Tips for affordable travel

Many people often say they want to travel but cannot afford too.  While I don’t know everyone’s personal finances, there are tools and tips that you can utilize to make travel affordable. I will be discussing tools that I used while traveling to Tennessee from Los Angeles.

DIGIT is a saving tool. You sign up online and link it to your checking account. You can receive a daily account balance of your checking account if you chose to do so. Digit saves you money based on your spending. For example, if I spend $20, DIGIT may take out $2. When you want to retrieve the money, text the word WITHDRAW to the digit number. The following business day, funds will be deposited in to your checking account. I started saving in February and by July I saved $375. Here is my referral code if you would like to sign up .https://digit.co/r/ZJMtU?nw

Credit to Hello Digit Inc

DIGIT sends you fun text message every time you save a certain amount of money.

Frequent Flier Miles aka Airline points Remember to sign up for airline points before flying. If you forget don’t fret, there is a grace period to obtain points. I had 32,500 sky miles on Delta airlines. I needed a round trip ticket from Los Angeles (LAX) to Nashville (BNA).  When I first searched for flights into Nashville, I needed 32,500 points which meant I was short 250 points. You have the option to buy points from family or friends costing $10 per every 1000 points plus a $20 fee or buy points from the airlines at a more expensive rate. When I searched for flights and changed the day I was going to fly, I only needed 25,000 points. The cost of my round trip flight was:  25,000 in sky miles, $11.50 fee and $25 trip protection fee.

Hotels: Make sure you sign up for hotel rewards points. I signed for Hilton Honors points. Hilton Honors includes over 13 hotels.  I stayed at the Embassy Suites for the Ladies, Lipsticks, and Luggage’s Conference. The conference price was $159 a night. After joining Hilton Honors, I received $10-15 off each night. After staying at the any of the 13 hotels several times, you will eventually be able to earn enough points to receive a free night’s stay.

Uber: Download the Uber app to your phone, insert your credit card information and you are ready to use Uber. It was my first time riding Uber, I asked my Facebook friends for a referral code. It is to be noted only first-time users can be offered this promotion. The referral code allowed me to take off $22 for my first ride. I used my first ride to transport me from the airport. The ride was $22.50. My out-of-pocket expense was 50 cents.

Lyft: Lyft is similar to Uber, it’s a popular car service. I occasionally drive for Lyft when I need extra money for traveling.  On this trip, I was rider instead of a driver. While in Nashville I received an alert for a 50% code off my next 10 rides. This came in handy as I used Lyft to sight see in Memphis. I loved all my drivers, they were very talkative and gave tips on popular attraction to see. One driver even offered me water, seems small but I was grateful for the gesture.  First time users please use my code: https://lyft.com/i/TIFFANY050231, this code allows you up to $50 in credit that can be used over the course of several rides.

 

Student ID: Make sure to bring your student ID to receive small discounts to various attractions.

Groupon or Living Social: This app can be accessed on the computer, phone or IPAD. Both sites have discounted prices for various good, services, and travel destinations. In addition to the already reduced rates, they often send 20% emails off on top of the original price.