Great Budget Travel Tips

I'm frugal. Not cheap - frugal. I believe even if you have money, why spend it if you don't have to? There are many ways to achieve the same affect or get what you need without spending top dollar. I think this comes from growing up without a lot of money and learning to stretch the funds and still have fun with what we had. My parents believed in saving and never living beyond your means, and that has stuck with me.

My husband and I love to travel. Although I don't do it as much as I'd like these days, I've been to some great places both domestic and international: all up and down the East Coast from Boston to Miami, Alabama to Vegas, Seattle, Chicago, Hawaii, Canada, the Bahamas, US Virgin Islands, Mexico, London, Paris, a few spots in Italy, Spain, Hong Kong, Thailand, China, Indonesia, Japan, and a few others...

After spending 2 weeks in Thailand on our honeymoon and spending very little other than the cost of the airfare, I thought I'd share some of our tips to help you have fun and keep a few more dollars in your pocket so you can do more SHOPPING! Some of them only really apply if you're traveling internationally but most are universal.

1. Book your hotel early and check the hotel's website for special "online only" travel deals. Be aware that some great deals involve not being able to cancel last minute or you have to pay in full at the time of booking, so don't let this be a trip with one of your flaky girlfriends or some guy you recently met who might back out on you. Before you book, call the reservations desk and ask them if they can give you the same price or better.

2. If you're going with your mate, tell them it's your honeymoon (or birthday or anniversary or some celebration) -- they may very likely give you free upgrades or amenities. We paid the special Internet rate for a basic room, and got upgraded to a deluxe suite on the club floor and got a happy honeymoon cake all for free!

3. Don't eat in the hotel's restaurants or restaurants in big tourist spots. They are much more expensive since they cater to tourists. Take a walk a few blocks out of the way. Ask a native for restaurant suggestions. We found great restaurants that had more of the local foods and were way cheaper than the hotel restaurants or touristy spots.

4. Go grocery shopping when you get there. Even if it's at a 7-11 or find a local mini-mart. Get drinks and snacks to keep in the hotel room or carry with you on those day tours or to have on the beach. You'll save lots from using the minibar or ordering food every time you're alittle hungry. And if traveling internationally, you don't want to get caught on a bus tour in the mountains and the only local snack is a boiled egg or some exotic fruit you know nothing about. Granola bars always come in handy!

5. Want a free tour of the island or city and love architecture? Call a realtor and tell him/her you're interested in buying some property there. This is great for getting tours of islands and seeing sights that you can drive by. I love architecture and design, so I find it fun just seeing the types of houses people live in and seeing how they live -- especially in other countries. If it's a beautiful place, you may actually consider someday buying there, so it's not a complete lie! Feel free to buy the realtor lunch if you like -- he's spending his gas on you anyway.

6. If you have the time, take advantage of timeshare presentations to get the freebies. Now, sometimes you just want to be left alone, but spending two hours in a presentation might be worth $200 in meal vouchers or a couple free tours. Just know that the more questions you ask, the longer the presentation will last.

7. Don't purchase tours through the hotel. Look for fliers for the local tour companies in public areas or find tour companies out in the busy touristy areas. The hotel up-charges a lot! And when you find and deal directly with someone at the tour company, you can bargain with them. Many companies sell the same bus tours or boat tours and just take a cut off the top. Make them compete for your business!

Or make your own tour. Sometimes it may be a lot cheaper to just catch a cab or rent scooters or a car, and take your own tour. Instead of paying $100 per person ($200 total) for a bus tour around St. Martin to 3 tourist spots, we rented a scooter for $50 for the day, when to those three places, and drove around the entire island and still had time to shop. We got to go at our own pace and had lunch when we wanted, and got to see much more. Find out where the tour is taking you and what the entry fees are for those locations. Are they just taking you to free spots like the craft factory and scenic overlooks? or are you paying for entry and transportation? Do your research -- you'll be surprised how much you save!

Be safe in your travels and feel free to suggest more budget-friendly travel tips. I'm always happy to learn new ones!