Planet Cheapskate

Hit The Road, Cheapskate!

Cheap Trips Comments (3)

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new phenom, the “Last Hurrah Vacation” – known to some as the “F**k it!” Trip, is gaining in popularity (tell us what you think of this!). Now that you’re thinking about a summer get-a-way — deserved or not — we’ve prepared some hints and tips for saving, whether booking a plane ticket or hitting the road in your Cheapskate-mobile.

The troubled economy along with lower fuel prices has created one of the most economical vacation seasons in decades.

The Good News
It’s a buyer’s market this year, so our overall Cheap Vacation tip is: Don’t be afraid to negotiate.  For example, before contacting a hotel or motel (motel rates are nearly always cheaper), invest a tiny bit of time and look up their (and their competition’s) best on-line price.  Look to see if arranging your schedule will allow you to stay on days of the week with lower rates. Then, boldly armed with your research, call and tell them when you’ll be staying, for how long, and ask how much they’ll take OFF their best price quoted on-line. If they won’t budge, how else can they entice you?  Free parking? A coupon at their restaurant?  A free extra night?  Most booking clerks are empowered to give you something.  If they can’t, tell them you’re happy to stay at “Siesta City” next door.  The game for these companies is to get Heads in Beds — and they don’t want to lose yours to the competition.

Nice guys finish… with a deal.
As you pursue this gentle bargaining, remember basic Planet Cheapskate etiquette: You catch more flies with honey than vinegar. If you put your sweetest phone voice on as you play this game, it can be a pleasant give and take for both parties.  Don’t feel bad about haggling: no one wants to go away empty handed, when a deal is struck, everyone’s a winner. Get your research started quickly at onetime.com where you can run a quick comparison of any destination.

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles
PLANES: Here’s more good news — this travel buyer’s market extends to ticket fares. The troubled economy along with lower fuel prices has created one of the most economical vacation seasons in decades.  You already know to “Book Early!” and as mentioned above, try to travel on off-days of the week. What other tricks are in the Roaming Cheapskate’s suitcase?
We’ve had good luck booking flights through expedia.com and priceline.com (though they seem to have trouble making connections to remote areas). Our favorite however, is cheapoair.com for delivering a better price and selection than the others. If you’ve never booked on-line before, learn from our own beginner’s mistakes:

Enjoy gentle haggling: when a deal’s struck, everyone’s a winner.

1) Be sure to allow yourself plenty of time between flights.  If you plan your itinerary and don’t allow enough time to run from gate A1 to your connecting flight at Z37, you are out of luck. The airlines only have to put you on another flight or offer you a room for the night if it is their fault you missed your connection.  And trust us, the professional bean counters they have are ready with plenty of excuses to avoid paying out. (What chance do you have arguing with the inventor of the micro-pretzel bag?)

2) The New Travel Insurance. Back in the days when white-gloved stewardesses served full meals, you could often spot a nervous passenger, just prior to take-off, feeding quarters into a flight insurance vending machine. Now travel insurance is more often to protect you from the airline company cratering — not the plane.  We’ve heard a surprising number of stories of frugal travelers stranded in far-away airports when their airlines went out of business.  Things seem to have stabilized somewhat from last year’s string of fiascoes, but you may want to consider this protection.

When in doubt, remember another Planet Cheapskate Universal Hint: Hiring a trusted professional is often cheaper in the long run.  A travel agent may cost a little more, but they can usually find behind-the-curtain ways to save you money, thereby recouping the cost of their fee. If you are nervous about the trip, especially a complicated, overseas affair, give your nerves a break and go with a pro.

Here’s a tip for European fliers from budgettravel.com:  No matter what your ultimate destination, fly first to Dublin, Ireland, then use Ryan Air, to get where you eventually want to be.  The prices are great — although don’t get over-excited when you visit their website… that 5 Pounds they quote to Athens or Berlin does not include fees or taxes. Still, when all is said and done, it’s a much cheaper way to travel, especially for experienced wayfarers.

The New York Times‘ Frugal Traveler offers some helpful tips specific to European travel in his recent post, Recalculating the Grand Tour.

TRAINS:  Ever traveled Amtrak?  Riding the rails is a relaxing, fun adventure, and we speak from experience.  But it can also seem expensive when you go to book — especially if you choose the private “Roomette” or Bedrooms — until you factor in the following: you are covering lots of territory (very fast); and your fuel, lodging and (very tasty) meals are all covered in one price.  Check it out and you may be pleasantly surprised.  There are several different options here, and they often have discount fares on selected routes.  And if you’re a “people person” and don’t value privacy over all else, riding coach class could be the adventure you’ve been looking for. Of special interest to Cheapskates: Amtrak.com’s Hot Deals.

AUTOMOBILES:  Hitting the open road with your own wheels is the obvious, though not necessarily smartest, way to go. Do the math and you may find that a vacation rental car (even for long hauls) can save you on maintenance, insurance, and headaches (especially if your own Cheap-mobile is more cheap than mobile). Using an online booking service like priceline.com can be a great way to compare rates and save money.  Our experience has been that the old, onerous mileage charge system has been largely dropped, so figuring out your final cost is very easy and straightforward.  Again, don’t be too shy to haggle a bit!  Try asking for an extra day, an upgrade, or a price break.

