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Are you tired of not having any money, but don’t know what to do? Here’s a guide to help you.
Frugal Tips to Save You Money offers various frugal living tips that can help you save money and live better on less, plus baking soda use tips.
There’s an old saying, “There’s more than one way to skin a cat,” that I have heard during my life and while growing up. By the same token, there’s more than one way to save money, and not having to do without. Everyone can save money somehow.
Little steps can make a world of difference. There are countless ways to trim your budget, yet still live nicely. Making minor changes and substitutions can make a huge difference in the amount of money that goes out of your house monthly. Bank those savings for a rainy day or a special something you’ve been wanting.
About: frugal, frugal tips, frugal living, finance, save money, budgeting, personal finance, live on less, tightwad
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eInsuranceMarket.com can connect you with quotes from up to four insurance agents that will work hard to save you money on auto insurance. Most people that use eInsuranceMarket are able to save up to $65 a month — that’s over $800 a year!
16 Money Saving Tips For Road Trips on a Shoestring Budget
By Bill Belei
The phrase “budget travel” can have a scary ring to it, conjuring up images of grubby highway motels, fast food, and bunking with relatives until you’re all sick of each other. But it doesn’t have to be that way.
You can turn your next holiday road trip into a fun and fantastic budget trip with just a few sensible changes that won’t hurt a bit. So in the spirit of frugality, here’s our list of the 16 best ways to cut costs on road trips and scenic drives.
Save on Fuel & Repairs
1. Check Your Vehicle. There’s nothing more inconvenient and annoying than car trouble on the road. So before you go, get a tune up. Bonus savings: A new air filter and spark plugs are proven to reduce gas usage.
2. Drive Smarter. Believe it or not, you can shave about 1/3 off fuel costs just by driving less aggressively. Save another 10% or more by going the speed limit. After all, scenic drives shouldn’t go by in a blur.
3. Use the Cruise. The cruise control reduces fuel consumption by keeping your foot off the gas pedal.
4. Don’t Idle More Than 30 Seconds. Turn off the engine and save another 20% on budget trips. Isn’t this fun?
Save on Meals
5. Eat Better and Cheaper. Avoid tourist traps; ask the locals where they eat.
6. Pack a lunch. It’s better for your health, your budget, and your fun quotient. When was the last time you stopped for a picnic on a scenic drive?
7. Seek Free Brekkie. Hotels that offer a free breakfast cut the cost of one meal a day.
8. Bring Coupons. Many chain eateries offer 2-for-1 specials, free beverage coupons, etc. You can also find discounts for hotels and attractions by combing travel magazines and websites.
Save on Lodgings
9. Use Your Points. Many reward programs let you use your points for accommodations and meals.
10. Low Season, Low Prices. When hot spots are off season, rates are down and so are the crowds. Take the kids out of school if permitted.
11. Travel on Weekdays. Plan road trips for weekdays instead of weekends and save on lodgings, meals and entrance fees.
12. Military Discounts. Service members, active or retired, can get low cost lodgings on bases, rec centers, and Armed Forces vacation club rentals. You’re also eligible for discounts at some commercial hotels.
Save on Fun Stuff
13. Gift Cards. For birthdays or other occasions, ask friends and family for gift cards that are good for amusement parks, restaurants, gas stations, etc.
14. Free Scenery. US National Parks have free admission weekends. Check online before you go and plan for a veritable smorgasbord of scenic drives through our eye-popping parklands.
15. Meander. See a cute town whizzing by on your road trip? Pull over, get out of the car and explore. Downtown is a good place to start. Then just meander down side streets discovering historical architecture, tucked-away parks, quaint little shops, and of course friendly people only too happy to tell you about their town.
16. Take a 24-Hour Vacation. Can’t get away for a holiday? Then take budget day trips down roadways you haven’t traveled before. All it’ll cost is the fuel and a meal. You’ll feel refreshed and renewed.
There you go – 16 tips that prove the best things in life are either free or very reasonably priced. So start planning your next budget trip or scenic drive today.
