Okay travelers, let’s talk finances. I know it’s not sexy, but when we’re talking about hacks to find great deals and tips to save money so you can afford to travel, it’s wayyy more fun!
One of the biggest questions I get from you all is “How do you find the time/money to travel so much?” After posting a poll on Instagram, you all told me you want to travel more, but you need some help.
SO! Here we go. I have some great tools and tips listed below, be sure to give them a follow on Social Media to keep an eye on things!
*Disclaimer: This post is in no way sponsored by any of the companies mentioned. I simply love the tools I use! Some URLs I’ve posted are unique to my accounts, and I may receive compensation when you sign up using my code.
1. Scott’s Cheap Flights
There are quite a few flight deal trackers out there. Google flights, Expedia, Kayak, the list goes on. What I love about Scott’s Cheap Flights is that they focus on international flights, and the customizability is phenomenal. Many of the other sites use automated algorithms to find low fares, but Scott’s Cheap Flights takes it a step further and uses a quality assurance team of real people to vet each one of the deals they find! When looking for deals, the team at Scott’s Cheap Flights is looking at:
- Price: They’re looking for major discounts.
- Airline: They’re looking at quality airlines.
- Routing: They’re looking at nonstop flights or short layovers.
- Availability: They’re looking at how many travel dates are available.
- Rarity: They’re looking at how common or rare the deal is.
Pro Tip: Be open to flying out of an airport that’s close enough to you that you can access it. For example, I live in Minneapolis. I identified a number of large and small airports within driving distance that I’d be willing to fly out of. This fall, Scott’s Cheap Flights notified me of a deal to Rome, Italy on Delta for $430 during peak travel season, and I just couldn’t pass it up! I’m flying out of Chicago, but honestly, I see this as an opportunity to road trip to Chi-Town! Woop woop!
The Deets: Scott’s Cheap Flights has a free limited option and a premium option. I subscribe to the premium membership, and if you want a free trial of that, click here!
2. Travel During Non-Peak Travel Times
I get it. New Year’s Eve in New York, Rio de Janeiro in February for the Carnival, China for the Lunar New Year, these are all beautiful trips to take in beautiful locations. And trust me when I say, if you have your heart set on it, you’ll get there!
However, if you’re really trying to get more locations under your belt, it’s best to table those trips and save long-term. For international travel, avoid the big holidays and festivals for now. Instead, travel in non-peak seasons! The locations are just as beautiful, and probably a lot less crowded.
If you’re flying domestically, try flying on a Tuesday or Wednesday. They can be the two cheapest days of the week to fly, and the airports are less busy! That being said, check all of your options. Those days are *typically* the cheapest, but not consistently. In the USA, flight fares are highest:
- During the summer (June – August)
- Over Christmas and New Year’s
If you really do have a specific date in mind, Google Flights has a great fare tracking system. All you have to do is search the trip and dates you’re trying to take. Then you have two options. You can either:
- Track prices for your trip (i.e. MSP to FLL on April 10, 2020)
- This will track all of the prices for all of the flights on all carriers from MSP to FLL on April 10, 2020.
- Track prices for a specific flight (i.e. Delta Flight at 7 a.m. from MSP to FLL on April 10, 2020)
- This will track the price for your one specific flight you’ve selected.
Once you toggle the slider to track, Google will send you email notifications to let you know when the prices change. It’s that easy!
Pro Tip: Southwest does NOT show up on any flight search engine! So if you’re really trying to assess all of your options, check Southwest’s website for their pricing.
3. Rewards Programs!
Work the system. Work the system. Work. The. System.
Look, rewards programs can either be extremely beneficial or absolutely pointless. It’s all about how you WERQ IT!
When I started traveling, the first thing I did was sign up for every rewards program I could for free. Hotels, airlines, car rentals, you name it? I probably have a membership. The goal here was to ensure that no matter how I traveled, I’m always earning rewards points.
The second thing I did was I started to become loyal to a couple of specific brands. The brands I travel the most with are Delta, Hilton, and Lyft. I chose these brands because they provide comfortable accommodations, and (most importantly) they are all linked! This means I can convert Hilton points to Delta Miles or vice versa. PLUS every ride I take with Lyft earns me Hilton points and Delta Miles.
Pro Tip: I always take Lyft to the airport because I earn 2x miles per dollar on those rides. Every ride I take earns me 3x Hilton Honors points per dollar, except shared rides which earns 2x Hilton Honors points. With the Hilton Honors program, you can earn up to a max of 30,000 bonus points in a calendar year!
