As I ready myself for my upcoming trip to Las Vegas (by drinking liberally and throwing money into a trashcan), I couldn’t help but wonder: is it possible to do Vegas on the cheap? I soon found out that the answer, my friends, is yes. There’s no question Las Vegas knows how to take care of the 40-plus million tourists that take in the Strip every year.
1 Comment
It’s the time of year when the cold winds and snowstorms start coming to an end. It’s the time of year when the temperatures start to rise. And it’s the time of year to take that annual rite of passage known as Spring Break.
Traditionally, thousands head to a beach of some sort for a week. Or, at the very least, some place warm. But if you’re not interested in that, there are plenty of other options out there for you to consider. Here are a few you may not have considered:
What’s the one thing most travelers do during basically every vacation they take? If you answered "take photos," you'd be correct. Now, in order to take these great photos, travelers used to have to buy some kind of fancy-schmancy camera. Today, thanks to smartphones, that is no longer the case. Anyone with a smartphone already has a really nice camera in their possession.
But just because you have a nice camera at your disposal, doesn’t mean you know how to take a picture worthy of bragging about. Well, it turns out, I have some good news. There are plenty of ways you can take great pictures with your smartphone! But how? Here are your answers: Not interested in using credit cards to save big on travel? You’re certainly not alone. Getting a credit card with travel rewards isn’t always easy. And even after you get it, you may find it’s not worth the annual cost (it likely has). Don’t worry! There are ways you can still save big without any credit cards. And in my opinion, one of the best ways to do so is to consider using Costco Travel. Can’t figure out where to spend your next vacation? I may have found just the list for you to look over to help you decide.
Some places on the list are exotic. Some places are, well, not exotic. The one thing they do have in common: they are expected to be bargains this year. The vacation site Budget Travel just put out it’s Where to Go 2016 list. They chose 24 destinations (why that number? Who knows...). According to Budget Travel, there are several factors that they consider when putting this list together, including “culture, cuisine, and hotel trends around the world and monitor currency fluctuations, airfare, and room rates.” Alright, I’ll stop blabbing. Here’s the list: So you blew your budget over the holidays, Valentine’s Day is coming up before you know it, spring break is right after that, and we haven’t even gotten to your list of “places to visit this year.”
I mean, how do you travel (somewhere, anywhere) without blowing your budget out of whack even more so than it already is?! Fortunately, there are several ways you can do this. One way is to use credit card points. However, that’s not something everyone can (or should) do. Another way, then, is to “hack” your way to a cheaper flight. How do you travel hack? The one thing that really sucks about traveling is that it’s expensive. Luckily, there are plenty of ways to save money, whether it’s using credit cards to earn miles/points, or reading up on how to avoid a checked bag fee.
Another way that can save you boatloads of money is to take advantage of peer-to-peer lodging. And when it comes to this part of the marketplace, Airbnb rules the roost. I used Airbnb for the first time on New Year’s Eve in Fort Worth. And, to sum up my experience in a word, it was unique. So you know a jetsetter you need to buy a present for, and you have no idea what to get. Well, everyone can agree on one thing: that’s not good. However, there’s no need to panic. Here’s a list of 10 gifts every traveler in your life will appreciate:
Updated December 2018
If you fly domestic a lot, you know the pain of the cramped seats, the lack of carry-on space, and the struggle to find some kind of entertainment for yourself. Oh! You bet. The struggle is real. There is, however, a way you can avoid all of those while not paying a single penny more. What is the most comfortable way to fly domestic? The U.S. State Department recently issued a worldwide travel alert until February 24th, 2016.
“Current information suggests that ISIL (aka Da’esh), al-Qa’ida, Boko Haram, and other terrorist groups continue to plan terrorist attacks in multiple regions. These attacks may employ a wide variety of tactics, using conventional and non-conventional weapons and targeting both official and private interests,” the State Department says. But what does this mean for you? With the announcement that JetBlue is changing it’s policy when it comes to checked bags, the days of having your bag fly free is almost history. Not to mention the fact that the holidays are ripe for some airlines to jack-up the price you pay for a checked bag (I’m looking at you Spirit and Frontier).
Needless to say it’s not looking good for those of us trying to be frugal travelers. Southwest is now the only U.S. airline that lets your luggage fly free. That’s why, if you want to avoid that baggage checking fee, it’s time to learn how to pack in an efficient, and space saving way. With that said, there are several ways you can travel hack your carry-on. I recently wrote about the days with the best deals to buy airfare for the holidays. I encourage you to check it out if you haven’t. But if you’ve already bought your tickets for travel between Thanksgiving and New Years, congratulations! You are now a small fraction of the 71% of Americans who are expected to take a trip during the last 5 weeks of the year. Which is up about 6% from last year!
But are you going to one of the top 10 destinations for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s? It’s about that time of year when millions upon millions of people travel for the holidays. Unfortunately, when millions are traveling, many of those will likely be sick in some fashion or another. And if you plan on traveling you’ll likely run into a few of them (hopefully, only b/c you hear them, not b/c you feel them!). Which leads me to the question of the day: how do you avoid getting sick? During a recent trip to Chicago, I had a very strange experience with American Airlines. The flight there, was just fine. Well, for me. There were at least two people that lost their breakfast (it was a bumpy ride), and one of them was sitting next to my girlfriend. However, that wasn’t the “strange experience” that I already alluded to.
I can’t believe I’m writing this, but the holiday season will be here in just a matter of weeks! Has this year flown by or what?! Anywho, if you’re thinking about going somewhere for the holidays, it’s about time to stop thinking, and start acting.
Why? |
Stay inspired with The KKR in Your EmailCategories
All
|