There
are many wonderful places to see in the
world and each place you visit takes and
keeps a part of you - and you take and keep
a part of it with you forever. Traveling
is one of the most enjoyable things in life,
the mystery, the excitement, the exposure
to the unknowns that makes a person feel
sense of being alive in a way that few other
things do. But traveling is not cheap.
You don’t have to
stop traveling just because there’s
a global recession going on. In fact this
is a great time to travel because everything
is cheaper: hotels, food, airfares, etc.
So, you are wanting an affordable
weekend getaway?
First ask yourself, where
you would be excited to visit. If you have
to, put together a list of locations that
you may want to visit for a weekend getaway
- or even an extended period, like 4 days
or even 5 days.
Before I show you how to
plan a great weekend getaway for an affordable
budget, first you need to select a place
you want to go. Then I can show how you
can save money AND have a great vacation
somewhere exotic and adventurous.
To help you with some ideas
on places you may want to visit, I have
listed a few places you can travel to from
East Coast to the West Coast of United States
or Canada.
All of these destinations
are ones you can reach with a short direct
(or indirect) flight and by the mid afternoon
of your day of travel, you are relaxing
at your favorite vacation spot.
Costa Rica. Among
the best destinations in the world, you
can experience a weekend getaway to a magical
place rich in culture and history and relax
on the beautiful beaches with tranquility.
Direct flights from: Sacramento
(7 hours), S.F.
(7 hours), New
York (6 hours), Miami
(4 hours), D.C.
(6 hours), Dallas
(4 hours), and Denver
(5 hours). All flight durations are
approximates.
Guatemala. Another
weekend break to a place with local folk
music, tropical highlands, and stunning
rivers and beaches. The beauty is breathtaking
and while the economy is growing it is still
(but may be not for too long) very affordable
for a priceless vacation. Direct flights
from: Portland
(8 hours), Seattle
(8 hours), Sacramento
(7 hours), S.F.
(7 hours), New
York (6 hours), Miami
(4 hours), D.C.
(6 hours), Dallas
(4 hours), Denver
(5 hours). All flight durations are
approximates.
St. Martin.
This is a small Caribbean island with amazing
beaches and wonderful bars and dance clubs,
and casinos for the gamblers among you.
I particularly like the water sports available
here. Many fabulous local markets and beautiful
European style architecture. Direct and
indirect flights from: Charlotte
(4 hours), Atlanta
(4 hours), New
York (4 hours), Miami
(3 hours), D.C.
(4 hours), Dallas
(5 hours), Denver
(5 hours). All flight durations are
approximates.
San Jose Del
Cabos. Beautiful,
quiet, and friendly Mexican village near
Cabo with elegant bungalows and shuttles
to all the local attractions. Direct flights
from: Portland
(6 hours), Seattle
(6 hours), L.A.
(4 hours), S.F.
(4 hours), Houston
(3 hours), Denver
(4 hours), and Vancouver
B.C. (6 hours). All flight
durations are approximates.
Aruba. Among
the best of white sand beaches in the world,
with sailing, kayaking, and snorkeling,
tons of shows, with amazing pan-asian ethnic
food cuisine. Direct flights from: Atlanta
(4 hours), New
York (5 hours), Miami
(2 hours), D.C.
(4 hours), Dallas
(5 hours), Denver
(5 hours). All flight durations are
approximates.
Porta Vallerta.
A beautiful Mexican resort town with cobblestone
streets and affordable prices. The town
of 'All-Inclusive' resorts that
include not only room but also all you can
eat buffets and all the alcohol you can
drink - all day. Many water sports and exciting
nightlife with rooftop villas and romantic
restaurants. Direct flights from Portland
(5 hours), Seattle
(5 hours), L.A.
(3 hours), S.F.
(4 hours), Chicago
(5 hours), Houston
(3 hours), Denver
(3 hours), Kansas
City (4 hours) and Vancouver
B.C. (5 hours)All flight
durations are approximates.
St. Lucia. One
of the most beautiful islands of the Caribbean
with tropical rain forests and quiet relaxing
beaches. Carnivals during the summer and
most resorts are 'All-Inclusive'.
