Becoming an experienced travel hacker is not something you develop overnight, but here are 35 Travel Hacks to get you started on travelling smarter, cheaper, and smoother for better travel experiences.
1. Use Travel Cards
Stop incurring bank fees and get yourself a travel card or two. They are free to have, so it’s a no-brainer! Travel cards such as Monzo and Revolut are every travel hacker’s dream.
They allow you to spend abroad at the best exchange rates with no fees. You simply load up your cards and start spending. You can also use them to withdraw cash free of charge abroad too!
Never pay in your home currency. Always opt to pay in the local currency to get the best exchange rate.
2. Book Flights On a Credit Card
Always use a credit card when booking your flights, as it provides additional protection your bank does not. You can claim with your credit card company if your airline goes bust or cancels your flights.
This year alone, I have had an airline go bust and another airline cancel my flights. Both times my credit card company provided me with a full refund. The process was quick and easy too, which was a bonus.
3. Sign Up for Hotel & Airline Reward Programmes
Signing up for airline and hotel booking loyalty schemes helps you travel cheaper in the future by building up airline miles, free room upgrades, or complimentary hotel breakfasts. Often you can get attraction ticket discounts too. It’s free, so you might as well sign up and get rewarded for traveling!
4. Sign Up To Airline Mailing Lists So You Don't Miss Deals
Sign up to airlines direct. They often have 24hr hot seat sales or deals if you travel in a particular month if you book your tickets during a limited time.
I have taken advantage of these deals many times and snatched up some fantastic flight deals I would have never known about without signing up!
Ryanair is a great airline to sign up for if you want to snatch some great flight deals around Europe.
5. Split Your Money Up
When travelling, it’s essential you split your money up. If you were to lose your wallet or sadly become a victim of pickpocketing, all your money in one place means it’s all gone.
I like to split my money up in different zips in my bag and put some on my person. I usually carry money bags and have one for small notes for tips, then a mix of small and medium notes for shopping at markets, and leave my larger notes for attractions and guides.
I do this because it’s not advisable to pull out a large amount of cash when tipping or at markets where people can see. Vendors will also use it to their advantage by bumping up the prices.
Also, only carry some of your money out at a time. Travel with what you need, then put the rest in your hotel safe or locked in your case, hidden between clothes or inside a tube or box.
6. Always Travel With Two Bank/Travel Cards
Always carry two cards with you. One card may stop working or gets lost or stolen. You do not want to be stranded in another country without access to any cash.
7. Buy a Local Sim Card
Purchasing a local sim card can stop those hefty phone charges of using your mobile abroad. Make sure your phone is unlocked and can accept any sim card, and buy yourself a local sim card at the airport.
You can get good tariff deals for a week to a month, depending on how much data you require. It’s great because you can make unlimited local calls and texts and access 247 internet data, making it much easier to use online maps and stay in touch with friends and family. I never travel without one now.
8. Drink Plenty Of Water Before a Long Haul Flight
You probably have noticed that when you fly, you get a dry throat, your skin is not at its best, and you feel dehydrated.
That’s because your body can lose up to 8 ounces of water per hour by flying. Horrifying, I know! Even though you’re excited to be on the plane, your body is not and is stressed due to the low humidity and lack of oxygen.
To help my body cope with the flight, I like to drink 3 litres of water the day before I fly and drink water regularly throughout the flight. Of course, I may have a cheeky glass of wine two, but c’mon I am on holiday… It’s all about balance.
9. Don't Be afraid to Haggle
Haggling in the UK may not be acceptable, but haggling in Middle Eastern, Asian, and African countries is totally normal.
I have negotiated many deals with tour companies directly before even getting to the country. Haggling is for more than just shopping in the markets! So go haggle yourself some tour bargains.
10. Book Direct To Save Money
I know things may seem easier to book through third-party sites. I do it too sometimes, but cutting out the middleman and booking direct is always cheaper if you are serious about saving the pounds.
I always start my search on TripAdvisor but then email the operator directly for a quote. You can also do this for hotels too to get the best rates. I book most of my hotels on booking.com, but for more fancy hotels, booking directly with the hotel has been much cheaper.