Use my referral code, MARYONTHEMAP to get free credits for signing up for Lyft!
*Disclosure: I receive a small amount of bonus credits when you sign up for Lyft with my code.
The third thing I did was I opened up a travel rewards credit card. Delta’s Skymiles Credit Card (Amex) runs a great promotion a few times per year where you can earn thousands of miles when you are approved for their credit card. I hit a promotion that rewarded me with 60,000 miles. If you’re interested in opening a Delta Skymiles Credit Card for that same bonus, use my referral link!
*Disclosure: I receive a small amount of Delta miles when you sign up with this link.
The trick with credit cards is knowing what purchases earn you the most rewards points, and capitalizing on that. For example, I know that when I shop for groceries, I earn 2x miles. So, I use my card for groceries.
The other trick? Pay your credit card bills. Do not rely on credit cards for large purchases that you can’t pay back. Look ladies, just use the card for what you can pay for. I know a $10,000, $15,000, or $30,000 credit limit can be tempting. But you don’t get your miles until you make the payments. When I buy groceries for 2x miles, I utilize the app to pay that bill as fast as I can. You’re too beautiful to have the stress of debt weighing on you while you’re traveling!*
*I want to say, I am not a financial professional. These are methods that worked really well for me and led to me being able to earn enough points for rewards trips. But at the end of the day, what works for me may not work for you, and that’s okay!Apply for an American Express Card with this link.
4. Use a Savings Tool like Digit
Years ago, I was saving for my first international trip to Bogota, Colombia. I was making a bare boned salary in my first “real” job out of college, teaching dance as a second job, AND driving for Uber. Let’s just say I had a lot more energy back then!
A coworker who worked in our financial department suggested I try out an app called Digit. Digit is a service that links with your bank account and withdraws small, safe amounts of money when your account can afford it. It then stores your $ in an FDIC Insured bank ($250,000 of protection) with military-grade security.
I saved $800 in 4 months. And I didn’t miss a cent.
What I really like about Digit is that I can set up multiple goals and then I go away and don’t have to think about it. Suddenly, I have $212 saved for Rome, $328 saved for Rarotonga, and $58 in a Rainy Day fund!
Another cool feature is you get to set up a safe minimum for your bank account and overdraft protection. So if your bank account is close to that minimum amount (say $1,000), Digit will not withdraw funds. If Digit overdraws you? They will reimburse your overdraft fee!
Digit used to be a free service, and now costs $5/month. For me it’s worth it. I’ll let you decide if it’s right for you!
Right now, if you use this link, you’ll get $5 and 30 days free, just for signing up!
*Disclosure: I earn $5 money towards my own savings when you sign up for Digit with this link. But so do you!
5. Be Open to Travel Anywhere
So many people say to me, “Ugh! I just want to travel more.”
My response? Then do it!
Okay, I know Hawai’i and Tahiti are beautifully desirable destinations. If your heart is set on them, set up a savings plan. But if you really just want to travel “more”, then be open to destinations. Here are some suggestions! I haven’t been to all of these places, but I always see deals for them on Scott’s Cheap Flights.
Mary, I need white sand STAT!
- Cartagena (can confirm is a stunning city!)
- Bahamas
- Puerto Rico
- Costa Rica
- Philippines
- Antigua
Mary, Europe is calling my name.
- Portugal
- Bruges
- Rome (so excited!)
- Prague
- Budapest
Mary, I don’t need to go anywhere international. Just get me out of here.
- Keystone, SD
- Mobile, AL
- Lutsen, MN
- Greenville, SC
- Phoenix, AZ
- Annapolis, MD
Check out my blog post about the 3 most unexpectedly exciting cities in the USA for details on Mobile, Greenville, and Minneapolis!
6. Prioritize Travel
This is the biggest one. You want to travel more? Do it. But, know that with more travel comes more sacrifice.
Traveling takes energy, time, planning, and resources. Most of us (myself included) don’t always have all four of those things. BUT, if you use some of the hacks I’ve stated above, you can make worldly travel happen.
Be smart with your PTO, talk to your manager about work from home options if you’re looking to take a long weekend. I do everything I can to not use my PTO unless I absolutely NEEEEEEEEEED it.
Speaking of long weekends, take them. Take them often. If you can work from home, do that. If you have to take a PTO day, be selective, but do it!
We don’t live our entire lives to sit in an office and work. We work so we can go out and live. Life is short. If you want to travel more, do it. The time is now.
