It's spring and we're already planning vacations and future trips. Anyone who has a little experience independent travel, is already familiar with popular services for booking hotels and private apartments and knows where and how to buy cheaper tickets. And besides, he is well aware of what couchsurfing and volunteer programs are.
Therefore, we have selected lesser-known and less radical ways to save for those who are not ready to volunteer, work an overnight stay, or look for registration. It's still not fun for everyone.
Find friends abroad and go on a visit - Hospitality Club
To Europe for pennies - “Nesterovsky” train
So-called "Nesterovsky" train makes it possible to get to Europe 40–70% cheaper. The fact is that branded train Russian Railways No. 029 Moscow - Kaliningrad goes through Vilnius, but the prices for tickets there are as for domestic ones, and not for international routes, that is, low. If you take a ticket to Nesterov and get off in Vilnius, before reaching Kaliningrad, the trip will cost only 1,600–2,000 rubles. And once in Vilnius, you can choose one of many low-cost flights around Europe (you can buy tickets in advance) starting from 10 euros.
How to buy: in Moscow - only at the box office Belorussky railway station, in other cities - at any box office. Online will be a little more expensive. And of course, for such a trip you need a valid Schengen visa.
Hotel discount offers - Hotel Tonight
Free excursions - Sandemans New Europe
Last minute flights - Last minute
Finding free toilets - AirPnP
Calls from your number at local rates - Roamer
Exchange of houses and apartments - Home Exchange
The best way to tell about the capabilities of the service is the comedy “Exchange Vacation,” where people, after meeting each other on the site, go on vacation and stay with new acquaintances. The exchange cannot always take place simultaneously: travelers often take turns visiting each other. Now the service database includes more than 65 thousand houses and apartments in 150 countries. Of the Russian offers on the site so far, only Moscow and St. Petersburg.
Save on the Internet - Protect Free VPN+Data Manager
The Protect Free VPN+Data Manager application allows you to compress any type of data, which helps to significantly save Internet traffic. The operating principle is as follows: mobile phone requests data through the operator providing the connection, then the data goes to the application server, where it is compressed, but the quality does not deteriorate. The application works through a VPN connection, which allows you to save traffic and, most importantly, safely use the global network.
Only those who have never done it before don’t like to travel. New places, interesting sights, overcoming oneself, and then wonderful memories. This is all great until it comes down to it. And I met many people who said: “ You travel so much, it's expensive!“Actually, no, you can travel on a very budget, and even combine it with work. Now I will tell you how to do this.
1) Travel around the area.
If you have never left your city, you will be impressed by any new place, even if it is a neighboring small town, and often such towns hide wonderful architectural monuments or stunning natural attractions. Open a map of your area, Google each city and be surprised at how much interesting stuff there is.
Traveling around the region is quite inexpensive, even if you travel by bus or train, round trip travel usually does not exceed 1000 rubles. In addition, such trips are one-day (left in the morning, returned in the evening), you don’t have to look for accommodation for the night, and you can take food with you from home.
Have time to see what is nearby. Perhaps in the future you will leave home, and what was close at hand will be completely inaccessible.
2) Leisure for yourself
I won't say that group excursions or the services of tour operators are always more expensive than an independent trip. Sometimes I had to use them because it was cheaper. But it was a well thought out choice after comparing all the prices and options.
But whatever you say, independent trips often they turn out cheaper and more interesting, because you don’t have to “feed” the guide and organizer. All information about a place or city can be read on the Internet. The main and not so important attractions have long been marked on maps. And in general, how good it is to be left to your own devices.
Use electronic maps on your gadget and a navigator, so you won’t get lost. I use 2gis and maps.me, all the sights and hiking trails are marked there (sometimes even in the mountains). Sometimes I use Google maps to search for public transport abroad, but the disadvantage of Google maps is that they only fully work with the Internet.
3) Don't choose a seat, choose tickets.
If you are limited in money, there is no point in looking for Beautiful places, which you cannot reach; instead, look for cheap tickets.
