It’s that time of the year again. The semester is almost over, and winter break is finally approaching. For many of us, that means we can finally plan mini-trips with our girlfriends. Planning trips that extend past dorm walls can be extremely fun. Spending hours looking at pictures of cities and rambling about different restaurants can arguably be more exciting than the trip itself. For the sake of saving you from a horrible trip, here are seven tips to use when planning your mini-vacay.
1. B.Y.O.F: Bring Your Own Food
Argusably one of the best things about a travel trip is trying out amazing restaurants that are at the destination! However, you’ll see that eating out every day for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, will quickly add up. I’m not saying that you should never try that hard-to-pronounce restaurant. Rather, you should have a balance between restaurant food and cooked food. Try bringing snacks or buying groceries there!
2. Sometimes Further is Better
The most important part of planning a trip is picking the perfect place to stay. Finding the perfect place in a city like Chicago can be expensive. Hotels with clean rooms, a (decent) view, access to fun activities, and no extra night critters, unfortunately adds up. One great way to save money is by staying in a nearby town or city. For example, instead of staying in New York City, stay in New Jersey. It may not seem as glamourous, but it saves money.
3. Ditch the Hotels. Get an Airbnb.
Like I said before, hotels can be extremely expensive. An even less expensive way to save money is by getting an Airbnb, instead of a hotel. With an Airbnb, you can get an entire apartment or a single room. Another plus is that you can check in at any time and check out at any time. Airbnb also gives you the option to stay with a superhost, which ensures the place is in good condition!
4. One Word: Save
One of the biggest mistakes I’ve made while planning a trip is saving for a trip only a couple of months before. Starting to save only a couple months before might seem reasonable. However, it’s important to account for the place, shopping, food, gas, and any surprise expenses. It’s also important to save enough for after the trip is over. Though it may seem irritating, saving up well before the trip can be helpful in the future.
5. Another Word: Plan
One thing I’ve learned from traveling in the past is that going in with a plan is the best thing I could have done for my pockets! Going on a trip without a budgeted list of activities often results in more spending than planned. Have a list of the activities for the trip, I promise your pockets will thank you later!
6. The More the Merrier
This doesn’t apply to everything but, more can be merrier. Well, more can be cheaper, too. The longer the trip lasts, the more expensive it will most likely cost. Splitting the cost with even more people can be helpful and more joyous!
7. Travel in the Off-Season
Many people have dream of travelling to New York City during the holiday season. One can say that there are too many people dreaming of going to New York City during the holiday season. As a result, during the holidays, the price of everything goes up. Though it may not seem as glamourous, traveling during the off-season will save you way more money.