Direct and indirect flights from Toronto
(6 hours), Atlanta
(5 hours), Philadelphia
(5 hours), New
York (5 hours), Charlotte
(5 hours), Miami
(3 hours), D.C.
(5 hours), Dallas
(5 hours), Denver
(6 hours). All flight durations are
approximates.
Venezuela. This
beautiful country full of diverse people,
cultures and landscape is wonderful for
a 3 or 4 day getaway weekend break. It offers
everything in the right proportion and you
will always remember the home of the largest
waterfall in the world, named Angel Falls.
Direct and indirect flights from Atlanta
(6 hours), Philadelphia
(7 hours), New
York (7 hours), Charlotte
(5 hours), Miami
(4 hours), D.C.
(6 hours), and Dallas
(5 hours). All flight durations are
approximates.
Oahu. Hawaiian
island with long beaches, nice shows, and
friendly locals. Direct flights from Portland
(6 hours), Seattle
(7 hours), L.A.
(6 hours), S.F.
(6 hours) and Vancouver
B.C. (6 hours). All flight
durations are approximates.
Barbados.
Another
beautiful white sand beach Caribbean island
with bustling nightlife and fine restaurants
and many news small and cheap resorts. Direct
and indirect flights from Toronto
(6 hours), Atlanta
(3 hours), New
York (5 hours), Miami
(3 hours), D.C.
(5 hours), Dallas
(5 hours), Denver
(6 hours). All flight durations are
approximates.
All of these weekend getaway
destinations listed above, potentially,
offer a very affordable vacation that you
will regard as memorable for years to come.
And if you ever want to have a longer vacation
of one or two weeks, you know where to go.
Again, there are the most affordable places
that you can go to for excitement and adventure
and without traveling across the world.
Now, did you know you can
save a lot of money by getting a little
creative?
There are always some general
ideas you can use to help you save money
and still allow you to see new things in
the world, and may be even in new ways you
never imagined.
There are five main expenses
involved with traveling: 1) accommodation,
2) food, 3) airfare,
4) public transportation,
and 5) attractions/entertainment.
Let's take a look at each
of these to see how best you can save money.
What allows you to save
money with accommodation, is Homework,
but hopefully you find this kind of homework
more exciting. In fact, I enjoy the homework
for my trips as much as I enjoy the trips
themselves. It leaves me in a constant state
of dreaming with positive feelings of excitement
and adventure looking forward to see the
new places that I have only imagined before.
Doing your homework
on finding accommodation:
Take a look on the Internet
and try to find Classified Ads sections
of local newspapers to see what ads are
placed locally for short terms rentals.
For instance, I looked for Online Newspapers
for Phuket in Thailand and found an online
local newspapers for English speaking travelers
which also had ads for short term rentals.
Normally, a hotel room near the beach cost
about $80 per night during peak season with
a maximum of 2 adults per room. I paid $22
per night for a one bedroom apartment for
7 nights, and it was a complete self contained
accommodation near the beach (15 minutes
walk). The best part of it was that, 3 of
my friends joined me because the accommodation
was cheap and it worked out about $5.50
per person per night.
Another idea I tried was
Web sites that offer vacation rentals directly
by the owners themselves who have a vacant
investment property and want to rent it
out. In most cases, the owners speak at
least a little bit of English (because they
target high-paying tourists) and you can
negotiate a good deal with them. Many of
them also want to make friends with people
in U.S., Canada, or European citizens. These
Web sites also have many photos of the rental
property and the accommodation and even
local scenery. Most of the Web site that
I have researched also include detailed
information on travel information such as
local airport, taxi fares, and many other
local information that is not readily available.
There are hundreds of thousands
of rental properties worldwide advertised
by local owners. Times like this, they are
desperate to rent out empty properties.
When tourism is down and many accommodations
are sitting idle, you can get a great deal
if you do your homework. The opposite is
true when tourism is booming, you pay a
lot, and often - you don't get a lot.
What I like the most about
finding a rental apartment or a house is
that I have access to a kitchen so that
I can do some shopping and eat home made
food at least a few times during my vacation.
