c/budget-travel-hacks

That $3 hostel breakfast in Prague cost me way more in the end

I booked a 13 euro a night hostel in Prague thinking I was being smart. Their breakfast was 3 euros extra so I tacked it on. Turned out it was just stale bread, watery jam, and instant coffee that gave me a headache. I ended up spending 8 euros at a bakery down the street just to actually eat. Lesson learned: never add the hostel breakfast, just walk a few blocks and find a real cafe. Has anyone else fallen for that cheap add-on trap?

My friend swore by Airbnb 'instant book' and it totally backfired

My buddy Jake told me last month to always use instant book on Airbnb to snag the cheapest spots before anyone else. I did that for a trip to Portland and ended up in a basement room with no windows and a moldy smell. The host canceled on me the day I arrived, and since it was instant book I couldn't get a full refund from Airbnb. I spent an extra $80 on a last minute hotel. Has anyone else gotten burned by this hack?

Lost $80 on a hostel booking I should have double checked

Last month I booked a hostel in Nashville through a third party site I'd never used before. The photos looked great and the price was $40 a night which seemed like a steal. When I showed up at 9pm, the place was closed down with a sign on the door saying they went out of business two weeks earlier. The third party site wouldn't refund me because they said the listing was active when I booked. Has anyone else gotten burned by booking through an unfamiliar site instead of just going direct?

Got stuck in a rainstorm in Nashville and found out motel 6 lets you check in at 6am for half price

PSA: Paid $40 for a 'local guide' in Rome and got a map from 2017

I went to Rome last month and paid $40 to one of those guys with a stand near the Colosseum, figured I'd support local and get real tips. The map he gave me had restaurants that were closed for years and a bus route that didn't exist anymore. Has anyone else gotten ripped off by these sidewalk tour sellers?

Can we talk about booking "alternative" airports instead of the main one?

Used to just plug my destination city into Google Flights and grab the cheapest. Then last year I flew into Chicago O'Hare and spent $60 on a shuttle to get to my actual suburb on the south side. Now I check every tiny airport within 60 miles. Flying into Midway or even Gary, Indiana saved me $110 on a trip to visit family in Joliet. Anyone else do the weird airport thing or am I just overthinking this?

Spent $12 on a bus from Medellin to Guatapé and the driver stopped at a random fruit stand for 45 minutes

Everyone else on the bus just bought mangos and chatted while I sat there panicking about missing the boat tour I booked, but turns out the driver knew the road was closed ahead so he waited out the construction and we all got there fine, has anyone else had a bus driver just nope out and improvise a detour like that?

Changed my mind about hostel dorms after spending $47 in Medellin

I always booked private rooms because I figured dorms would be loud and gross. Last month I paid $47 for a 3-night stay in a 6-bed dorm at a place in Medellin and met three people who shared tips that saved me about $80 total on tours. Has anyone else had a cheap dorm stay change their whole approach to accommodation?

TIL you can save $200 by booking a flight with a hidden city ticket

I was looking at flights last night for a trip to Chicago next month. Found this article on some travel blog about hidden city ticketing. Basically you book a flight that has a layover in the city you actually want to go to and just get off there. It's cheaper than booking direct. Example the flight to Denver with a stop in Chicago was $180 cheaper than just flying straight to Chicago from my airport. I'm kinda blown away. Is this actually legit or do airlines ban you for doing it?

Disagree that hostels always beat hotels for solo budget trips

After a friend told me 'you're wasting money on private rooms, just stay in dorms', I tried it for a 5-day trip to Portland last fall. But I lost 2 hours each night waiting for people to quiet down, and my earplugs barely helped. I spent $38 a night at a hostel but ended up buying $12 coffees just to function the next morning. Now I book budget hotels outside the city center for around $50 a night instead. Has anyone else found that the social cost of hostels adds up more than they thought?

Found a way to get $15 hostel beds in Paris during peak season

I was stuck paying $50 a night for hostels in Paris last summer until I started booking 48 hours before check-in instead of months ahead. Hostels drop their leftover inventory for basically nothing to fill beds, and I grabbed a spot near Montmartre for $15 that normally goes for $45. Has anyone else tested this last minute booking trick in other expensive cities?

Just realized I was paying $45 a year for hotel wifi when I could have been tethering off my phone the whole time

After 5 trips I finally noticed my phone data plan includes 10GB of hotspot that I never used, and that $45 per trip for wifi at budget hotels could have been zero if I just clicked one button.

