smarter, ten traveling secrets to · 2016-09-16 · world. my work + story has been featured in...

SECRETS TO TRAVELING

SMARTER, CHEAPER &

LONGER

P R O J E C T I N S P O

TEN

B Y : J I N N A Y A N G

Dying to travel but don’t think you can afford it? Well, you’re wrong. And you’re not alone.

People end up spending 3x more on travel than they should, and never know they’re doing it all wrong. The airline industry’s primary profit goal is to get you to overspend as much as possible. So much so, that you’ve most likely been doing just that - overspending - on your flights, your meals, your hotels and so on.

Before I quit my corporate job to take my first trip to Europe - I was like everyone else. I had no idea how much I had been overspending. The only traveling I had done was go on a few vacations. I booked on third-party sites when I had the money to spend, or squeezed the few days off from work.

Bottom line is, I didn’t take any time to investigate how to travel smarter, better and cheaper. But that all changed just two short years ago.

10 SECRETS TO TRAVELING SMARTER, CHEAPER & LONGER | page 2

http://projectinspo.com/2014/02/coffee-for-a-change/


Who am I?

My name is Jinna and almost two years ago, I quit my corporate job in New York City to travel the world for the very first time.

I left my apartment, sold most of my belongings, and booked a one-way ticket to Europe with my camera, a backpack, and a life-sized cutout of my father’s photograph.

At 24 years old, I took the biggest risk of my life in response to the biggest loss in my life. And taking this risk was the catalyst in allowing me to live the life of my dreams.

http://projectinspo.com/2014/06/i-left-everything-to-travel-the-world-for-and-with-my-father/



I’m just a normal girl.

I didn’t come from a rich family. I worked hard to save my own money, and I never let my failures convince me to give up on my dreams.

And in two years since changing course, I’ve traveled to over 20 countries to collect stories and share them on Project Inspo.


I went from having no job, no apartment and no purpose - to creating a career for myself as a full-time travel photojournalist - with a platform to help bring more positivity into this beautiful world.

My work + story has been featured in Conde Nast Traveler, The Huffington Post, BBC World Radio, Yahoo, Time Magazine, CNN Travel, and hundreds of media outlets around the world.

And if I can travel the globe for smarter, cheaper, and longer - so can you.


And now I’m going to show you how I

scored the cheapest flights around the

world, and even traveled for free —

in as little as 3 months.


SECRET 1 .

Fly for free.


You could score a free flight, free hotel stays and tons of other perks by signing up for an airline miles rewards credit card.

Do a google search and you should find dozens of options, and almost all of them will offer a sign-up bonus upon approval.

This is where the free flight comes in.

When I signed up for my first airline miles rewards credit card, I had to spend $3,000 within 3 months in order to get 50,000 bonus points. Those 50,000 bonus points are now the equivalent of around $600 for a flight.

I just used some of those points to book a ticket to Spain. I got that flight for absolutely free.


Now, slow down. This is not an invitation to rack up credit card debt, making purchases you can’t actually afford.

I’m not going to tell you how to spend your money, but when I had to make that $3,000 minimum spending limit, I made d-mn sure that I could pay my bill off in full at the end of every month.

Okay, but who really wants to spend an extra $3,000 on top of everything else you’re already paying for? No one. I didn’t either. But I found a way around that.

I found a way to meet the spending requirement without actually

spending any additional money.

What if you could you pay your monthly rent and/or utility bills - payments you already make anyway - with your new credit card?


That’s exactly what I did in order to meet my spending minimum, without having to spend an extra $3,000 on stuff I didn’t need.

I used a third-party company called William Paid to use my credit card to pay my rent every month, for three months.

For a small fee, William Paid will send a check to your landlord (or anyone else) - qualifying those monthly expenses to contribute to meeting your monthly spending minimum.

So you won’t have to spend any additional money in those three months. You’re simply shifting money around strategically.

Instead of using your bank account or your debit card for purchases, use your credit card.

Boom.You now have 50,000 bonus points - around $600 - to use towards free flights. hotels.



