When you visit a new place for vacation, you only have a limited amount of time and money to spend. Learn these travel secrets of the savvy to save on both.
Learn the airport
Find out ahead of time where your arrival airport taxi stand is, in context with your arrival gate. That way, as soon as you claim your bag and clear customs, you can head directly for the taxis and avoid wasting time and energy traversing the terminal looking for the taxi pick-up location.
Depend on your carry-on
If at all possible, avoid checking your bags. Baggage claims can claim ½ hour to 45 minutes of your valuable time while you scan the carousel searching for your bags. Skip this step altogether by packing efficiently using only the largest sized carry-on bag you can use. Use packing techniques to fit a lot into a small space, and leave excess toiletries at home, buying supplies at your destination. When you keep your luggage with you, you also have the security of knowing that your passport photo is always on your person, in case you are asked to identify yourself for any reason while on vacation.
Take a tour on day one
On your first day in a new city, hop on a bus tour so you can get an overall feel of the city. By doing this, you’ll avoid wandering around half the day with a map, trying to get your bearings. A bus tour may also bring interesting destinations to your attention that you hadn’t known about. You can then add them to your sightseeing list for the following day.
Follow the natives
Rather than eating at tourist trap restaurants where the prices have undoubtedly been jacked up just for you, eat where the natives eat. Discover popular local eateries where prices are more in line with the local economy by paying attention to where natives are headed. You can also ask your hotel concierge for recommendations for traditional, local eateries.
Go for free
Europe offers free admission to museums. Many parks, plazas and town squares around the world have free live entertainment like street musicians, jugglers and magic acts. Bank and government holidays often bring free fairs and festivals into town for the day. Spend at least one day of your vacation seeking out free ways to enjoy the city. Whatever your daily budget allocation is, you’ll save.
Traveling doesn’t have to be a budget buster. As you use these tricks and find other ways to save time and money while traveling, you’ll find that you have the resources to do a lot more of it.
