The Conclusive guide to having a Holiday on the Cheap

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We all love a holiday, and if you live in a colder country, a summer holiday somewhere warm is often necessary! But holidays can be really expensive and often unaffordable, so I thought I’d share my favourite tips and tricks for having a holiday on the cheap. Now of course these are my personal opinion but hopefully they can help a fellow millennial save a bit of cash whilst having a break!

Search without a date.

Go on holiday without a date, what? If your work can be flexible with holidays, I’d 100% recommend searching across the month as opposed to searching on specific dates. Most flight booking websites will show you how the flight prices fluctuate and it’s often much cheaper to fly midweek than on a Friday. If you can be flexible, you can often save hundreds of £££s!

Look outside of typical hotels.

If you’re going somewhere like a city, you probably don’t need all the typical amenities that come with a hotel so why not look at home sharing apps or websites! These are often far cheaper and can give you a really sense of the local area or culture as they’re often in more residential areas. There are definitely some bad reviews out there but as long as you book through a reputable website, they’ll cover you if anything goes wrong.

Consider your transport options.

When my family went to Paris, we found out it was cheaper to get the train than to fly as we saved money on taxi costs between the airport and city. Consider all your options. If you have a bit more time, the trains in Europe are fantastic and can often be cheaper. If you’re really savvy, you could even throw in a few sleeper trains and avoid having to pay for a hotel!

Book last-minute.

Now I know this isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but hotels often offer really good last-minute prices. Have a look online and find a last minute hotel or find a last minute cruise deal for an all-inclusive holiday that’s just a little bit different! Most hotels and activities have really good last-minute rates as they would rather be fully booked than half empty so it’s often worth the risk. Side note: probably not too advisable if it’s during school holidays, but worth considering!

Hand luggage only.

Most flights look pretty cheap, until you realise that check in luggage is another £200. If you can go hand luggage only, it’ll save you loads of money. Just make sure to be really careful with certain airlines as some will measure your hand luggage and can put it in the hold if they deem fit. As long as you’re prepared for the worst, you should be fine!

And these are my tips for travelling on the cheap! Have you ever had a really cheap holiday? What are some of your favourite hacks for a super cheap holiday abroad?

Ellie Dickinson