Visa processing
It is unlikely that you can somehow reduce this component of your vacation expenses. On the contrary, it can easily increase if you decide to go somewhere at the very last moment. As is known, processing an urgent visa is more expensive than a regular one.
Air travel
In many cases, this is the most expensive part of a trip. A great opportunity to save an always-welcome $100 or $150 is to go on a foreign trip by charter flight. True, tickets for such flights are not sold at regular airline ticket offices, and you will have to look for them at travel agencies. But the time spent searching will pay off handsomely.
Another situation favorable for tourists, when at ridiculous prices you can buy tickets not only for charters, but even for regular airline flights, is related to the fact that at the beginning of the season many travel companies buy up whole blocks of seats on airplanes. If just before the start of the tour it turns out that all seats cannot be sold, so-called “last-minute deals” and air tickets at reduced prices appear on sale. It is better to get back at least part of the money, the travel agency reasonably believes, than to pay, literally, for transporting air.
A repeatedly proven way to fly cheaply somewhere far away is to take advantage of promotional campaigns by major airlines. Aeroflot, Transaero, Lufthansa, and KLM from time to time give generous gifts to tourists by reducing the price of tickets for their flights for a certain period (one to two weeks). Watch for advertising - a round-trip air ticket for $99 to Europe or $199 to any airport in the rest of the world is not a fairy tale at all.
Transfer
On the transfer, in other words, the delivery of tourists from the airport to the hotel and back, you can also save a few honestly earned euros. Much here depends on the country you choose and the nature of the trip. If you are vacationing in Turkey or Egypt, the transfer will most likely be a group transfer and fairly cheap. It is another matter, for example, Paris. An individual transfer from the airport to the center of the French capital costs at least 50 euros. If you want to save 90% of that amount, find exit 28 at Charles de Gaulle airport, from where a free shuttle bus will take you to the RER commuter train station. An RER ticket costs 7 euros. You will get to your hotel in no more than 40 minutes - and no traffic jams.
Food costs
Half board with a buffet and an additional charge for drinks, or the more expensive all-inclusive plan. Which is more profitable? It depends on your vacation style. If you plan to spend most of your time at a beach hotel, pay for all-inclusive (read more about this on the next page). Half board is more suitable for restless people who are always off on excursions.
On sightseeing tours in Europe, McDonald's and other fast-food establishments allow you to save money on food. It is just that the food in them cannot be called a balm for the stomach. A reasonable compromise is ethnic restaurants: Chinese, Greek, Turkish, offering lunches within $10. But in Prague, the most economical thing is to have lunch at an ordinary pub. In addition to excellent beer, which costs half as much there than in popular cafes and restaurants, in pubs for only $3 you can always get a large portion of stewed meat or fried sausages.
Hotel
The simplest and most effective way to reduce hotel costs is to use the same last-minute deals. After all, travel agencies often pay for hotel rooms in advance for the entire tourist season. The prices are then lower than for someone walking in off the street. But such rooms also start to “burn” if there is a shortage of vacationers. Of course, at the height of the season it is hard to count on a last-minute deal. But at other times, a spot on the beach of a four-star Turkish or Egyptian hotel, bought two or three days before the trip, can cost you only $200-250. And believe me, it will be no different from the neighboring one, paid a month earlier, but twice as expensive. For last-minute deals to Schengen zone countries, which are bought up one and a half to two weeks before the start of the trip, you cannot expect significant discounts. Usually they amount to 10-30% of the tour cost. Which is also quite a lot.
Those who plan the route of an individual tour on their own would do well to look at the Internet. The world is full of small cozy hotels at a price of $50-60 for a double room. You can find them in the very center of Venice, in French Normandy, and even at the very edge of Norwegian glaciers. When traveling through Italy, it is good to stay in small boarding houses styled after ancient Roman villas - with comfortable rooms, a small park, a swimming pool, excellent cuisine, and cheap wine. You should not rely on domestic travel agencies to find such heavenly spots. They are not interested in small family hotels, but if you want, they will book a room at a hotel of your choice. True, they will most likely ask for a commission for this. With a certain persistence on your part, it will amount to about $30.
Travel agency commission
You can get a discount when buying any tours, not only last-minute ones. After all, 10% of their cost is the money that the travel agency keeps for itself as payment for services rendered. You can try to get a small discount from these very percentages. Sometimes it works. Wanting to attract customers, some companies cut their income and reduce the initial cost of tours. But no more than 3%.
Railways
Traveling the world is good not only in a rented car. In Europe it is much cheaper, and sometimes more convenient, to use railways. Time on the road between the main objects of tourist pilgrimage takes no more than an hour, and comfort in air-conditioned trains is akin to business class on an airplane. Moreover, in some countries you can use special programs for tourists. For example, on French railways, a ticket holder can get significant discounts when renting a car at the point of arrival. And a special Belgian railway ticket allows you, having got off at any station, to get a bicycle for free use right at the station.