About the author:
Bill Belei is a seasoned road trip enthusiast and the founder of BestRoadTripPlanner.com, an information sharing site where members report on their favorite road trip adventures. You’ll find honest, unbiased travel plans, maps and photos of scenic drives, attractions, urban highlights, points of interest, and even warnings on where not to go. Use BestRoadTripPlanner.com as your next road trip planner or to share your latest adventure. You can earn points for your best trips and may win a prize!
10 Tightwad Ways to Fly Free (Or Almost Free) By Debra Fortosis
1. If you or a family member begins working for an airline, in most cases, your family can fly free 0n that airline, owing only for taxes. This is an almost priceless perk if you and your family like to travel and have the time to do so.
2. You can win airline tickets in sweepstakes but, I admit, the odds aren’t great for that. However, it’s becoming quite common for companies to offer free airline tickets when you buy some service or big ticket item. Keep a lookout for such offers. Two airline tickets anywhere in the continental U.S. can be worth up to $300-500. There are also occasional Buy one/Get one deals.
3. If you’re not flying on a tight deadline, overbooking/thank you vouchers can be very nice. Most are familiar with the overbooking of flights in which the airline asks if anyone would agree to take a later flight. For this favor, the airline gives you a voucher, sometimes for the amount of a full airline flight in the future. Be prepared for such cases, because when the offer comes, you usually are on the jet and you don’t have 15 minutes to discuss with your spouse whether or not to take the voucher. Last minute/standby deals aren’t as common as they used to be, but occasionally it still happens. This means you just show up at the airport and request that if someone misses the flight in question, you’d like their seat at a discounted price. Of course, check in advance and confirm whether the airline accepts this practice and if there’s any discount.
4. Most everyone seems to know about frequent flyer miles. If you fly often, you can earn bonus points toward a free airline ticket every time you fly with a particular airline. There are also many credit cards that issue you miles/points for every purchase you make using the card. Gold and Platinum cards, especially, offer lots of bonus miles in exchange for use of the card.
5. Making yourself a savvy travel booker can save big money for you. New airlines often reduce fares drastically, or an airline reduces fares when adding a new route/destination. Also be aware that you can sometimes reap large discounts by flying during the slowest days of the week or the slowest days of the year, flying to popular destinations at unpopular times, purchasing during the cheapest times of the day, or buying a super cheap travel package, though you can’t use it at that moment.
6. Consolidaters buy up blocks of tickets in bulk at near-wholesale prices. This means that they can offer you highly discounted airline tickets. Some consolidation prices are better than others. We’re not talking dirt cheap here, maybe $100-150 off a $500-$600 ticket. But savings are savings, right?
7. If you hire on as a courier, you can fly cheap, sometimes free. A courier escorts a package to its destination. Companies do this to avoid delays getting packages through customs. If you’re at least 18 years of age, would like to travel the world, are willing to go with two small carry-on bags, can travel alone, and you have an adventurous spirit, this could be your dream come true. You can usually work it out so you spend a week or more at the destination before traveling home. One of the best deals I ever came across was Los Angeles to Tokyo for $100 in taxes. The ticket would have cost about $1800.
8. If you are a writer and like writing about new places, you can fly free if you’re hired to write about it for some sort of travel periodical. A few people, such as Bill Bryce, have turned their love for travel into a very lucrative writing career. This is rare because even good writers can rarely entertain so well that readers will buy book- length copies of their travel experiences and perspectives. If you’re interested, though, you can find out more about this by googling “become a travel writer.” I would also suggest that you begin gradually building a reputation as a travel writer by getting published by magazines or, even easier, by ezines. You may eventually have enough notoriety to merit an offer here or there as a paid travel writer.
9. Some U.S. carriers offer discounts for individuals over 50 years of age, others offer them for those 62 or older. You can also buy senior-discount coupons in books of four. These coupons can sometime enable senior travelers to save almost half off a full-priced airline ticket.
10. Flying charter flights can save money but this is not one of my favorite options. Charter flights are scheduled less often than domestic flights and they book to complete capacity. This is definitely no frills—you’re packed in so tight, there is little room to move. If there’s any food on a longer flight, it will be a very simple brown bag. The only exception is if you’re lucky enough to book first class on a charter flight. Then you’re basically getting first class service at a coach fare price.
About the author:
Debra Fortosis is a professional travel agent. You can book travel on her user friendly website. She can even help you easily launch your own turnkey e-travel business.