Russian Railways and airlines constantly carry out various promotions and accumulate points for trips and flights. So, you can get tickets for long distances almost free of charge or for just 500 rubles
And even if instead of city “X” you go to city “Y”, it will also be no less cool, because it will be a new place for you.
4) Seize every day off
Most people have a stereotype from somewhere that you can only travel on vacation, which is once a year, and that the trip must be long and you need to save up for it.
Throw this nonsense out of your head, travel at least every free weekend. Two days is enough to move up to 1000 km from home, explore a new place/city and return back. Use night time for movement, and day time for exploring and walking. Do not forget also that you can use Friday evening, and the night train can replace the hotel.
Be spontaneous and easy-going.
Where is the benefit here? You are not at the mercy of the holiday season when all ticket prices skyrocket. You will only have one night away from home, which is much cheaper than if you leave for a week at once.
5) Forget about household chores
Remember how many times you yourself refused a cheap trip somewhere because: “I have so many household chores”, “it’s such a mess at home”, etc.
If you want to travel cheaply, go at the first opportunity, and you can rearrange your household chores later when travel becomes expensive. In any case, your asshole will not run away from you anywhere, and cheap tickets and wonderful memories will do the same.
6) Forget about comfort
When traveling on a budget, you often have to sacrifice comfort and you need to be prepared for this. Cheap tickets are usually sold at night, on uncomfortable places, in old carriages, etc.
All this brings a lot of inconvenience, but the devil is not as terrible as he is painted, because all the bad things are forgotten, and only pleasant memories remain. No matter how much my neighbors annoy me, no matter how much I have to go to work on Monday like a zombie, the delight of visiting a new place is much stronger.
7) Don't wait for weather by the sea
How many times have I heard: “Nah, it’s cold,” “Nah, it’s snowing,” “Nah, it’s raining.” Stop waiting for weather by the sea and go as soon as possible. If it's cold, dress warmly; if it's raining, take an umbrella. And in general, the weather can change in a day.
And when the weather is good, you will simply go somewhere else, because we have very big country and the choice is huge.
8) Use a blah blah car
Browse sites like blah blah car or beep car, or some local forums where drivers recruit travel companions. More often than not, this actually works out cheaper and faster.
9) Say yes to the hitchhiker
No matter how trivial it may sound, if your wallet is completely empty, you can always hitchhike. In Russia, this matter has long been commonplace and even more of a subculture. Hitchhikers compete in speed, share stories online and organize meetings. This is actually very interesting and hitchhiking helped me out in places where it was impossible to leave by regular transport.
In addition, look for hitchhiking groups on VK, for example, Hitchhiking Community, where you can find out in advance about someone’s trip and agree to get into the car at a certain place. Or team up with some traveler.
10) Stay overnight for free
If the trip is multi-day, the issue of accommodation may be more pressing than the issue of tickets.
There have long been a lot of sites and groups on social networks on the Internet where residents are ready to host travelers for free. I use Couchsurfing.com
Of course, it will be great if you give the owner something for his hospitality, for example, share your travel experience, bring a souvenir from home, buy a cake for tea, etc. Read the hosts' profiles and reviews carefully, take into account their preferences, warn them if you're going to be late, be sociable and friendly.
Very often, hosts not only provide accommodation for the night, but also invite you to dinner.
And throw all this nonsense out of your head about maniacs, because for them you are exactly the same stranger whom they will let into their house.
It will be great if you also start hosting travelers. There is nothing dangerous or complicated about this; most often, people just need a place on the floor; they will spend the night in their own sleeping bags.
11) Book hotels at a discount
If you couldn’t find a free overnight stay, you can book a hotel at any time through booking.com, which often offers promotions and discounts. And by registering using our referral link you will receive a refund on your card in the amount of 1000 rubles after check-in.
12) Eat in supermarkets
Breakfast, lunch and dinner in cafeterias can cost a pretty penny. You can try to find an inexpensive decent canteen, but it is even cheaper to buy ready-made food in supermarkets. In addition, supermarkets open early and stay open until late, unlike canteens. This method is especially effective abroad, where everything is very expensive.