11. Read The Reviews & Find The Pattern
Yes, I am one of those people that will sit and read the reviews, but it has always proved useful. People love to complain; it’s in our nature.
But to get around it, I like to flip the reviews from bad to good and look for a pattern. If a cluster of reviews complaining about the same thing repeatedly comes up, that’s probably the truth about the hotel. But if it’s the odd few complaining about the food, for instance, it does not bother me. Reviews help you make judgments and manage your expectations.
12. Travel With a Photocopy Of Your Passport
I recommend always travelling with a scanned digital copy of your passport on your phone and a couple of hard copy photocopies. This is in case your original passport gets lost or stolen. It will make the process much more manageable when visiting your embassy or needing to prove your identity to any officials.
13. Learn A Few Phrases In The Local Language
Learning a few key phrases in the local language will go a long way when communicating with people who do not speak your language, and the locals will appreciate it too.
Another travel hack is to save your accommodation name/address and sites or restaurants you want to visit in your language and the local language in notes on your phone. Then you can show it to taxi drivers, locals or bus drivers, etc., so they know where you want to go. This has extremely helped me when there has been a language barrier. Especially using local taxis.
14. Download Uber For Cheaper Rates & Less Stress
Take the stress out of haggling a taxi price and download apps like Uber or Lyft to get cheaper rates and take away the stress.
15. Use Public Transport To Save Money
If you are on a tight budget, then use public transport to get around. It will be a much cheaper option than private transfers and taxis. Plus, walking, getting busses and trains adds to your travel experience.
16. Download Audio Books, Netflix or Podcasts Before Your Flight
Budget airlines and short-haul flights don’t always have an entertainment system, so to keep yourself entertained, download your favorite audiobooks, Netflix, and podcasts beforehand. I love a good audiobook, and it works well by travelling to your accommodation and on layovers, too, as you can just relax and listen.
17. Check If The Hotel You Are Staying At Offers Free Airport Pickup
Some hotels in some parts of the world offer free airport pickup. Always email to see if the hotel you booked offers this service to save money on transfer or taxi costs. I have used a complimentary hotel pickup or drop-off service in Jordan, Egypt, and Peru.
18. Book In Advance If You Are Travelling For a Short Time
When you are only travelling for a short time, it’s important to book things in advance to avoid disappointment. Some tourist sites sell out weeks in advance or only happen on set days of the week.
I have learned the hard way by thinking I can just show up in the past. Even this year, when I went to Barcelona, I thought I could get tickets to the Sagrada Familia once I arrived in the city. However, they had no availability for 11 days, so I never got to go inside.
So do your research before you go on dates and book in advance if there is something you are set on doing.
19. Download Offline Maps & Google Translate
Always download offline google maps and google translate when travelling. They are great if you do not have internet data, WIFI, or a phone signal during your travels.
20. Take Advantage Of All The FREE Things to See & Do
Travel doesn’t always have to be expensive. If we open our eyes and get creative, you will be amazed to find how many FREE things there are to see and do around the world.
Activities such as site seeing, visiting parks, taking photos, window shopping, free food sampling, admiring street art, free museums, relaxing on the beach, hiking, and free walking tours come to us all free of charge and are a lot of fun!
21. ALWAYS Carry Tissue With You
Tissue may seem like a necessity in the UK, but in some countries around the world, it is a luxury. Toilet standards vary worldwide, and tissue may not always be available to you.
I don’t want you to ever be left without tissue to take care of your toilet business, so ALWAYS carry some tissue with you while you are out and about.
Women, I also recommend you invest in a wee she if you will be using those toilets in the ground where it requires you to squat, typically found in parts of South America, Asia, and Africa.
22. Go Incognito or use a VPN
We have all been there where we search for flights, and the more we look, the higher the price goes up, or we start getting ads for hotels or activities in the country we were looking at.
For this reason, going incognito or using a VPN when booking flights is essential to get the best deals, as they allow you to surf the internet without a record of your search history or cookies.
