Here are 12 Money Saving Tips for students for Their Travel Plans

1. Flights aren’t Always That Expensive

When it comes to booking flight tickets, time plays an important role in determining the airfares. If you want to grab those cheap flight tickets, you need to plan your trip in advance. The first thing to do after finalizing your trip, is booking the flight tickets. When you book flight tickets in advance, you get it at a really cheap price. Make your travel plans around the time when tickets are cheaper and much more affordable.

2. The on-Season or Off-Season Dilemma

If you don’t have any funds, it’s is recommended to travel to a particular location when it is off-season. The right thing about the off-season is that it’s not very crowded. You get accommodation at a very cheap price. You get the freedom to savor the beauty offered by your preferred location.

The worst thing about overcrowded locations is low-quality food. As the demand is high, restaurants are unable to meet the supply speed so they end up serving poorly cooked food. 

3. Travel in a Group

Travelers across the globe swear by this tip. When you travel in a group, you save a lot of money on accommodation. For instance, you go alone and you book a room for your stay at 1000 Rs. per night and you stay there for three nights your estimated bill will be 3000 Rupees. If you travel in a group of 3 people and you book the exact room your estimated bill will be 3000 Rupees. When you split that bill with your group, (3000/3 = 1000) your share of the bill will be 1000 Rupees.

Similarly, your food and commuting will be also divided and you will save money on your food as well as commuting.

4. Hotel, Zostel or Home Stay?

When it comes to budget traveling, it is recommended to ditch hotels. They are expensive as compared to Zostel and home stays. Opting for Zostel or home stays will fit your budget. Some homestays also offer breakfast option.

You can check out the reviews online so that you have an idea of what to and what not to expect.

Staying at Zostel or home stays will expose you to a like-minded community of backpack travelers. You will get amazing stories and different cultures to explore. What more a student traveler can ask for?

5. Cook Your Own Food

Cooking is not a rocket science. Indeed, it’s an art, but it is a craft that you can learn. We are not asking you to be a gourmet chef or Masterchef overnight, that’s not possible. Let’s focus on what is possible. Ditch eating out as it costs a lot when you add it up, at the end of a month. It is unhealthy and expensive. The cooking oil used to cook food is of poor quality.

Even if you eat basic dal, vegetable, and chapatti, it doesn’t have any nutritional value. The dal and vegetable are cooked on a large scale and excessive heat destroys all the nutrients from the food.

The money you will save at the end of the month can be used for traveling to your preferred locations.

6. Commute in Local Public Transport

Don’t waste money on taxis or cabs and go for the public mode of transport such as metro, public buses, etc. Learn about the routes and stops, so you can easily commute. Many people feel too lazy to learn  the public modes of transport. To be lazy, or to be broke and unable to travel, it is totally your call. Make a smart choice and make the most of the resources available to you.

7. Buy Travel Insurance

Buying travel insurance is a must, especially if you are traveling overseas. Buy adequate coverage of a foreign travel insurance plan so that your finances are safe and secure, and none of the possible travel emergencies can wash off your saving in a single go.

Trip delay, trip cancellation, loss of checked-in baggage, delay of checked-in baggage, medical emergency treatment, passport loss etc. are some of the possible situations that can act as hurdles in your travel plan and will leave you with no choice but to shell out from your pocket. 

Never underestimate the importance of a travel plan and always buy adequate travel insurance coverage to neutralize travel-related risks and enjoy your travel to the fullest.

8. Have One ‘No-Spend' Day

It will help you manage your finance with ease and save some money for your travel plans. It is like being on a spending fast where you have to restrain yourself from making any purchase. Initially, you will be tempted to make some purchases just because you have told yourself to not do it. You just have to be patient and consistent and you will be able to survive this fast effortlessly. Invest that saved money in traveling and set yourself free.

FYI, there are some expenses that are a must, in order to survive. Such expenses are exempted during this fast. If you take a bus to reach your college, you will need to buy that bus ticket and kick-start your day.

9. Learn the Art of Booking Cheap Air Tickets

Most you guys would probably know this hack. Before you buy air tickets, clear cookies, cache and delete the internet history of your browser and temporary files from your system and you are good to go. After clearing all this stuff, visit the air ticket booking website in the incognito mode. It will help you to get amazing discounts.

10. Avail Student Discount

Making the most of your student life includes availing discounts. You can buy a student bus pass which is offered at a nominal rate.  Also, there are some restaurants that offer up to 20 percent off, especially for student diners.

11. Watch Movies on Weekdays

On the weekends, you can see that tickets are very expensive. Since you are a student, you will have time during the weekdays. If you are a cinegoer, you can use this time to enjoy movies. The theatres will be less crowded and the tickets will be much cheaper as compared to the weekends.

12. Use the Library

If you are an avid reader and you are guilty of splurging on books, don’t worry we have got you covered. You can visit the in-house library of your university and borrow books, so that you get to read books without even buying them.

This will help you to curb your spending as well as your reading cravings.

In a Nutshell

Life is hard but student life is harder. At the end of a month, most of the students struggle to manage their finances.

If you adopt the habits mentioned above, it will help you to save some money. Later, you can put that saved money to the right use - to travel.

The right way for some to have fun, is to travel. Travelling helps a student to break the monotony of student life and keep worries at bay. It opens them to new experiences and cultures. Travelling give one that much-needed me time and de-clutter the cluttered thoughts.

We hope these travel hacks will help you to plan that much-awaited trip with your group. Wherever you go, be safe and happy. Happy travels.