In addition, if you are staying with someone for a long time, you can ask to use the kitchen and cook something, because regular food is even cheaper than ready-made food.
13) Don't wait for girlfriends
This is about the same as “don’t wait for weather by the sea.” How many times have you wanted to go somewhere, but there was no one who could accompany you? All my friends have more important things to do, but one of them is somehow scared to go.
Go to the Internet and look for a company there. How many people around the world want to go somewhere, but, damn it, there is no one with them. Unite and go.
Look for groups on VK, look for groups about hitchhiking. Create meetings on Couchsurfing.com, people will definitely write and come. From bike rides to mountain hikes, I always had online companions, even when everyone close to me was busy.
14) Visit our neighbors
If you really want to go abroad, consider visiting Belarus or Ukraine. Sounds unfashionable? Believe me, both there and there there is something to see and be surprised by, and no visa is required. This option is especially suitable for those who have never been to another country.
Another great option is to get Schengen and cities with wonderful architecture and nature will open up before you, and getting to them may be cheaper than traveling around Russia. For example, you can leave Moscow for Estonia for just a thousand rubles. And moving around Estonia between cities costs just 1 euro. Low-cost airlines fly from Warsaw and the Baltic countries to Norway for 500 rubles. From Tallinn there is a ferry to Stockholm for 65€ per cabin of 4 people, or to Helsinki for 15€ per person. And there are many, many more such examples.
Abroad, the same rules for cheap travel apply as in Russia.
15) Pay according to the Central Bank rate
Abroad, the issue of currency is also very acute: where to withdraw, where to exchange, how to pay? If you are used to using Sberbank, Alfabank and other banks that pop up on every corner, be prepared that for every purchase or withdrawal of cash abroad, your bank will charge you a conversion fee.
Use the correct bank cards. For example, the Kukuruza card allows you to pay for any purchases at the Central Bank rate without additional fees. In addition, if a special option is activated, you can withdraw currency (euro, dollars) from any ATM without commission (from 5,000 to 50,000 rubles in foreign currency equivalent per month).
16) Break stereotypes
« No one will pick up three guys on the road», « We have a child, who will let us in?" etc.
Get this nonsense out of your head. They’ll pick you up and let you go. It happened that 5 travelers stayed with me at once, just like I had to travel with three of us with a child, and we were allowed to spend the night.
All problems can be solved if we look for a solution. You can also travel a lot and cheaply.
If you have any additions, write in the comments, share your experience and tricks, beginners really need these simple and inspiring tips.
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Tireless romantics are already planning their next independent foray into new country, city, territory. And someone is going on a more familiar, but long-awaited vacation tour using a ready-made package. But how to learn to travel both interestingly and on a budget applies to all categories of travelers for whom expenses are of key importance. Experienced pilgrims will help you learn the secrets of this noble cause, for whom inexpensive travel became a kind of test of adaptability. Their stories and advice boil down to 5 ironclad rules for budget adventures around the world.
A rule that is not shown to everyone, but if you have the opportunity to use it, it works flawlessly - drive only on your own.
Fits:
- free, young people;
- sociable, courageous tourists;
- married couples without excessive demands.
If you know the language of the country where the tourist’s gaze is directed, then you can freely travel on your own in any case, it will still be cheaper and much more interesting than through an agency. By the way, about the last one. It is the services of intermediaries that eat up a decent portion of the travel budget, making economical trips impossible. But everything that is done in the agency is quite accessible to oneself.
You just need to spend the evening useful information, instructions, of which there are a large number on the Internet today, and book tickets and accommodation on your own. If you need a visa, then it can be done without the participation of others, especially when you live in a developed city. However, residents of the outback should not despair either - if they plan to make a tour on their own, then such a task should not become the first obstacle.
Part two - do it yourself
The rule that smoothly follows from the first one is that choosing your own airline tickets or other travel tickets helps you travel economically.
