I love to travel but don’t like to pay a lot to do it.  Every year I go on an annual trip to a new destination but never pay full price.  Here are my tips on how to go on a budget vacation and still have a great time.

My vacation always starts with finding the best deal I can get on airfare.  My first step is to go to Kayak.com to see how much prices are for flights to my desired destination.  Kayak lets you see the cheapest prices of flights for several months down the road.

After seeing what airlines are charging for the time I want to travel, I set an alert with www.airfarewatchdog.com and wait for the cheapest flights to be emailed to me.  Once I receive an email with a price I like, I book the ticket.

For lodging, I always bid on the price of my hotel through Priceline.com.  With Priceline, you pick the area you want to stay in along with the star level and bid the price you are most likely to pay.  Some people do not like Priceline because you do not know the name of the hotel until you win the bid.  As long as you pick a three – five star hotel you are on the safe side.  I have won a bid at The Marriott for $42 per night even though the Marriott website had the same exact room for $129 per night!

Another bidding website I like is Luxurylink.com.  Luxury Link has up to half off packages that include the cost of a luxurious hotel along with extras such as breakfast/dinner and spa treatments.

For my rental car reservation, I prefer to use Priceline to bid on the price.  If Priceline does not accept my bid, I go to www.rentalcodes.com to find codes for rental car companies.

Another budget travel website that I have found to be reasonable with their prices is Lastminute.com, which offers last minute deals on flight and hotel packages.

Photo Credit: m o d e

If you have any budget travel tips, please feel free to post them in the comment section!

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Have you ever been standing in line at a non-grocery store waiting to pay and someone in front of you has had a printed coupon they are using?  Chances are they received the coupon signing up for that store’s eClub.

If I know I am making a trip to a specific store, I will visit their website to see if they have an eClub to sign up for.  When you sign up for a retailer’s eClub, you will periodically receive emails with sale notifications, coupons, and special offers.

Below is a list I have composed of retailers that send you a welcome discount coupon email almost immediately after signing up.  Most of the links send you directly to the sign up page.  If you are directed to the home page, scroll down to the bottom of the page and you should see the box to enter your email address.

AMF Bowling – One free game for everyone in your group up to 10 people

Bath and Body Works – Free travel item with any purchase

Dave and Busters – $10 free game play

Express Clothing Store- 15% off next purchase

Godiva Chocolate – Free piece of chocolate every month

Gordmans -15% off one item

Gordon’s Jewelers – $50 off $300

Kirkland’s – 20% off any single item

Kmart - $5 off $50 in store and $5 online

Kohl’s-$5 off purchase in store or 10% online

Michaels Arts and Crafts- 40% or 50% off one regular priced item

New York and Company- $25 off $75 online and instore

Victoria’s Secret Pink Nation – $10 off $50 plus a free tank top with any purchase

World Market – 10% first purchase

Online Orders:

Banana Republic - Free shipping

GNC – 15% off entire order

Petsmart - $5 off $30

Shutterfly – 50 free 4×6 prints

Snapfish – 20 free 4×6 prints

Ulta Beauty Store - 20% off one item

Photo Credit: Don Hankins

Feel free to comment and add any retailers that will send you a welcome discount email.

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