Here’s a hot car rental tip gained from our grim experience: if a hubcap pops off and you lose it, even those cheapie plastic ones that come with a tiny sub-compact, it will cost you dearly when you turn the car in. So steer clear of potholes and treat that rental car as if it were your own. If we plan to be touring through an area where the road can be a bit rough or pot-hole ridden, we remove the hubcaps and store them in the trunk.  (Just don’t forget to put them back on before handing the car back in.)

Vacations don't get better, or cheaper, than this!

The great North American Road Trip is something that we have been fortunate enough to be able to enjoy many times, mostly in our 1970 VW Camperbus.  Here are some hard-won tips garnered from these UltraCheapskate Safaris:

1)  If you stay in a motel that serves a free breakfast, eat heartily and skip lunch.  Then tuck into an early dinner (often discounted if you eat somewhere that has an “early bird special”), and you’ve got the rest of the evening to explore whatever city/town/encampment you ended up in.  You’ll save the cost of two entire restaurant meals per day this way.  If you feel you’ll need a little extra to get you through the night, pick up some cheese and nuts at a grocery store (not a convenience store, shun those high cost outlets when possible) and have them with the free coffee/tea that comes with your room.  Enjoy your evening snack as you plan the next day’s itinerary.

Consider a vehicle which imposes a leisurely, low-cost pace (& sleeps 3)!

2)  Like encountering strangers at your breakfast table? If so, Bed & Breakfasts are a good way to lodge and you’ll most likely have a better chance at grabbing a good night’s sleep than at a big, faceless, cheap motel.  We always find that the big chain places are so noisy, and usually located so close to major highways, that you might as well count on forfeiting some precious sleep. B&B’s, on the other hand, are usually run by Mom and Pop, off the beaten path, and genuinely want you to have a good time (and pass along good word-of-mouth for them).  They can also be a great source of insider information on restaurants, things to see, etc.  And we often find that the rooms are nicer than we’d find for a similarly priced hotel room. Since B&B’s are often designed as quiet, romantic get-a-ways, this might not be your best bet when traveling with rowdy, road-weary kids. And consider this: you may not be able to control who your breakfast table companions will be.  We once learned the excruciating details of someone’s open-heart surgery while trying to enjoy our scrambled eggs.

3) Cell phone vs. calling card: There is no such thing as a cell phone on Planet Cheapskate (we have yet to be convinced that they are worth the expense), so we always purchase a calling card when heading out on the open road.  This can be a lifesaver if you need to make a call from the road or an airport.

4) Stock up on healthy-but-cheap car snacks.  Nuts, granola bars, dried fruit…anything that keeps easily in the car to give you a pick-me-up without driving through a fast food joint (fast food: a terrible way to waste perfectly good money).  When you stop for meals, look for small, non-chain places different from what you can experience at home.  Otherwise, why travel?

1. Take the family on vacation. 2. Have fun. 3. Combine business with pleasure and save dollars at tax-time.

5) A mysterious sound from the engine compartment while navigating the Okefenokee Swamp is far more stressful than a new rattle on the way to your local supermarket. If you choose to drive your own car, give it a thorough check-up before heading off on a multi-state trek. If this is not your area of expertise, ask a mechanically inclined friend to give your wheels the once-over in exchange for your labor (A home cooked meal? Some pet sitting? We once got the best auto service ever by surprising our bachelor mechanic with homemade cupcakes.) Since we love to travel in our reliable but admittedly ancient VW bus, we always pack standard tools, a few spare parts and compile a list of well regarded mechanics along the way from cartalk.com’s Mechanics Files… just in case.

6)  If you have dogs, they can share your adventure with a little extra effort and planning.  Most medium-sized and larger cities now have doggy daycare facilities where Bowser can spend the day for around $10 (cheaper than boarding at home) as you explore the local museum, or other non-dog-friendly venue. Be careful if you’re planning on being in warm climes, however.  You cannot leave him or her behind in the car, no matter how brief the activity.  Trade cat-care (and other home bound pet) duties with trusted neighbors and friends.

Combine Business with Pleasure
We once drove from home in Los Angeles to a one hour meeting at an advertising agency on Madison Avenue in New York City. The result? A relaxing fun two-week road trip that was at least partly a business expense. If you can inject a little work into your vacation, there are many ways you can underwrite, justify, or reclaim much of the cost of your pleasure travel. Get creative (but stay legal)!

We want to hear from you: what are your favorite travel tips?  Wondering about a hot, undiscovered, affordable destination spot? Have you ever tried a home-swapping vacation? Know some funky, fun, cheap places to stay? Share your experiences as you’ve wandered across the planet, cheapskate.

Bottom Line:
It’s a buyer’s market. Don’t be afraid to negotiate.
Try to schedule your pleasure travel to mesh with lower rate days for air travel and rooms.
Making your vacation even marginally a business trip may allow you to write much of it off as a business expense.

—the Editors, on April 20, 2009