This makes it possible:
Absolutely the same actions will bring success when searching for housing on your own. There are a lot of metasearch engines that search for the best options, for example, super-cheap but with the amenities of hostels, owner-occupied apartments, mini-hotels. Also, you should definitely study with interest a topic called “crouch surfing.” Then you can generally get accommodation during the trip for free.
More detailed instructions How to do all of the above is available in large quantities on the Internet today, choose what you liked best and learn. In the unstable times of our days, it is not fashionable to throw money away.
Part three - banks can help too
A rule that reveals how to travel on a budget with the help of banks. The fact is that considerable competition in the market forces banks to fight for any clients, which gives rise to a bunch of interesting offers from the banking side. If you already have a preference for a certain bank, then you need to ask if it has a corresponding package of travel-related services. By 2018, many banks had developed very profitable programs for tourists using their payment cards, which provide:
- cashback miles;
- refundable interest for booking hotel tickets;
- free insurance;
- gift bonuses and more.
If you don’t have a single payment card on hand, then you should not be lazy to find a suitable bank with favorable offers for tourism and start a relationship with it. However, you need to be more careful when choosing a partner bank - often a considerable commission is charged for using some cards abroad.
Young promising students and professionals should take an interest in international cards ISIC, ITIC or IYTC - a very profitable system for budget travel in Europe and the USA.
Part four - visas
Self-employed visas have already been mentioned, but a few more little tips won’t hurt. Firstly, it is a deep myth that obtaining a visa through travel agents is more reliable, faster or more successful. In fact, all the work of travel agency employees in terms of issuing a visa for a client comes down to the fact that they simply give the necessary package of documents to the consuls themselves instead of the clients. It is absolutely possible to do this yourself and with exactly the same success. But without overpayment. Detailed, very simple instructions from sections of special sites will tell you how.
Part five - on the road
The first 4 tips concerned preparation for the tour, and now tips for saving money on the road:
- luggage should be as compact as possible and with minimal filling - the pleasure of traveling increases in direct proportion to the reduction in the volume of things taken with you and vice versa, the threat of loss and overpayment for excess weight also disappears (especially for low-cost airlines);
- going on your own budget travel, you need to carefully identify at home the scheme for moving from the airport of arrival to the place - doing this by taxi is very expensive, and the public transport schedule can be very unique in some countries, it is better to know about this in advance;
- it's better to eat away from tourist areas, in snack bars, cafes and taverns for locals, every future thrifty traveler should firmly understand this; real ones already know about this - prices for the “menu” for their own people and tourists differ by 2, or even 3-4 times.
When thinking about how to inexpensively make a tourist cruise, you don’t need to limit yourself to superficial ideas heard by chance from friends. The more information, the more profitable it is to travel around the world without a lot of money, so when you choose a destination, read, read, read as much as possible about it, and then you will be able to save on absolutely everything. But there is no need to try to save money abroad on travel tickets from Europeans or the United States; rabbits are punished very strictly there.
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Summer is just around the corner, which means that many are already thinking about their long-awaited vacation.
Traveling on vacation is always a significant burden on the budget, so, especially in order to help you reduce expenses, we have prepared these 40 proven ways to save money while traveling without sacrificing comfort. Relax with pleasure and don’t overpay!
At the end of the article, read information about the competition, participate and win valuable prizes!
- Book your flights in advance and monitor special offers from airline companies; they periodically hold sales - seasonal, holiday, etc.
- Research the availability of low-cost carriers(low-cost airlines) in the direction you need - they are available both in Europe and America, and in Asia.
- Use metasearch engines for air tickets for all airlines (for example aviasales.ru). Often with their help you can get more favorable prices than the airlines themselves offer.
- Earn airline miles(for flights and for spending using co-branded cards) and fly or stay in hotels for free. Many major airlines have such programs (Aeroflot, Lufthansa, Emirates, etc.).
- Get visas yourself- There is plenty of information on the correct execution of documents on the Internet. Agencies, as a rule, do not provide any guarantees, but simply perform courier functions in delivering your documents to the consulate.