SECRET 2 .

Take a trip when it’s not the busiest

time of year.


I know. You’ve got a busy schedule. And responsibilities.

It’s tough to take time off to travel. You’ve got to

get those vacations in when you can, right?

Well despite not having as much flexibility in your

life and/or work schedule, there are still smarter

ways to go about booking travel.

These are NOT some of those ways :

● Taking a fancy trip to the islands during the

holidays.

● Planning a quick getaway from home, flying

out on Friday and returning on Sunday.

● Traveling to Paris for a week with friends in

the summer.

You are guaranteed to overspend on your flights, food and hotels.

And it’s all because of your timing:

● Everyone else will be taking that same trip to

the islands during the holidays.

● Your flights will be dramatically more

expensive because everyone else will be

flying out on Friday and returning on

Sunday.

● And unless you like super crowded and

steamy streets - don’t visit Paris in the

summer.


Here’s how you can save money on those same trips :

● Take that fancy trip to the islands two weeks

before or after the holidays.

● Plan a quick long weekend getaway from

home, but fly out during the week and return

on Monday or Tuesday.

● Travel to Paris for a week with friends in the

spring or in autumn.

The smart thing to do is to research your

destination beforehand to find out when high

season is for that particular place - and plan to go

there before or after those months. Plan to travel

during shoulder seasons, or low season.


And because I love you, I did some of that research for you:

City

Best time to book

(weeks in advance)

Saving on avg flight

price

Cheapest month to

travel

Most expensive month to

travel

Malaga 7 12% January August

New York 18 9% February July

Barcelona 8 14% January August

Amsterdam 15 30% January August

Dublin 12 33% January August

London 2 24% May December

Bangkok 18 5% May December

Paris 17 25% January July

Dubai 20 9% November December

Orlando 7 8% May July

Rome 9 17% January August

Berlin 18 21% January August


City

Best time to book

(weeks in advance)


price

Cheapest month to

travel


travel

Madrid 18 27% January December

Edinburgh 13 24% January July

Lisbon 17 20% January August

Budapest 20 11% January August

Istanbul 19 21% November August

Prague 19 18% January August

Belfast 20 28% January December

Venice 9 17% January August

Milan 8 29% January July

Geneva 10 16% January July

Sydney 18 7% November July

Las Vegas 20 7% February July

Notice any trends here?


City

Best time to book

(weeks in advance)


price

Cheapest month to

travel


travel

Copenhagen 13 37% January July

Glasgow 5 26% November June

Paphos 3 6% January August

Nice 13 22% November March

Hong Kong 18 12% February July

Reykjavik 18 19% May July

Marrakech 16 15% January August

Murcia 8 11% April August

Luqa 7 10% January August

Munich 12 23% January September

Toronto 18 8% January July

Crete 18 6% April December

January is often cheapest month, and August the most expensive.



SECRET 3 .

Plan your dates around the

cheapest flights.

If you’re looking up flights on flashy third-party booking websites that you’ve seen commercials for on TV (Orbitz, Priceline, etc.) - you’re already making a mistake.

Instead, use search-friendly sites that let you see flight prices for the entire month, and even the entire year -- like Google Flights or SkyScanner.



Put in your starting and end destinations, enter in a

general date, then click on it.

A window will pop up, showing you the flight prices

for each day of the calendar year.

They even put the lowest price of the month in

green, so you can save almost $300 by flying on

Thursday, instead of Friday. That’s $300 in savings

to leave just one day later.

Using sites like these will allow you to plan ahead

of time, find the best days to fly for the cheapest

price, and eventually book the best flight deal.



SECRET 4 .

Travel somewhere that’s not so

d-mn expensive.

London? Paris? Geneva?

Chances are, you’ll end up spending way more money than just your flight when you get to bigger cities and popular tourist destinations.

Remember that your flight is not the only expense you have when traveling.

Think about the food, restaurants, exchange rate, inter-country travel (trains, metro) and activity fees (i.e. museum entry, etc.).

They say, “Don’t judge a book by its cover.”