23. Travel During Off Peak & Shoulder Months
A travel hack to travel cheaper is to travel off-peak and shoulder months. This will give you lower flight and hotel prices, fewer crowds, and fewer wait times at tourist attractions allowing you to enjoy the country more without the flood of tourists the peak months bring in.
Another travel hack is being flexible with travel dates. Travelling on a Tuesday will be cheaper than Travelling on a Friday. Browse flights by day to find the cheapest days to travel in the month selected.
24. Follow The Deal Not The Destination
Following the deal rather than the destination can save you a ton of pounds and make your dreams of travelling the world a reality. Using flight hacks on Skyscanner or google flights will help you travel cheaper and give you the cheapest destinations to fly to by month using the explore everywhere button.
To find out how CLICK HERE to learn a flight travel hack.
25. Hand Luggage Only
Travelling with hand luggage only with cut travel costs as it will erase hold luggage fees. Additional perks are that you can go through airports much quicker and don’t have the dreaded worry of losing your luggage.
26. Pack Smart
Taking hold luggage? Then pack smart. If your hold luggage was to go missing for any reason, your carry-on bag should contain some essentials.
Of course, I will have my money, cards, and passport on me, but I always ensure I also have portal chargers, a toothbrush, a mini bag of toiletries, socks, a set of underwear, swimwear, flip-flops, an outfit, and a nightie in my carry-on backpack. This way, if my luggage were to get lost, I would have all I needed to get through a day or two until I retrieved it.
27. Always Carry a Portable Charger
I never leave out without my portal charger when travelling abroad. You never know how long you may be out or if anything was to happen and your phone ran out of juice.
28. Invest In a Universal Travel Adapter
A universal travel adapter is the best companion for every traveller as it is adaptable to all power outlets and saves you from carrying more than one plug.
29. Travel With An Extension Lead
An extension is something I always carry with me when travelling. Like a universal adapter, it allows you to plug in multiple devices or appliances at one time as well as access power in inaccessible spots due to the long lead.
30. Look Out For Free Museum and Tourist Attraction Days
Do your research and look out for FREE museum and Tourist attraction days. For example, if you are in Paris and want to see Mona Lisa, the Louvre is FREE to all visitors every first Friday of the month, excluding July and August, saving £15.
Or you fancy a river Seine boat trip; it’s FREE on your birthday, plus you get a complimentary glass of champagne. Just take your passport along to the ticket office.
31. Opt For Hotels That Include FREE Breakfast
The saying is to eat breakfast like a king! So always opt for hotels that offer complimentary breakfast. It saves the hassle of going out, finding breakfast, and lines your belly ready for a day of adventure with no additional cost!
32. Travel With Earplugs
Overnight buses, camping, and hotels in noisy cities may affect your sleep quality due to the sounds around you. Carry earplugs to block out the noise for a better, more refreshed night’s sleep.
33. Book Overnight Flights, Buses & Trains To Save Time & Accommodation Costs
Overnight flights and buses can save time and money when travelling. Travelling through the night means you get to your next destination early morning and save on accommodation costs.
34. Weigh Up The Costs of Travel Cards/ City Passes
Train travel cards and city passes are a great way to save money and travel around and explore the city ONLY if you are going to use them extensively.
If you are in a city and plan on using the metro and buses throughout your stay as your primary way of transport, then getting a 3-day metro and pass will benefit you and save you money in the long run. But If you only plan on using it once or twice, it may not be cost-effective.
The same goes for the city museum and tourist attraction cards. The Jordan pass saved me a ton of money. But if I had bought the Paris Pass, I would have been down on money as I never got around to seeing half of what was available when I visited. Do your research to weigh up the costs before purchasing.
35. Join Travel Groups To Meet Friends
The last travel hack is to join travel groups and make new friends around the world! I am part of a few Facebook Travel Groups. It’s a great way to meet up with people in different countries to split trip costs or just go out for dinner, especially if you are a solo traveller.
Found this content helpful? Please comment and share. I would also like to know of any travel hacks you wish to share.