I don't necessarily enjoy eating out 3 or
4 times a day for a weekend or a whole week
away from home. I prefer going to local
markets, or local farms when I travel
to South America, to buy what I need and
go back to the apartment and cook. This
also helps with keeping my vacation within
a my budget.
Local markets
have everything you want but for a fraction
of pricey tourist shops
Most often the healthiest produce are the
ones grown locally and delivered to the
local market without long delays. Also this
is cheapest way because no transportation
costs are added to the price and the produce
are fresh and full of nutrients.
Cheap, healthy, fresh, and
full of nutrients: what else do you want?
You can buy fresh
fruits, locally baked breads, meat, cheeses,
spices and sample local delicacies and while
you are shopping at the local market you
can meet local people, learn about their
way of life and spend your time doing something
educational and stimulating, rather than
sitting in a restaurant and waiting for
people to serve you.
I have a great time just
mingling with local vendors about their
farming methods and their ancestral ways
of passing on farming techniques. It's really
fun. They also enjoy meeting tourists and
explaining about their country and the things
that make them proud of their culture. The
local market can be money-saving and a stimulating
cultural experience.
Cheap Airfare
There are a dozen sites
on the Internet that search for airfares
for you and give you all the best prices
offered by every airline. To get a good
deal you must put the time into searching
for deals in these portal sites and try
various dates to see what you can get. However,
these are some of the best deals I found
on LowFares.com
and other sites like this - just searching
last weekend:
Return flight: San Francisco
- San Jose, Costa Rica = $487 inc. tax (normally
$780+)
Return flight: San Francisco
- Guatemala City, Guatemala = $346 inc.
tax (normally
$850+)
Return flight: San Francisco
- Caracas, Venezuela = $650 inc. tax
(normally $1,432+)
Return flight: San Francisco
- Porta Vallerta = $263 inc. tax
(normally $610+)
Return flight: San Francisco
- Bridgetown, Barbados = $530 inc. tax
(normally $816+)
Return flight: Dallas - San
Jose, Costa Rica = $390 inc. tax (normally
$600+)
Return flight: Dallas
- Guatemala City, Guatemala = $322 inc.
tax (normally
$705+)
Return flight: Dallas
- Caracas, Venezuela = $710 inc. tax
(normally $1,950+)
Return flight: Dallas
- Porta Vallerta = $220 inc. tax
(normally $600+)
Return flight: Dallas
- Bridgetown, Barbados = $295 inc. tax
(normally $730+)
Return flight: New York -
San Jose, Costa Rica = $540 inc. tax (normally
$1,050+)
Return flight: New
York - Guatemala City, Guatemala
= $585 inc. tax (normally
$1,100+)
Return flight: New
York - Caracas, Venezuela = $835
inc. tax (normally
$1,750+)
Return flight: New
York - Porta Vallerta = $480 inc.
tax (normally
$938+)
Return flight: New
York - Bridgetown, Barbados = $395
inc. tax (normally
$880+)
Return flight: Atlanta -
San Jose, Costa Rica = $298 inc. tax (normally
$760+)
Return flight: Atlanta
- Guatemala City, Guatemala = $420
inc. tax (normally
$825+)
Return flight: Atlanta
- Caracas, Venezuela = $680 inc. tax
(normally $1,610+)
Return flight: Atlanta
- Porta Vallerta = $290 inc. tax
(normally $650+)
Return flight: Atlanta
- Bridgetown, Barbados = $220 inc. tax
(normally $639+)
If you search
various dates and use the COMPARE feature
on these Web sites, you can really find
some amazing deals. I also recommend that
you try as many sites as you can (depending
how much time you have) and constantly check
to see who has the best deals as this may
vary from one day to the next.