Everywhere - in Germany, France, Italy - there are weekend tickets, discounts for students, pensioners and many other categories of tourists. In little Belgium, for example, it is worth considering the Carte Benelux-Tourrail for 65 euros. With such a ticket, you can make rail trips throughout the Benelux countries for five days. For those who prefer to travel in a large company, the Multi Pass ticket for 40 euros is suitable - for a one-time trip for a group of any size and for any distance.
City transport
Frequent trips on public transport in European cities can ruin anyone. Especially in the British capital, where even the shortest trip on the famous London bus or the Underground costs no less than one and a half pounds. It is much cheaper to buy a one-day Travel Card, which allows you to make an unlimited number of trips around the city and nearby suburbs from 9:30 a.m. until midnight. A Travel Card costs £3.50 for those who do not intend to go far, and £7 for those wishing to go to Windsor or Hampton Court.
Similar types of travel passes - one-day, weekly, monthly, for five or 10 trips - are available in almost all major European cities. In Paris, this is the Carnet - a set of 10 tickets for the Metro or bus, which costs 9.6 euros (with a single ticket price of 1.3 euros). You can forget about travel passes only in Rome - there are simply none that might be of interest to tourists, and the cost of a Metro or bus ride is simply ridiculous - only 0.77 euros.
The Swiss travel pass Swiss Pass allows you to save significantly when traveling around the country on almost all types of public transport.
Car rental
The cost of renting a car largely depends on the country you choose, and sometimes it is more advantageous to sign a rental agreement at the offices of Hertz, Avis or Europcar.
A few more tips. If the route allows, take a car with a limited daily mileage - it is significantly cheaper. Weekly rental is cheaper than daily rental. Diesel cars allow you to achieve significant fuel savings, and in terms of performance, modern diesel engines are in no way inferior to petrol engines. The only difficulty: there are many people who understand this, so a diesel car must be ordered in advance. If several people are expected to drive the car, you will have to pay more.
Costs for toll roads can be minimized if you keep in mind that any toll road has a free alternative. It is better to refuel at gas stations owned by large supermarket chains - there gasoline is cheapest, while at gas stations located directly on highways it is most expensive. Avoid driving in large cities; even if you find a free parking space there, it will cost a lot of money. When booking a hotel, warn the agent that you are by car and need a parking space. In many hotels, parking for guests is free or discounted, but if you do not warn in advance, there may be no free spaces.
Medical insurance
You should not save on this item of vacation expenses. On the contrary, if you plan to go diving, rafting or downhill skiing while on holiday, you need to purchase a special, more expensive insurance policy covering the risks associated with such extreme sports.
Museum tickets
About 100 euros - that is roughly how much visiting museums, palaces and exhibition halls costs each of us for a week of travel in Great Britain, France or Italy. Of course, the treasures collected there are worth the money. But still, when you come to Paris, do not rush to immediately pay 7.5 euros for the Louvre, 6 euros for the Pantheon and another 20 for a single ticket to Versailles. Better to buy the Paris Museum Pass - a single ticket that opens the doors of all museums in the French capital and its suburbs. The Paris Museum Pass is valid for one, three or five days from the moment of visiting the first museum. Cost - 15, 30 and 45 euros respectively.
Schemes designed to protect tourists' wallets from excessive spending on museums exist almost everywhere. When you arrive in an unfamiliar city, stop by the tourist office with a large 'i' above the entrance. You can buy discounted tickets there. In Venice, these are inexpensive one- or three-day guest cards that allow you to visit museums, take rides on water trams, and even avoid paying for public toilets. For just 9 euros, the Strasbourg Pass lets you visit one of the museums of the capital of United Europe, climb to the observation deck of the Cathedral, listen to an organ concert, take a ride on a river tram, and also get a guidebook to Strasbourg as a bonus.
Those who do not want to pay 11.5 pounds in England for visiting Buckingham Palace, the Tower of London, or Windsor Castle should consider getting a Visitors Travelcard, which will allow them to receive discounts on museum tickets and use public transport for free for 3-7 days. The only drawback is that the Visitors Travelcard cannot be bought in the UK itself. Therefore, even before the trip, it is worth ordering it through the travel agency handling your trip.
Excursion costs
Visiting local attractions during a beach holiday in Turkey, Egypt, Croatia, or Tunisia is an integral part of resort leisure. Their long list can always be found at the hotel reception desk. But at the same time, any resort town will have an excursion office offering the same trips, but significantly cheaper. As practice shows, both those who bought the excursion without leaving the hotel and more practical people who used the services of excursion offices sometimes end up in the same tourist bus or the same boat.
You will get your money back
It is no secret that items by leading designers cost much less in Europe than in our stores. But even these prices can be reduced by using the Tax Free system, which allows you to get back 10-20% of the purchase price. The refund procedure is very simple. You just need to remember that you should buy items in stores that have a Tax Free Shopping sign. At your request, the seller, if you have a passport, will issue a special Tax Free Cheque. When leaving the country, do not forget to get a customs stamp on this cheque and, if asked, present the items in their store packaging. The most pleasant part remains - to get cash at the nearest office with a Cash Refund. Tax Free Shopping sign. They can easily be found at any international airport.