel has breakfast included:
• Take an extra piece of fruit or bread to eat for a snack at a later point in time
• Eat Dinner for Lunch: Many restaurants offer lunch menus with prices that are significantly cheaper than their dinner menus.
• Have a Picnic Meal: Find a local bakery and cheese shop, make some sandwiches, and relax in the park.
• Check out the stands: Most big cities have street vendors that offer delicious food at very reasonable prices. How do you go about choosing one? Find the stand with the longest line.
• Find the Local University: Cheap food is abundant around colleges and universities. If you’re unsure which restaurant or stand to go to, find the one with the longest line or ask a kid with a backpack. They’ll be happy to recommend something.
• Search Best Cheap Eats: Do an internet search for “Best Cheap Eats” + your destination. You wouldn’t believe the number of cheap eat and bargain lists available on the internet. I did this before a recent trip to Toronto and found several lists with wonderful and cheap food.
• Don’t skimp on your favorites: You are on vacation so remember to enjoy yourself. If you like a particular kind of food (Italian, French, Hamburgers, Ice Cream) search for it on the internet before you go. Make a point to stop and spend an extra dollar or two at these special places.
• Buy snacks: Go to a local grocery store and buy a box of granola bars to carry with you. You’re much more likely to splurge when you’re starving.
• Drink lots of water: Not only will this keep you feeling fuller (thus less splurging) drinking water keeps you healthy when traveling.
• Eats fruits and vegetables: Like with drinking water, fruits and veggies keep you full and healthy. And you can pick up fruit for relatively cheap at the grocery store.

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.)

This is the twelfth post of the series “15 Tips for Cheap Travel.” Y ou can navigate the rest of the series by going to the 15 Tips for Cheap Travel Index.

Like airline tickets and lodging, renting a car can be an expensive part of a trip. Luckily, there are a lot of cost comparison tools available for renting a car on the internet.

Here are some things to take into consideration when looking at rental cars:

Mileage: If you are going to be driving a lot, get a car with unlimited mileage. Even if it’s not an option, call and tell them that you just got a price quote online and that you would like unlimited mileage. If they say they won’t do it, tell them that their competitor is offering unlimited mileage and ask if they will match.

Type of Car: If you can, get the smallest car available, because it will also usually be the cheapest car. But, watch out if they try to give you a “free upgrade” once you pick up the car. I read somewhere (and now I don’t remember where) that they charge more for insurance for the larger cars and so you should tell them that you won’t pay the higher insurance rate because they don’t have the smaller car available.

Insurance: Most people know that you don’t need to get additional insurance on a rental car. If you pay with a major credit card the card will offer some sort of protection. (Check with your card first before you leave the country. A small number of countries aren’t covered by any of the major cards (including Ireland and Israel.)) But, I read an interesting post about why you might want to consider insurance. 9 Confessions From A Former Enterprise Salesman (on the Consumerist) has some great tips including:

By now everyone knows that you don’t need that extra rental insurance but just like service contracts at Best Buy, you can negotiate the daily rate of your rental down by agreeing to add all the insurance (we call it “full boat” when some poor soul gets soaked for all of the extra protections–damage waiver, personal accident insurance, and supplemental liability: the trifecta of consumer stupidity). One of the lines that I used to use was, “For just a few bucks a day you got a million dollars of coverage.” True, but the full million dollar payout from the supplemental liability doesn’t come due unless you die. Gruesomely.

Nothing says you can’t initial the “decline” box instead once your contract is printed, thereby declining the insurance and paying only your lower rate.

This is the big money tip: Most of Enterprise’s business comes from insurance replacement rentals. Insurance customers pay a lot less and all insurance contracts have unlimited miles. The only substantial difference between a retail deal and an insurance deal (other than price) is that insurance clients are billed in a calendar day instead of a 24-hour clock, this means you can return a car anytime until closing and you’re still charged the day’s rate (conversely, if you have the car at 8am you may as well keep it until 6).

…Here’s how to get that insurance rate on your next rental: Call for a reservation, say your car was totaled and you need a replacement; your insurance company is cutting you a check for $25.00 per day flat so you need something for under $25. Tell the agent that your insurance company is State Farm, or Farmers, or someone big–the big insurance companies have the best rates (rates will vary a few dollars from company to company). You’ll need your own proof of insurance when you come in but don’t that needs to match what you say here, nobody cares and people utilize different insurance companies for all kinds of reasons (you were hit by another company’s insured is probably the main reason).

Age: If you’re under 25 and are renting a car in the US, you will likely be charged extra for your car rental. (If you renting internationally, the age and rates will vary.) I recently booked a car rental in Florida through an online website and they said that there would be a “low fee” for my being under 25. I thought this would be maybe a $10 flat rate. Imagine my surprise when I picked up the car and it was going to cost $25/day EXTRA . Unfortunately, I didn’t have a choice and had to rent the car, but in the future I will be calling multiple rental companies to find out what the exact charge is for being under 25 years old.

Online Comparison Tools:

• Kayak Cheap Rental Cars
• Sidestep
• And traditional travel agencies: Orbitz, Expedia, Travelocity.