- Travel light take a minimum of luggage with you. The cost of air tickets for low-cost airlines most often includes only hand luggage, and you will have to pay for luggage separately. Why do you need heavy bags on a trip and 4 pairs of shoes for 10 days?
- Look into the issue of airport transfers. Some airlines offer a transfer to the city along with the ticket, which is not always, but is often cheaper than buying a ticket or ordering a taxi at the airport upon arrival.
- If you plan to take a taxi from the airport, don’t be lazy to chat with other passengers, it is quite possible that you will be able to team up and save 50% of the fare.
- Night travel on trains and buses, as well as on ferries, especially first and VIP class - a good opportunity to simultaneously save time and money on a hotel. In general, there are slipper buses - recumbent, soft shelves, like on trains. On many intercity buses there is wi-fi, so you can also do business.
- Transport tickets on local websites, are sometimes cheaper than in English. We have purchased several times cheap tickets on trains in Germany, Austria and France, as well as ferries in Finland.
- To search for housing, use not only booking sites, such as booking.com, but also metasearch engines (for example roomguru.ru).
- When traveling to Asia, book accommodation for 1-2 days, and look for a cheaper (does not mean worse) option on the spot. Not all hotels/guesthouses provide their data to search engines.
- Instead of big hotels, choose hostels and guesthouses– for a room of comparable quality you will pay significantly less. Why pay for a swimming pool, fitness and a plasma panel at the reception if you only plan to spend the night at the hotel?
- Use couchsurfing. If not for housing (although often a room offered by a couchsurfer, especially in Asia, maybe), then at least for meetings and dinner together. Locals always know non-tourist places where you can try the most. In addition, they are often up to date with events in their city , they can tell you what and when is the best time to visit, so there will be more opportunities to learn about the life of other nations. And at the same time, there will be an opportunity to practice a foreign language, so you will also save on courses :)
- Pay attention to apartment rentals(airbnb.com), especially if you are traveling to one place for more or less long term in or . Along with saving money, this is also an opportunity to communicate with locals, and in addition, you will not live in a standard hotel room, but in a cozy, furnished apartment.
- If you are a student, teacher or under thirty years of age, get yourself an international IDIC, ITIC or IYTC, respectively. With an international ID you can get good discounts, especially in Europe and the USA.
- Take advantage of discounts. Groupon is widespread in both Europe and America, as well as major cities Asia. We have more than once bought not only very profitable coupons for cafes and restaurants, but also successfully used them in other areas - we went to, went to, visited attractions and spas, and even booked hotels with good discounts.
- For local calls, sending SMS And mobile internet connect to your local operator. In Asia, communications are generally very cheap, but even in Europe it will be more profitable than using roaming.
- For free calls use Skype. You can also send SMS through it at prices comparable to Russian ones (about 2 rubles). You can link your Skype account to your mobile phone number, so calls and SMS from Skype will appear as incoming calls from your usual number.
- It is beneficial to use for calls to RussiaSipnet. The cost is cheaper than Skype, there are no connection fees, and calls to landlines in Moscow and St. Petersburg from anywhere in the world are currently free (in general, this is a temporary promotion, but it has lasted for more than two years).
- If you plan to travel around Europe by buses and trains, do not delay purchasing tickets - you do not have to buy them at the box office at the place of arrival, everything can be done in advance via the Internet. Firstly, it will most likely be cheaper, and secondly, you will save time; in addition, on the desired day there may no longer be tickets at the box office. But even if you find yourself in such a situation, don’t get confused - this is a good reason to go on a trip.
- When booking a car, as in the case of air tickets, use aggregators (for example, Epronto.ru). The rule also applies here - “the sooner, the cheaper”, in addition, the price greatly depends on the duration of the rental, for example, often renting a car for 6 days costs the same as for 7.
- Cost of motorbike rental in Asia Depends even more on the length of the lease. Most often, rental companies have daily and monthly rates, so renting a bike for 12 days can cost the same as for a month. Sometimes it is cheaper to rent a bike for 2 weeks, even if you need it for example for 8-9 days and just return it earlier, the rate for half a month will be more profitable than when calculating a daily rental for 8 days. Same with bicycles, kayaks and boats.