Don’t choose a destination by the flight price.



When deciding on your next travel destination, start by cutting out places that are huge tourist destinations.

But don’t cut out a place just because of the cost it takes to get there.

It may be more expensive to fly from New York to Thailand, but the expenses that I would incur during my trip to Thailand would amount to a lot less than what I’d spend in Western Europe.

Cambodia, Thailand, Bulgaria, Hungary – these are just a very few of the countries around the world that are actually insanely cheap to visit.

P.S. This list of cheap destinations on Project Inspo was read by over a million people : 10 Of The Cheapest Countries To Travel To

http://projectinspo.com/2015/03/10-of-the-cheapest-countries-to-travel-to/




SECRET 5 .

Takepublic

transportation.

It’s almost unbelievable how much money you can save just by taking public transportation.

Avoid taxis. The price you’re paying on the meter is not only to get from point A to point B - but also for the convenience factor.

Taking the underground train (subway), or local buses can save you tons of money - money you can spend on other flights, better food or a few more glasses of wine.

I use the Google Maps mobile app to look up directions on how to get around using public transportation. It shows you schedules, various routes and estimated times of arrival. The GPS works even if you don’t have data.

P.S. If you simply can’t do the subway or bus - don’t hesitate to reach out to other travelers. If you’re headed to a popular destination for a day trip, or to the airport - ask other travelers if they’re headed the same way. See if they’d be interested in splitting the cost of a taxi or reserving a shuttle bus as a group.

Many companies offer shuttle buses to/from the airport, or to/from popular tourist areas and landmarks. It requires a minimum number of people - but it’s more convenient than a local bus, and cheaper than a taxi trip solo.



SECRET 6 .

Don’t make your bank any

richer.


I’m guilty of giving too much of my hard-earned money to my bank while traveling - through foreign exchange and ATM fees.

If you are in a relationship with a bank that charges you a ridiculous amount of money in foreign transaction and ATM fees, you need to break up with them.

I used to bank with Bank of America, and I was charged a $3-4 ATM fee on top of a 3% international transaction fee for every purchase. Every single purchase I made while traveling was more expensive than it had to be.

I did a bit of research, and found that there are banks out there that charge less in fees, or none at all. I chose to open up a bank checking account with Charles Schwab - they refund me every single ATM fee that I incur every month - and never charge me foreign transaction fees.

SECRET 7 .

Consider booking directly.



If there’s anything that hotel owners hate more than bed bugs -

it’s third-party booking sites.

Consider reaching out to hotels directly - you’d be surprised at how flexible and accommodating some places can be. Some owners may not charge you tax if you pay by cash, or offer a discounted rate if you stay for an extended period of time.

SECRET 8 .

Reprioritize your spending.



I felt like I never had enough money to travel because I never prioritized it.

I spent money on nice dinners out, new clothes,

modern furniture, a luxury apartment – the list

goes on. If I had an extra 300 dollars one month,

I’d splurge and ‘treat myself’ to buy a pair of shoes

at a department store - instead of thinking to book

a flight somewhere or save it for an upcoming

trip.

But two years ago, I decided to make a change.

I started to cut out all of the unnecessary

spending that would prevent my dream trip from

becoming a reality.

I started making travel a priority.

This consisted of the following day-to-day changes:

● No more eating out during the week, and buying groceries to cook dinner instead.

● No going out to get drinks and paying $14 a cocktail at a bar. I would buy a $10 bottle of wine and enjoy a quiet night inside with a friend or two. It was still just as much fun, I promise.

● No more buying unnecessary clothes or shoes I could barely walk in. I invested in items that were functional (i.e. could be worn on a glacier hike in Iceland) and necessary for my upcoming trip.

● No more taxi cabs, and more walking and taking the train instead.

● No more $5 lattes at Starbucks every morning – I made coffee at home and took it with me to work.


Take a deep look at how and where you spend your money on a weekly and/or monthly basis.

Do you go out to eat often? If so, how often? Is there a way to decrease that number? (The answer is yes.)