For international car rental:

• Kemwel (I’ve used them in the past and was very pleased)
• AutoEurope

Remember that if you will be driving internationally you will want to find out the local driving laws. AAA is very helpful with this information and also issues international driving permits if you need one.

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This is the eleventh 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.

One of the first things you will do if you go to another country is exchange money. This can be a huge expense, especially if you’re careless. A few tips can help you get the best exchange rate and avoid paying high fees.

• Know the rate before you go. Look at XE.com for the most up to date exchange rates. When you know the current rate you’ll know when you are getting a good and bad deal.
• Get money from the ATM. Using your ATM card to get cash from a local ATM will save you from traveler’s check fees and exchange stand fees. Most ATMs will only charge an ATM fee (if any), but will not charge you a percentage fee for the actual exchanging of the money.
• Get a lot of money from the ATM. Well, not a lot a lot, just enough. Don’t go to the ATM and get out only a day’s worth of money (unless you will just be in the location for a day). Get 2-4 days worth of cash and carry it around in your money belt. Try to figure out exactly how much you need so you won’t have to exchange your money back again.
• Use a worldwide bank (if you can). ING (if you have an ING Electric Orange Checking) and HSBC both have banks in almost every country in Europe. You can use your ATM card at any of their locations and not get charged a fee. Bank of America partners with banks in the UK, France, Germany, Mexico, New Zealand, Australia, and China. Also, if you’re eligible, USAA lets you take money out of any ATM in the world and will reimburse you any fees the ATM charges.
• Talk to your local bank. Give your local bank a call before you head over seas and ask what their rates are and what they can do for you. They may not be able to prevent fees on your ATM card before you go, but if you call when you get back they will likely remove the fees.
• Don’t exchange money before you go. You are going to get a worse exchange rate in the US than you will in the country you’re visiting.
• Don’t exchange money at the airport. The exchange kiosks at the airports have terribly high fees.
• Understand the difference between buy and sell. If you are at a bank/exchange kiosk in another country they post two rates “we buy at” and “we sell at”. “We buy” is when they are buying the the currency (e.g. euros) back from you to your currency (e.g. dollars). “We sell” is when they are taking your dollars and giving you euros. You will want to look at the sell rate when you get there and the buy rate when you are going home. Ideally, you want both of these numbers to be as close to the current exchange rate as possible.

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This is the tenth 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.

When you’re on vacation, you should be on vacation. You shouldn’t be stressing about paying the next bill or how much going to a certain museum is going to cost you. I’m writing today’s post as a precursor to the last 5 pieces of “15 Tips for Cheap Travel.” The last 5 posts are going to focus on how to save money once you’re actually at you’re vacation spot (like how to save on food and transportation). But, before we get to those posts, we should think about the overall question of “How do I enjoy Myself Once I’m There?”

See, there’s a difference between trying to save money and being stingy. I’m stingy sometimes, and I’ve been stingy on vacation. And it’s no fun. It’s not fun to look back on a trip and think, “Why was I too cheap to pay the extra $5 to see the mummies at the Cairo museum?” (Yes, they charge you an additional fee besides the entrance fee to see the famous mummies at the Cairo museum.) It’s not fun to look back at a trip and think, “If only we had paid the extra $10 a day for an automatic shift, so I wasn’t so worried about driving on the skinny, winding roads of Ireland and then I could have enjoyed the view a little more.” You don’t want to look back on your vacation with regrets. And you don’t want to be worrying throughout your entire trip. Here are some tips to make the most of your vacation:

1. Have all your bills set up on automatic payment. This way you won’t have to worry about your home finances while you’re away.
2. Plan how much you are going to spend each day. Have this money in your wallet/money belt and know that you can spend all of it on whatever you want.
3. Be willing to spend a little more than you had budgeted. If you come across something really cool be willing to spend a little extra money. Just because you only budgeted $25/day for activities doesn’t mean that you can’t spend $30 or even $40 for something that you’d really regret not seeing.
4. Stop and think about what you really want. If you come across something that you really want to see/do/eat and it’s not in the budget, stop and think about how much you really want it. Go sit on a bench in a park for a minute (and if you’re hungry or thirsty get a snack or drink) and try to figure out what about it intrigues you. Does it just sound cool? Yes, going to the Spam Museum may sound really exciting at first, but is it worth the 2 hour drive from Minneapolis to get there? Maybe it is to you, but just stop and think about it for a moment.
5. Consider whether you’d take lots of pictures. This may sound strange, but if it’s something you’d want to take a lot of pictures of, then it’s probably worth it to see/do/eat because that means that you’ll want to remember the experience.
6. Think about if you’ll want to tell someone about it. If you think that after you see/do/eat something you’ll immediately want to call your spouse/best friend/mom to tell them what you did, it’s worth it to you to spend the extra money.
7. Don’t break the bank. While it’s ok to go a little over your budget, do not justify going into debt over something that you “can’t live without.” Just because you’ve always wanted to drive a Ferrari, and now you have the opportunity, does not mean that it’s ok to go $2,000 into debt over. You don’t want to get home from a wonderful vacation and spoil your memories because you will be over your head in bills.

