Our top travel experts from across our three platforms have come together to share their own tried and tested money saving tips and travel hacks. This is to ensure that all of us save where we can, and well, who doesn’t want to get more for their buck? If you are interested in hearing from our experts on how you can save on your next family holiday, read on…
Carrie Day – Business Development Manager, ITTN Group (and Adventure-Seeker!)
Lookout for the ‘free’ walking tours
As soon as I land in a new city, I start researching the best ‘free’ walking tours available! These walking tours are a great way to learn the history of a city – usually from a local – and the guides always love recommending their favourite places to eat and drink. It’s win-win… You avoid the tourist traps and get to brush shoulders with the locals instead!
In San Sebastian, your choice of pintxo bars is endless, but not all are good options unfortunately. Thankfully, our guide suggested the best bars to check out and every single suggestion was a hidden-gem that I doubt we would have found on our own!
Of course, these tours are not entirely free, and many do depend on tips, but they are amazing value for money, and it is a great way to spend a few hours getting to know your way around a new city.
Sharon Jordan, Owner and Managing Director, ITTN Group
Book your flights early
Flights go on sale around 330 days before departure – so if you know it’s a special occasion like summer holidays or a big sporting match and the flight will be busy then book on the day of release to ensure the best price.
Booking your flight much in advance ensures that you get a good deal and save a lot of money on airfare
Ignacio Medina, Business Development Executive, ITTN Group
Make use of public transport
One of my tricks to save money when travelling is to try to eliminate cabs and rental cars and use public transportation because it not only helps you to reduce expenses, but also to reduce pollution and take care of the environment. Therefore, public transport is a good option to reach destinations. In addition to this there are also discount vouchers for activities or cultural visits that are highly recommended to take into account.
Suene Silva, Operations Manager, Vox Group
Book an apartment for ease of cooking your meals, and to save money
Usually, when I go on holiday I like to book an apartment on Airbnb. By having a whole place to myself means I get more freedom. This is about things like deciding if I want to cook or eat out, or sometimes I can do both – by having my breakfast or lunch in the accommodation and only having dinner in the local restaurants.
I also like to eat traditional food and as we all know, eating in a tourist area can be expensive and the food quality may vary. My tip is to go for a nice walk to find a small restaurant and not anything too fancy. This way you will have a great meal and pay a reasonable price. Most of the times, I find these places by talking to the local people. It is always lovely to make new friends and I really enjoy it.
Jack Goddard, Content Creator, ITTN Group
Design your own tours
It’s all well and good to be shown around your favourite cities by a local guide but why bother if you can do it yourself with a minimal amount of homework? If you are looking to save money, you can definitely look into designing your own tours.
And this leads me to the question – what is my tip? My tip, dear readers is as follows:
Take a clue from the ‘locals’
My husband and I like to explore different kinds of cuisines while travelling and so, understandably one of our major expenses is on food. We found a good way to balance things, and you can try this out too. For breakfast, we opt for the spread provided by the hotel or Airbnb (which is usually included with the booking price.) For lunch, no matter where we are holidaying at, we save a lot of money and get to sample some really authentic food by following this simple rule: queue up where you see the locals queuing up.
These places are usually reasonable, and they don’t mark up their prices for tourists or during festive times. For example, while in Malta for our Easter break a couple of years ago, we made a beeline for two local bakeries. They both seemed very popular – you could see office goers, school children, families, and those out and about standing patiently for their turn. I am glad we trusted their judgement because our meal costed so little! We also ended up with having the best traditional pastizzis ever. Plus, we tried a slice of octopus pie and Apostle’s Ring Bread (an Easter speciality), all for a bargain price!
P.S. If you like to read more about culinary adventures and particularly what to eat when in Istanbul, we have you covered! We also have a great one on ‘How To Eat Like A Local Anywhere In The World’.
Our piece ‘A Food Journey Around Madeira’ has also been much loved by readers. Do have a look if you haven’t already!
These are our money saving tips, but of course we want to hear from you. What do you think? Let us know in comments or tag us on social media.