- In many European cities parking is often paid, but almost everywhere there are supermarkets where you can leave your car for free.
- Paper maps are a thing of the past. Install maps on your smartphone and save on purchasing atlases and mobile traffic when using Google Maps.
- If sometimes you still want to take a walk around the old city with a card, it is not necessary to buy it - in non-profit tourist centers, marked with the letter "i" you will most often be given free card cities, with marked tourist sites.
- If you plan to travel a lot by public transport Yes, find out about the travel card system. For example, in Paris and even if we stayed for 5 days, it was more profitable for us to issue weekly passes than to buy a ticket each time. In Germany, domestic trains have group fares, for example a ticket for 2-5 people. So, if there are three of you traveling (and sometimes even two of you), it is more profitable to buy one such ticket than separately for each. In Hong Kong you can get a special travel card, put a certain amount on it and pay for any transport with it, including a taxi - this is, firstly, more convenient, and secondly, cheaper. In addition, you can pay by card in some stores.
- For shopping lovers we recommend combine vacations with sales seasons. Prices at European and American sales are always more pleasing than at sales in Russia.
- There are entire villages of outlet stores in Europe for lovers of branded clothing, and in Asia, for example, in Hong Kong, such clothing is actually cheaper, even without sales. Similarly with equipment, for example, it is profitable to buy photographic equipment in the USA, Singapore and Hong Kong.
- If you make large purchases, check the possibilities of tax refund in this country (Tax Free).
- Purchasing a tour in Asian countries, for example, to neighboring islands, a coffee plantation, or just around the surrounding area in a Russian travel agency or with a Russian guide, it can cost 1.5-2 times more. Unfortunately, enterprising compatriots like to punish with a ruble for ignorance of the language, so don’t be lazy, learn English.
- Entry tickets in entertainment, and even, sometimes, in National parks, on observation platforms, waterfalls, etc., are often more expensive on weekends, and besides, on these days there are many local vacationers. If you are on vacation and it makes no difference to you, go to such places on weekdays.
- To most places where tours and excursions are usually sold, you can get there on your own, in a rented or public transport– it will not always be longer and always cheaper.
- If you are traveling to any, especially Asian, country for a long time, learn basic words and expressions in the local language. At a minimum, this will please the natives, and perhaps also save you money when buying food and goods at markets.
- Training in various skills– surfing, kiting, etc. in a local school or with a local instructor may turn out to be much cheaper than in an English-speaking or, especially, a Russian one.
- Always complete travel insurance , even if this is not required by the country's visa rules. Seeking medical help can be an order of magnitude more expensive than the cost of an insurance policy.
- If you are traveling to Europe or, it may be more profitable to take euros or dollars with you, but for a trip to Asian countries, it makes no sense to take currency with you - on a double exchange you will most likely lose more than on the commission for withdrawing cash from the card, in addition, some banks and They provide the opportunity to withdraw money from the card without commission all over the world. Also, from many banks, using cards you can get discounts when paying at certain points or cashback on certain types of goods and services (for example, when paying in restaurants or at gas stations).
- Meet national cuisine not only in tourist restaurants, but also in ordinary cafes - there you will not overpay for design and interior, and will get an idea of real local cuisine. The main sign that the establishment is worthwhile is a large number of visitors inside. If your budget does not allow you to eat in a cafe, pay attention to food courts in large shopping complexes– in addition to fast food, there is usually a large selection of local cuisine.
- Choose local and seasonal dishes. If you're on the coast, why order pork when seafood and fish are cheaper and fresher? In Asia, salads and shakes made from apples and oranges are cheaper.
- Souvenirs in tourist places and at the airport they are usually more expensive. Most often, almost everything the same can be bought in large supermarkets, at prices 1.5-2 times lower.
We hope these tips will help you save your vacation budget or spend it more efficiently. What proven ways do you have to save money while traveling? Tell us about them in the comments!
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