As you read the rest of the 15 Tips for a Cheap Trip Series, think about to what extent you want to follow all of the tips—just because I recommend making sandwiches for lunch, doesn’t mean that you should do it everyday for every meal. You may look back on that with regret.

This is the ninth 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.

Getting to the airport can be a huge expense, especially if you live far from it. Plan in advance and compare all the prices. While these options are all pretty much common sense, it really is important to calculate the total cost of the trip.

• Ask a Friend/Family Member to drive you to the airport
• Drive and Park in the Airport’s parking lot
• Drive and Park in Private parking lots (you can find some at this website, also try to phone book. Usually these companies have names like “Park ‘n Fly” and “Preflight Parking”)
• Super Shuttle These are the blue shuttle vans that pick you up from your house and take you to the airport.
• Taxicab
• Public Transportation Most major cities have buses, light-rail, or subways to take you to the airport)
• Other Private Transportation Companies (some cities have private bus companies that are different from the Super Shuttle to take you to the Airport)

I recently flew out of Dulles International Airport which is about 40 miles outside of Washington DC. (I usually fly out of Washington Reagen which is close to downtown and easily accessible by public transportation for a few dollars.) To find out the cheapest way to get to Dulles I compared all my options to take the two of us to the airport. The difference in pricing was extremely surprising.

Friend/Family: We were flying out at 3pm on a weekday and no one could take us.
Drive and Park in Airport: $9/day x 11 days= $99 +tax (and gas)
Drive and Park in Private Lot: There aren’t any near Dulles. (Which was a huge shock to me.)
Supershuttle: $35 for two people ($25 for just one person)
Taxi: About $54 (plus tip)
Metro + Public Bus: $3.45 x 2 people = $6.90
Metro + Private Bus (Washington Flyer): ($1.85 +$9) x 2 = $21.7

It was clearly the cheapest to take the public transportation system. But what about getting home? Let’s double all of the costs to get a round trip cost:

Drive and Park in Airport: $99 +tax (and gas)
Supershuttle: $70 for two people
Taxi: About $108 (plus tip)
Metro + Public Bus: $13.80
Metro + Private Bus (Washington Flyer): $43.40

You could also choose a combination of these options (e.g. Taxi to airport, Supershuttle home). As you can see, if you were considering the Supershuttle for round trip, it might be worth the extra $30 to you to drive your own car and not have to wait for the shuttle. Or, if you have a lot of luggage, you may not want to take public transportation. In addition to factoring in the cost, you should factor in the time, space, and hassle. It’s all about asking yourself: What’s it Worth to Me?

In the end, we took the Metro/public bus to the Airport and got picked up by a friend on the way home. We tried to pay the friend, but she refused money (so we bought her beer and dinner instead for a total cost of $20.)

This is the eighth 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.

I have always loved packing for trips. I get my list started days in advance and check and double check to make sure every item I need has been packed. There are a few items I’ve found that actually save you money when you pack them for your trip: Packing these few additional items for your trip can save a lot of money in the long run.

• Nalgene I never leave home without my Nalgene water bottle. I fill it up once I’m through security (if I’m flying) and use it throughout my trip to carry water in. It’s amazing how much money you can save by just not buying water. If I’m in a place where the tap water isn’t good to drink, I’ll head to the grocery store and buy a few 1-gallon jugs and to fill up my Nalgene. (If you’ve never heard of Nalgenes, they are truly remarkable. They don’t break, crack, or leak. I’ve known people who have driven over them with a car and they still don’t break!)
• Swiss Army Knife Swiss Army knives are indescribably handy. I always find a use for mine while I’m on a trip. Often it’s cutting up meat, cheese, and bread that I’ve purchased at the grocery store for a cheap and easy sandwich. Being able to easily prepare sandwiches save a lot of money. Just remember: don’t pack your Swiss Army Knife in your carry-on.
• Corkscrew/bottle opener If your Swiss Army Knife doesn’t have these, be sure to bring them. Alcohol is much cheaper to purchase from the store than from a restaurant or bar. You can drink in your hotel/hostel room or in a restaurant or park (if it’s allowed).
• ATM card with no fees Call your bank before you go on a trip and tell them you’re going out of town. Find out if they have any branches in the city or country you’re visiting. If they don’t don’t ask what fees (if any) they will charge to withdraw from the local bank. If they will charge you a fee- ask if they will refund it since they don’t have any banks in that location. My experience has been (with Bank of America and Wells Fargo) they can’t stop the charges from happening, but if you call when you get back and explain that you were on vacation and their company didn’t have any free ATMs in the area, the bank will refund the fees.
• Money belt This item will literally save your money (and your passport, etc.) from pickpockets.
• Travel Sized Umbrella No reason to waste $5-$10 on something that you already own. Umbrellas don’t weigh much or take up much room, so toss it in your bag.
• International Student Identity Card- If you’re a student get one of these before you leave the country to pick up huge savings. Also there is a Youth card for persons under 26 years old.
• Cooler and Snacks If you’ll be in a car, bus, or train, pack a cooler full of drinks and snacks and bring it with you to cut down on dining expenses

Bonus: If you want a really cool packing list generator, I love this one.