Thought that 'skip the hotel, stay at a hostel' advice was overhyped for years

Tbh I always figured hostels were just for college kids who didn't mind sleeping in a room with 10 strangers. But I tried one in Portland last spring because a hotel was gonna run me $200 a night. Ended up paying $45 for a private room with a shared bathroom and the front desk guy gave me a map of free walking tours and cheap food spots. Saved like $80 over two days and met someone who knew a back way into the Japanese Garden without the entrance fee. Has anyone else had a cheap overnight setup totally change how they see a city?

My go-to travel pouch broke open in a Berlin train station last Tuesday

I had this little nylon pouch I've used for 4 years to hold my passport and cards. The zipper gave out completely while I was switching trains at Berlin Hauptbahnhof. I scrambled to grab everything before it scattered across the platform. Now I'm stuck using a plastic baggie until I find a replacement. Anyone found a decent travel organizer under $15 that actually holds up?

Found a $3 meal spot in Oaxaca that changed my travel budget

I was wandering around the markets in Oaxaca City last month and stumbled on this tiny comedor where locals eat. They served a full plate of tlayudas with beans and salsa for just 30 pesos (about $3 US). Has anyone else found a food spot like that where the prices were way lower than the tourist areas?

Had a hostel worker in Bangkok show me a way to save on laundry that I never thought of

I was staying at this cheap spot near Khao San Road and the laundry service cost more than my bed for the night. This local worker pulled me aside and told me to just hand wash stuff in the sink with dish soap and hang it on the fan. Anyone else got a weird money saving trick from a random stranger while traveling?

Everyone swears by hostel dorms but I just had $40 stolen from my bag in Berlin

It happened three weeks ago at a hostel in Kreuzberg. I locked my daypack in the locker but forgot the padlock only secures the zipper not the whole thing. Someone just unzipped it took the cash from my inner pocket and zipped it back like nothing happened. The front desk shrugged and said it's on me for not using their rental lock. Am I crazy for thinking budget travel shouldn't mean expecting to get robbed? Any tips on better ways to keep small cash safe in a dorm without a real lock?

I was dead wrong about those flight error fare sites

Thought they were all scams until I snagged a round trip to Dublin for $180 last month, taxes included. Anybody else have a surprise win with a janky-looking deal site?

Got scammed by a fake hostel booking site in Prague

I booked a "private room" for $35 a night through some site that looked official. Showed up and it was a closet with a mattress on the floor. How do you guys tell real hostel sites from the fake ones?

Tried staying in hostels for a month instead of hotels - here's what changed

I spent June bouncing between hostels in six cities across Spain and Portugal. My nightly average dropped from $85 to $22, but the real difference was having to pack light and wash my own sheets every few days. The kicker? I met more locals in hostel common rooms than I ever did sitting alone in a hotel lobby bar. Anyone else find that hostels force you into a more genuine travel experience, or am I just getting cheap in my old age?

Couchsurfing beat every hostel I tried across Europe last June

Paid $0 for 12 nights in Budapest alone and got home cooked meals from locals which hostels charging me $35 a bunk never offered, so why do people still swear by hostels?

Got stuck in Rome for 6 hours because I booked a flight with a 45 minute layover in Munich

Last spring I was flying from Naples to New York and the cheapest option had me changing planes in Munich with only 45 minutes between flights. I thought I could make it work. Well the Naples flight left 20 minutes late and by the time I got off the plane in Munich my gate was already closed. They put me on the next flight out which was 6 hours later. I spent those hours sitting on the floor near a pretzel stand. Now I never book a connection under 90 minutes for international flights. Has anyone else had a tight layover go bad like this?

Spent two months booking hostels through the wrong app and lost $80 in fees

I kept using a generic booking site for hostels in Thailand last summer and paid an extra $12 per night in hidden service charges. After 7 hostels, my buddy showed me how Hostelworld actually compares prices and has free cancellation on most places. Anyone else find out they were overpaying through the wrong platform and switch to a better one?

Stop booking hostels through big travel sites, you're paying a 20% markup

I compared 10 hostels in Barcelona last week and the official site was always cheaper than Booking.com or Hostelworld, so why does everyone keep using those sites and then complaining about not having enough cash for tapas?

Backpack vs. wheeled luggage for budget Europe trip?

I'm heading to Spain for 10 days this fall and I can't decide between bringing my 40L backpack or a small wheeled suitcase. I've read that backpack saves you money on bus/train fees since you can walk everywhere, but I've also heard cobblestone streets in places like Seville wreck wheels fast. Last time I carried a backpack through Madrid in August and my shoulders were toast by day 3. What's your experience been with luggage choice and actually saving cash on transport?