Do you spend a lot of money on clothing? Electronics? Do you really need that cable plan? Can you remember the last time you left on the lights before leaving the house, and can you remember to prevent that from happening?

Shave off your expenses, little by little, and track your spending. Hold yourself responsible for your unnecessary expenses. Save little by little.

Over time, you’ll turn that $5 saved here and there, into hundreds of dollars.

There are always going to be ways to save money – you simply have to reprioritize your spending. The more you stop spending on the things that you don’t really need, the more money you’ll have for your travels.


P.S.

No one likes spam, but it’s actually a good idea to

sign up for airline and hotel newsletters. They’ll

send you miles and/or flight deals that you would

have probably never known about otherwise.

Everything you buy should benefit your mileage account. Put everything on your credit card and avoid paying in cash whenever possible.

Most airlines have partnerships with major

retailers - Amazon, Best Buy, Target, etc. - and

shopping at these preferred airline stores can get

you more miles per dollar spent. You can rack up to

3,000 miles for spending $1,000 in one month.

More points means more miles. More miles

means more free flights.



SECRET 9 .

Live (and probably eat )

for free.


That’s right.

You could live abroad and meet people while exploring an exotically foreign or bustling new destination.

You can do this by trading labor for free accommodation and meals at a hostel.

Throughout my travels, I’ve met dozens of people - everyday people - volunteering to live for free.

You can teach yoga, take photographs, teach surfing, cook, work reception or bartend at hostels around the world - in exchange for free accommodation and free meals.

Approach a hostel manager and negotiate a deal to exchange work for your room (or bed). If they’re short of staff (as many places are), you can barter your labor for a free place to stay - and even a few free meals per day.


SECRET 10 .

Be flexible with your itinerary.


Don't forget about alternate airports.

In many cases - flying into alternate airports can

save you a lot of money. A large number of major

cities have more than one decently-sized airport.

Search for flights to these nearby gateways that

often offer lower airfares.

For example:

● New York: Newark vs. JFK

● Southern California: Long Beach vs. LAX

● London: Gatwick vs. Heathrow.

● Basque Country: Bilbao vs. Biarritz

Select the "All Airports" option shown on booking

and airline sites, including a city code instead of an

airport code to include these airports into your

search.


Take multiple flights instead of flying direct.

I wanted to fly from Bali to London, and the cheapest one-way flight I found was over $700.

I didn’t settle for this price. I knew find a way to get there for cheaper.

So I looked up a flight from Bali to Singapore - a major Southeast Asian hub. It was only $60.

Another quick search later - I found a flight from Singapore to London for $300 leaving the next morning.

I saved $340 on my airfare by booking two flights separately.

Sure, I had to spend a night in Singapore, but who would complain about that?


WHAT’S NEXT ?I just shared with you the secrets I’ve used to

travel the world for cheaper, smarter and longer. And if you found any of this

information helpful, you’ll find this and a h-ll of a lot more on Project Inspo.

50 CITIES YOU CAN TRAVEL TO

FOR UNDER $25/DAY

10 JOBS THAT WILL ACTUALLY

PAY YOU TO TRAVEL

THE WORLD’S BEST

DESTINATIONS FOR THE SOLO

TRAVELER

http://projectinspo.com

http://projectinspo.com/2016/08/50-cities-you-can-backpack-travel-for-under-25day/




http://projectinspo.com/2016/01/10-jobs-that-pay-you-to-travel/




http://projectinspo.com/2015/08/the-worlds-best-safest-destinations-for-the-solo-traveler/






“I urge you to travel - as far and as much as possible. Throw yourself out of your

comfort zone. Find out how other people live and realize that the world is a much bigger place than the town you live in.

And when you come home, home may still be the same. Yes, you may still go back to the same old job, but something in your

mind will have changed.

And trust me, that changes everything.”

JOIN US.INSTAGRAM | FACEBOOK


http://instagram.com/projectinspo

http://facebook.com/projectinspo

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smarter, ten traveling secrets to · 2016-09-16 · world. my work + story has been featured in...

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