Trifter

If travelling within North America, then AAA or CAA are always a good source of road maps. For any other country, contact their tourism office and get them to mail out their maps. Having an accurate idea of where things are and how far apart they are will go a long way toward planning a realistic time line. There are few better ways to end up regretting things undone than to save up for a long awaited trip only to see a fraction of what you thought you were in for.

While we are on the subject find out if the destination’s must see places have any special schedules. Did you know that in Italy entire towns shut down for either half or full days on various days of the week? Sometimes it is because Wednesday may be the patron saint’s day or it may be because everybody goes home for lunch for two hours and you won’t find any open stores between noon and 2pm.

Sometimes, it is because there are major renovations going on and it doesn’t matter if your whole reason for going to France was to see the balcony from which Quasimodo watched Esmeralda dance for the first time. They won’t pull down the scaffolding around the Notre Dame Cathedral just because you only have three days in Paris. It’s also a good idea to find out if there are any major conventions going on. It might be tough to find a room in Madrid if the entire city is booked because a bunch of dentists thought this was just the place to hook up and discuss latest innovations in crown moldings. On the other hand many galleries around the world offer free or discounted admission during certain hours on certain days. Taking advantage of reduced entry fees is a great way of cutting back on expenditures.

Not Every Meal Has To Be Fancy

Unless the hotel includes complementary breakfasts buying something that you can eat in the morning will save valuable time and money. The same thing goes for lunch. Unless this will be the main meal of the day and super will be kept light, picnic lunches or eating something standing up will save a lot more than a sit down meal. In Europe the same restaurant will  have two different prices on their menu depending on if the patron sits at a table or on a bar stool.   Kashmir tours

Sourcing out local grocery stores and stocking up on snacks and drinks is a great way to avoid having to pay for tips and wasting precious tourist time waiting for food to arrive. A large water bottle can be refilled many times. Where tap water is not encouraged for digestion restaurants will gladly fill one up with fizzy water for you, especially if you just finished patronizing their establishment.

Pay attention to where the locals eat. Somehow, there always seems to be one price for tourist and another for those who know where to eat. Chatting it up with some locals is not always a sure way of finding a hidden gem. But, once in a while it brings you to places no tourist book will ever talk about.   Budget Car Rentals India

Never Book the Entire Trip From Home  

It really does help to know where you will be sleeping the first and last night of your time away. But, if you will be travelling around local tourist information offices can often find fantastic last minute deals and will be able to recommend if the area is a safe part of the city. There is nothing worse than booking the entire trip, arriving at your hotel, unpacking, going out to get a bite to eat and then watching a crowd gather around a guy that the local police just finished drawing a white line around.

Plan Transportation

There is more than one way to skin a cat and more than one way to get from point A to point B. Even the same high speed train tickets can be purchased differently depending on where and how you buy them. Sometimes, buying on-line offers a surcharge that you won’t have to pay if you wait until you can get to the ticket window.

Take Advantage Of Others

Living off the experience of others is priceless. You are always going to find somebody who has something negative to say about anything. But, it does give you a good idea of what you might be in for before going. At best, it might give a good idea of what to pack, just in case.

Comparison Shopping In The Dark

There are many travel sites out there that online hotel booking and India Vacation packages. Our past couple of trips we were able to save between $30 and $60, per night. With Priceline, it was even more ridiculous. You basically name your price and the hotels decide if they think it’s reasonable. We paid $55 for a $175 room. You may not know exactly what you’re getting but, you specify the location and the star rating and have a general idea of the types of hotels or cars that you’ll get.

Fly On A Monday

Being flexible with travel dates is a great way to save on airfare. Many providers offer discount prices for flying off peak days. Mondays are the cheapest day to fly out on. Some websites will provide the option to look for prices around a specific date. If they don’t, play around with the travel day and see if it doesn’t get cheaper.

While we are discussing air travel, consider that the fancier airports charge more for planes to use them. Those costs are passed along to the customer. So, if travelling anywhere near Southwestern Ontario, Canada. Flying in and out of Buffalo instead of Pearson International Airport is typically going to cost a third of the price. Being flexible with which airport to fly in and out of is just as important as the airline and the travel day.

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