How Do I Travel Affordably?

I get this question a lot.  Many people think traveling is really expensive, but it's not if you know how to milk the system, look for deals, and make a hobby out of research.  However, there are a few travel staples that I resort to on a constant basis that help keep costs minimal.

Orbitz
To my lovely friends at Orbitz, you're actually by BFFs.  And I don't just mean Orbitz in general, but I tell my friends that actually DO work at Orbitz how much I love their flexible fare finder.  It was through this tool that Carrie and I found and scored our bargain-basement plane tickets to Peru for $400 r/t.  You can search month-by-month for the best fares, then it displays in a matrix for comparison.  Brilliant.  This is perfect for visiting a place, but when you go doesn't matter, as long as it's cheap.

Airfare Watch Dog
Sign up at Airfare Watch Dog for daily emails and alerts on special fares from your city.  I love this site because it also includes unpublished fares, and last-minute domestic and international airfares.  Believe you me, I am keeping my eyes open for a convenient time to run off to Mexico City for a chance to dine at Pujol or Biko.  And for fares hovering under $300 from Chicago, it's cheaper than getting to LA.

Travelzoo
I'm addicted.  This site might bankrupt me.  But the deals are fantastic, and include not only airfare, but entire vacation packages.  I had this wild idea that instead of taking 1 giant 2 week trip every year, I could take about 5 or 6 last-minute long weekend trips around the world, just by taking advantage of all the last-minute deals.  This year is spoken for, but maybe later next year?  Or the year after?

Frequent Flyer Programs
Become a local expert in your favorite frequent flyer program.  I'm a sucker for frequent flyer miles giveaways, but if it's getting me a free ticket to Dubai or Easter Island, I'm a happy sucker that's not paying a lot to have a fabulous vacation.  First, focus on your favorite airline.  If you don't have one, sign up for an program on an airline that has frequent flights from your nearest airport or watch for fare trends.  If you're in Chicago, American Airlines or United are great choices because both airlines have frequent flights, which will make it easier to rack up miles on a single airline for convenience.  Some frequent flyer experts may advise signing up for a program on an airline that does not have a hub in your home city (a hub means you'll have to compete against more passengers for award seats), so you'll have more of a selection of award seats when you want to cash in those miles.  I"m more of a miles accumulator than a spender, and if you redeem your miles well in advance of traveling (6-8 months) then finding an award seat may not be a problem in a hub city.  The alliance you select is also important, because you want to ensure that the partner airlines fly to some places you may want to visit.  Star Alliance has an excellent and far-reaching network (United has a huge network).  I'm a oneworld member and am pretty happy, although the fares are higher on some destinations I visit (love flying British Airways, and American domestically, but isn't great for South America unless you can cash in on LAN).  Skyteam is great for Asia some European destinations, but their alliance network is small.  On the other hand, Korean Air is one of the most comfortable long-haul airlines in Skyteam.  As you can see, it's up to you to select your alliance on which to accumulate miles.

Next, you don't have to step on a plane to collect miles.  I wrote an entry a few months back about holiday shopping and earning miles.  If you're going to shop online, shop with airline partners that earn you miles at the same time!  If you're an AAdvantage member, install the AAdvantage toolbar on your internet browser to earn miles, often without shopping!  Years ago I got a telemarketing phone call: "Switch your long distance telephone service now and we'll give you 10,000 frequent flyer miles."  Okay!  And last month I received a letter in the mail: "Change your electricity service provider and earn 5,000 miles."  Done.  If you can, sign up for a credit card that gives you miles.  There are promotions going on now where you can earn up to 100,000 miles after your first purchase in some cases.  When you travel on an airline and have over 100k miles, you can often get a free upgrade.  Party bonus.  With AAdvantage, I signed up all my credit cards with the Dining Program, so even if I spend $10 on take-out, it might net me 30 miles.  I feel like I'm earning without paying attention.  Always check your frequent flyer program's web page for promotions, offers, and alerts for opportunities to earn miles.  AMEX has a great program in which you can transfer AMEX Membership Awards points to select airline programs.  A recent AMEX promotion allowed me to transfer 25,000 miles to my BA account with a 40% free bonus.  I went from 2,000 BA miles to 37,000 in 1 minute.  That also keeps me a couple thousand miles away from a part/cash, part/miles reward ticket, or a few thousand away from a free r/t European ticket.

What does this all get you?  You can be one of two different earners: One who earns and spends immediately.  As soon as you see you've earned enough for a free r/t ticket to Moscow, you'll cash those miles in for tickets.  Some programs also allow you to pay part cash and part miles.  This is good when you don't have enough miles to fly totally free, or you don't want to use up your miles.  The other strategy is to be a collector.  Sure, you cash in miles for a free ticket, but if you continue to accumulate miles, you start to become an elite member and/or qualify for free upgrades.  I have to say, paying for a coach ticket was great when I was surprisingly upgraded to a fully-flat bed pod in business class back from London.  That would have been a $3000 ticket, at least.  It was worth it to save the miles and get the perks.

Lastly, before you spend your miles, look at your travel habits or wish list.  If you're going to be an international travel, your miles will often get you further than if you paid cash.  However, cashing in 25,000 miles for a free domestic ticket from Chicago to New York isn't worth the miles if the ticket is only $200.  Those same 25,000 miles is getting me a free ticket from Lima, Peru, to Easter Island.  That ticket was at least $533 if I bought it.  First do some research on lowest fares, then do the math on what the cost per mile would be. 

Couch Surfing
Find a friend or relative that lives anywhere, give them a call, and go visit.  Free lodging, and maybe bring some goodies from home for them.  Or literally, go Couch Surfing.  This site brings together a network of charitable travelers willing to give up their sofa, futon, or guest room for the avid wanderer.  You may have to cook your own food and clean up after yourself, but for a free place to rest your head, it's a great idea if you're really on a budget, or would love the advice and guidance of a local.

Lodging
Think outside the box of hotels.  Try for a B&B, or even a hostel that may have private en suite rooms, wifi, and hot water (I find these to be a step above a hostel, nearly a B&B).  Get a group together and rent a villa or small apartment.  You could fit 3-4 people in a hotel room, but watch out for additional guest fees if there will be more than 2 people.  I love TripAdvisor for finding alternative lodging options.

Lastly, there are times when you really don't want to pinch pennies and cut corners.  Set some money aside for any airport arrival/departure taxes.  Pony up for travel insurance.  Get your vaccinations, malaria pills, and antibiotics.  Make sure your passport doesn't expire for at least 6 months at the time of your trip, and has at least 2 blank visa pages, if you're traveling outside the US.  I also welcome anyone else's tips on traveling affordably!