I Can’t Afford to Travel - Tips On Stay/Hotels For Cheaper

So I mentioned before. You do not have to be rich to travel. The previous article showed you how you can save a lot of money on a flight. Although a flight is the largest portion of the travel, it is not the only expense. Let’s take a look at the next largest expense while traveling. Yes, that is right, it is finding a place to stay. Here are some tips that will help you save money while traveling. We’ll take a look at alternatives of places to stay, Great resources to help you save money and how to get a bargain.

Hotel Alternative - Hostels

So yes, hotels are dang expensive. They are hands down the most expensive part of your trip outside of the flight. So let us look at some alternatives to hotels. You don’t always have to stay in one. I know I know, you don’t want to stay in a hostel either. It is perfectly fine, because hostels are not just for backpackers anymore. I can tell you from experience that I’ve stayed hostels that has had a better environment than an actual hotel. Hostels are trying to change their image to be more than that dark desolate place that makes you cringe or fear for your life by the guy who talks to himself one bunk over. Now you can find very comfortable private rooms for a fraction of the price of a hotel with amazing look and feel. Some hostels I have stayed at that made me feel comfortable and safe are Sam’s VIP in San Gil, Colombia, Hostel Suites Obelisco in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Che Pampas en Rosario, Argentina. Many can be found on hostel booking websites Hostelbookers, HostelWorld and Hosteling International.

Hotel Alternative - Apartment

So maybe you do not want to stay at a hostel? What is the matter? You do not want to end up like that movie? Well, how about an apartment? I know what you’re going to ask. Aren’t apartments expensive? Actually, they are not. With websites like AirBnB, Wimdu and 9flats you can get an apartment for a good price. What is great about an apartment is that you are living in the city you are staying in you’re visiting but in actuality you are just visiting. You’re the greatest thing about apartment you get a local feel. I don’t mean feel like that kind of feel, I mean feel as if you were a local. You get to learn what a local does and you get to get advice from your local host. So do it get an apartment check it out.

Hotel Alternative - Staying With a Friend

Because just from a place from a friend to. Nothing says wow what a friend just invites you to their place. Your fee time for I got to stay in the extra beds of my friends houses or apartments. What’s great about this is you save a lot of money. And, You also get that local feel. Food is also cheaper as well. But, what if you don’t have a friend in the area visiting. Well enter CouchSurfing and BeWelcome. These are great places to find new friends who are willing to take people in. They are both a networking tool to just meet people. So when you do not have a friend in the area check out these alternatives to stay

Getting A Hotel Cheaper

Okay, Okay, I get it. You do not want to stay in a hostel, you do not want to stay in apartment, and you don’t want to stay at some room of a stranger with blue hair. I get it you want to be pampered. So let’s talk about hotels. The smart thing to talk about is WHEN to book a hotel. Most hotels offer early bird discounts so booking early is a great feature, but not always the best. Too late and the prices might go up. It is a matter of supply and demand. Trying to travel during a busy season and with little amount of rooms available the prices with be much more expensive. The opposite also applies. Traveling during non-peak season with many rooms available a hotel will lower the price is much more. You can even us this to your advantage. If you are walking around looking for a hotel to stay at you can bargain for a different price. After all they would rather rent a room for a cheaper price than to have no one at all. Also ask about club and memberships. A lot of hotels offer a discount to different memberships.

Resources

Some great places to find good pricing on Hotels are Kayak, Booking.com, Hotels.com and Venere. Kayak has an advantage where it can send you weekly or daily alerts of prices of a hotel, much like it does with it’s flights. If you are a looking for a good price on a hotel at the last minute check out HotelsTonight. And if you want to make sure the hotel, hostel or BNB is a good place to visit check out review ons TripAdvisor.

So a place to stay does not have to be expensive. you can save a lot of money by staying with a new or old friend. Going with a swanky hostel, living like a local in an apartment or just knowing how to strike a deal at a hotel. What do you think? Do you have any tips on how to stay cheaper? What are you tips? Do you have a question? Ask me, leave a comment below, send me a tweet on twitter using, or post on my facebook. Heck even send us a message. Let me know if you have more questions. Happy travels.

Erick Redcloud

A partially blind Graphic Designer, Freelance Travel Photographer, Artist, Buddhist and Vegetarian who loves to travel. Erick loves traveling by being with the locals and going off the beaten path. He is the founder and owner of Pathlesstravels and loves inspiring others to follow their dreams, whether it is to travel or something completely different. He started Pathlesstravels to hone is photography skills and to meet amazing people, and to help a friend break into journalism. Check out his photography at his link.

More Posts - Website

Follow Me:

Google+

Erick Redcloud