Here
is a list of some amazing deals I found
for myself or my friends (all in the last
14 months) :
Return flight: San Francisco
- Porta Vallerta, Mexico = $127 inc. tax
(normally $330+)
Return flight: San Francisco
- Guatemala City, Guatemala = $546 inc.
tax (normally
$1,372+)
Return flight: San Francisco
- Caracas, Venezuela = $650 inc. tax
(normally $1,432+)
Return flight: San Francisco
- Bangkok, Thailand = $510 inc. tax
(normally $1,000+)
Return flight: Seattle -
Phuket, Thailand = $810 inc. tax (normally
$1,300+)
Return flight: Seattle
- Hong Kong = $800 inc. tax (normally
$1,200+)
Return flight: Seattle
- Macau = $775 inc. tax (normally
$1,100+)
Return flight: Seattle
- Singapore = $850 inc. tax (normally
$1,200+)
Return flight: Seattle
- Tokyo, Japan = $880 inc. tax (normally
$1,350+)
Return flight: Dulles International
(Virginia) - Costa Rica = $630 inc. tax
(normally $1,200+)
Return flight: Dulles
International (Virginia) - London,
England = $500 inc. tax (normally
$950+)
Return flight: Portland -
Seoul, South Korea = $550 inc. tax
(normally $1,200+)
Return flight: Portland -
Honolulu, Hawaii = $425 inc. tax
(normally $800+)
Return flight: New York -
Madrid, Spain = $296 inc. tax (normally
$1,000+) -
amazing deal
Return flight: Vancouver
B.C. - Bangkok, Thailand = $817 inc. tax
(normally $1,500+)
If you put some time and
effort into your search you will be (happily)
surprised what you can find. Over the last
few years, I have found some gems for my
friends and for myself.
Public transportation
Traveling around by taxi is very expensive
and in most South American countries and
South East Asian countries, the taxis are
run and operated by local mafia (or equivalent)
so you are wasting money - your precious
money that could get so much use elsewhere.
Why not use local buses
and subways where and when you can as long
as you are certain that it is safe to do
so. This will save you more money than you
can imagine. Based on my own experiences,
I would guess that the difference between
using local transportation compared to taxis
would be roughly a ratio of 1 to 10. In
South East Asian countries, it would be
more like 1 to 20. A local public bus in
Patong Beach, Thailand is about 15 Baud
for anywhere within 10 miles radius but
a taxi (which are all run by the local Mafia)
is 300 Baud to go within a 1 mile radius.
This is a 1 to 20 ratio. At night of course,
the taxis are even more expensive and they
start charging you about 500 Baud. In Bangkok
however, the taxis are forbiden by law to
charge like this and they are metered
so what many taxi drivers do is cheat (usually
at night when tourists are drunk). They
turn off the meter.
In Hong Kong, many taxi
drivers fix the meter or have someone
do it for them. In fact, most of the Chinese
taxi (even in the mainland) drivers are
doing this to get at least an extra 20%
on top of the fare.
Buses aren’t always the fastest way
around town, but they are a bargain and
in my opinion they are safer than taxis.
However, sometimes in the buses you will
have people trying to sell you something
in Venezuela, or people begging for money
in Pakistan, or someone selling you fake
watches in Bangkok. But I have always preferred
riding a bus instead of taking taxis if
at all possible. Some of my friends accuse
me of being an excitement junky since it
is always hilarious when you see a bus driver
in Istanbul getting out of his bus and fighting
the other drivers stuck in the traffic or
watching an Indian bus driver (who cannot
speak local language) with a cigarette in
his mouth, shifting the gears with one hand,
while using his other hand to direct the
traffic in Dubai, UAE.
Attractions
and Entertainment
Here's my two cents on this. If you are
going on a short weekend getaway to relax
and rest or even if you are going on a one
or two week vacation, do not short change
your enjoyment by staying in the room in
order to save money. Go out and have fun.
What you can do is try to
find places that offer better overall experience.
If you want to go to the Museum, then go
and pay the entrance fee. If you want to
go to the night club and you know that you
like to drink a few cocktails (or beers
for you men), then go to a standard bar
first, drink until you are happy (without
getting silly drunk like the British and
the Aussies do), and then go to the night
club - that way you pace yourself and don't
pay the exuberant amounts they charge for
the drinks at night clubs and you get to
dance.
Finally, I must add that
the more you travel and meet other people
and learn from their experiences the more
you will know how to have a good time without
spending a whole lot money on your travels.
Glad I could do this article
for all of you and hope you have a wonderful
time - and hopefully, I was able to help
a little. It is wonderful to be able to
make other people happy. Bon Voyage. |
(last 30 days)
