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Spontaneous Traveling The Low-Cost Way: Travel Now And Keep Your Money For Tomorrow

There are not many things in our daily lives that excite us as much as surprises and the unexpected. When you suddenly realize you have some free time, and spontaneously decide it is a great opportunity for a vacation. A new spark of excitement runs through your veins and into your heart, as you start visualizing the path a head of you – white sandy beaches, exciting local cuisine and a nice massage. This is a great feeling which offers the opportunity for great times, or a great disappointment, as you might be a bit surprised by the prices you find for your last second travel plan.

Here are some ideas for feeding your last second travel hunger with low-cost options, while enjoying your vacation time without worrying about losing your life savings.

The first thing you must remember is that the vacation market is a buyers market, thus low prices are available if you know where to look. Internet marketers which are hired by travel agencies know this very well, and so they use their expertise to make sure you will not encounter the low prices options available. When looking online for a good last second deal, you will find the names of the big corporations, and these are the same companies who hire the marketing teams. By searching the right keywords and going for the coupon market you can find amazingly cheap options for traveling, especially if you are on the go and looking to leave as soon as possible.

Go online, and instead of looking for common words such as “travel agencies” or “cheap airline”, search for words that are a bit “off the beaten trail”, such as “travel coupons” or “late holidays tips”, and see what you come up with. Compare the prices of two or three small-scale websites to the big ones, and discover a world of coupons and money-saving options the internet marketers are hired to hide.

The second thing you should do is to keep you flexibility at its best. Deciding on a destination is a great deal of fun, and a direction most people take automatically when planning a trip. You should be aware that if you wish to save money yet travel as often as possible, it is advisable to be as flexible as possible, and if the dates are not flexible, the destination should be. The pleasures of travel are usually the experiences on the way, thus the location is not as important as people might think. Any spot in the world can offer great opportunities for exciting and memorable events, and so allowing the prices and last-minute availability to guide your way is a lovely option you should keep in mind.

Using these two tips is guaranteed to help you save money on your traveling and enjoy your vacation without fearing the financial burden that many of us experience while taking our vacation. Remember that your holiday, even if you are going on the last second, should not stress you out, and if you are feeling stressed while you are supposed to relax, you are really wasting your time.

 

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Thailand – A Cheap Travel Destination That Delivers

Fuel prices are up and the economy is down this year. That makes getting the most bang out of your travel buck important. Thailand represents a fascinating and excellent travel destination that is also an incredible deal.

Known as the land of smiles, Thailand is one of those truly unique Southeast Asian countries that boogle the mind. From the warm beaches of the southern coast to the mountain palace of the King in Chang Mai in the north, there is a lot to see and do. Best of all, you can do it all for one of the lowest travel costs in the world.

In the late 1990s, the Asian economies were absolutely crushed over a one year period. Part and parcel to this disaster was the loss of currency value. Much like the dollar is falling now, the Thai “Baht” suffered. Instead of a down period, however, it fell like a rock dropped from a plane and hasn’t really come back.

Put simply, this currency issue has made Thailand a cheap, cheap place. Your biggest expense will be the flight. It can run $650 round trip at a minimum. It should also be noted that the flight is very long if you are coming from North America. A flight from Los Angeles can easily take 24 hours or more.

Once in Thailand, the good news is you’ll be getting a lot for your dollar. Yes, even now. You can always go nuts in any location, but I’ll assume you are going to be reasonable. A good, fresh meal will set you back $2 to $5 and be a lot less if you avoid the touristy areas.

There is one meal item that is expensive – beer. You can expect to pay $2 to $3 per bottle. It isn’t outrageous, but it seems like it after you are conditioned to the cheap food.

Getting around is also incredibly cheap. Trains are popular, but also packed. One of the secrets of Thailand is the domestic airline industry. Simply put, it is excellent and cheap. I’ve splurged on flights from Bangkok to Chang Mai in the north of the country and spend a whopping $38 for a one way ticket. Traveling on trains is great, but you also lose a lot of time. Cheap domestic flights are a good way to avoid this.

Thailand is definitely a great destination for those that want to maximize their experience on a minimum of expense. There are the usual high priced tourist areas, but even a small effort to avoid them can result in a trip that is cheaper than you could ever imagine.

 

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Find Online Travel Deals

Online travel deals are surprisingly easy to find and easier to land. The trick is finding one that suits your purpose. There’s always a cheaper option available. Rather than focusing solely on the economics, it would serve you better to enquire why the deal is so cheap and what you would be foregoing in order to avail the fabulous low prices. Often you might prefer to pay a bit more and enjoy a modicum of comfort and arrive safe.

The simple secret to getting a good travel deal online is to shop around. Often a you can find price differences between sites. If you are willing to do your homework, a better rate can usually be found. Another well known secret is that if you choose to book during off season periods you will definitely get fabulous rates whether it’s airline fare or an amusement park ticket. The use of certain credit cards for online bookings also helps to get discounts, as those adding up those air miles and points rewards.

Travel arrangements from booking airline tickets to fixing an itinerary, hotel accommodation, tickets for various events and venues are done online these days. The more you surf, the more choices you’re faced with. Eleventh hour bookings have become the norm, and there is a whole genre of travel sites focused on this type of clients. This has indeed grown to be a substantial part of online travel arrangements for most people.

Most of the major online travel sites in the US and Canada, such as Expedia, Travelocity and others, have fantastic package deals that give you more bang for your buck. A package deal does not mean a group tour, but rather a deal where airline tickets, accommodation, and sometimes even a car rental all are “packaged” together for usually a lower price than you would pay for separately.

Booking hotel accommodation online can get you good discounts even at star hotels. Be careful however, some deeply discounted bookings may not be refundable in the event you decide to cancel so always check the fine print. Another option for discounted hotel prices are Hotwire.com and Priceline.com. Both are both popular discount travel sites that offer attractive discounts on hotel rooms. Referring to itself as the king of online travel, the Priceline’s claim to fame is the “name your own price” where the buyers are free to fix their rates for hotel rooms. With either company, you pick the price, quality, amenities, and neighborhood you want, but you are not able to choose a specific hotel. With Priceline, you bid on the hotel which meets your needs. You then find out if the price you choose was accepted and if it was, your hotel is booked. In contrast, when using Hotwire, you don’t bid on your hotel and the prices are displayed.

In all, finding travel deals has never been easier, what you do need to watch out for is the fine print. Do your research, compare prices and always read the terms and conditions – happy holidays!