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How To Plan A Holiday On A Budget

amomentwithfranca · 19 February 2018 · 23 Comments

This is a guest post written by Hannah from Last Stop Lunar called “How To Plan A Holiday On A Budget”. If you are interested in ideas or suggestions on how to save money when you are travelling with your little ones, you will find this post very useful.  If you would like to know more about Hannah and her blog, please scroll down to the bottom of this post where you can find her details, under “About the Author“.

How To Plan A Holiday On A Budget

Going on holiday is amazing. You get to enjoy the sun on your skin while spending quality time with the people you care about, whether that’s your friends, partner or kids. Notice how I said quality time, not quiet time.

But we all know that holidays can be very expensive. All-inclusive package deals to popular destinations can cost thousands. So, how do some people afford to go away all the time?

I’m here to tell you that you don’t have to blow your savings when you go on vacation. I travel a lot, but I always try and do it cheaply and have a set budget.

Here are my secrets on how to plan a holiday on a budget to make your money stretch further when you’re away.

Table of Contents

  • How To Plan A Holiday On A Budget: BEFORE YOU GO…
    • Use flight comparison sites
    • Be flexible with dates
    • Choose lesser known destinations
    • Fly from smaller airports
    • Try an Airbnb
  • How To Plan A Holiday On A Budget: WHEN YOU ARE THERE…
    • Make your own lunch
    • Plan excursions yourself
    • Visit restaurants away from the main road
    • Enjoy yourself!

How To Plan A Holiday On A Budget: BEFORE YOU GO…

Use flight comparison sites

Package holidays are great, but you can save big money if you buy flights, hotels and transfers separately online instead of through a travel agent. Start with your flights and use a comparison site like Skyscanner to get the cheapest deal.

Be flexible with dates

Flight prices vary massively due to peak dates and times. If you don’t have a specific date in mind you can check the whole month and see which date is cheaper to fly on (weekends are usually more expensive.)

Similarly, if you don’t mind waiting a few hours in the airport, you can knock money off by getting an indirect flight.

If you have kids and can only go on holiday at specific times of the year, aim towards the end of the summer holidays (last week of August or first week of September) or choose October half term.

Choose lesser known destinations

Popular destinations have higher price tags. Instead of choosing a place that everyone goes to, why not visit somewhere a little more undiscovered? If you’re visiting Europe there are hundreds of towns and cities that will be just as beautiful as the more widely known ones, but much cheaper. Think Navarre instead of Barcelona, or Croatia instead of Marbella.

Fly from smaller airports

Flying from smaller airports like Liverpool, instead of London, could make your flights cheaper. However, getting there and back needs sill to be taken into consideration.

Try an Airbnb

You don’t have to pay high prices at a hotel anymore; renting accommodation directly from a private host can work out much cheaper. I love Airbnb because it’s safe, easy to use and convenient.

Some of the most unique places I’ve stayed in have been Airbnb’s including a houseboat in Amsterdam, a medieval loft in Florence, and a poolside villa in Rhodes.

How To Plan A Holiday On A Budget: WHEN YOU ARE THERE…

 

Make your own lunch

Dining out three times a day can become very expensive, especially when you have fussy little mouths to feed. Go to a local supermarket when you arrive and stock up on essentials like bread, fruit and cereal to prepare your own breakfast and lunch.

Making your own breakfast and packed lunch on holiday may not sound ideal, but it will save you a fortune and keep everyone happy.

Alternatively, if you’re booking a hotel, see if there’s a breakfast option when you book. Many hotels include a continental breakfast in the cost of the room. You can fill your boots, stuff a bread roll or two in your bag, and be full for the rest of the day.

Plan excursions yourself

When you book an excursion you’re paying for the tour guide and the convenience. You can save money if you do your research and book things yourself. Booking in advance usually saves you money and you can avoid long queues. Look out for discounts (over 65 and under 26-year-olds often get into museums free) and free walking tours.

Visit restaurants away from the main road

You’ll get cheaper and more authentic food if you choose restaurants which are away from the main tourist strip. Places on the main road with English menus outside will often hike up the prices because they know they are catering to tourists.

Enjoy yourself!

Try not to be hard on yourself if you do go over your budget, or spend money on things you don’t need – sometimes you just need to eat expensive ice cream for breakfast

Do you also try to travel on a budget when travelling with your kids? What do you think of Hannah’s tips on how to plan a holiday on a budget? Do you have more tips that we could add to this list? You can find Hannah at Last Stop Lunar blog and you can also follow her on Twitter.

Last Stop Lunar is a brand new UK based travel blog.

For more holiday budget saving tips, check out this other post on 15 Tips On How To Travel On a Budget. You can might also be interested in more of our posts about Holidays.

Thanks for stopping by,

Love you all ❤️

Franca  💋

Related

Filed Under: Travel, Guest Posts, Holidays, Tips

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Emilie says

    19 February 2018 at

    Love this! I always end up spending a fortune even when I’m trying to keep to a budget!!
    Xx

    Reply
  2. Five in the hive says

    3 March 2018 at

    Some great tips there. We’ve been really lucky this year and grabbed a really good budget holiday. Like you say you just have to be flexible with dates and what airport you fly from. #KCACOLS

    Reply
    • amomentwithfranca says

      3 March 2018 at

      Exactly! That is a good way to start! 🙂 x

      Reply
  3. ERFmama says

    3 March 2018 at

    This is a brilliant post! I’m really hoping that this year we’ll be able to take a trip, so this post is filled with some awesome tips to help us that I had no idea about. 😀
    #KCACOLS

    Reply
    • amomentwithfranca says

      3 March 2018 at

      Great news! So happy you find it useful! 🙂 x

      Reply
  4. Lydia C. Lee says

    3 March 2018 at

    Great tips – we’ve done a lot of flights on scoot to singapore and then worked out where is cheap to fly to (we’re 5). So we’ve seen Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam and Malaysia that way. We just grab the sale fares into Singapore and then Tiger elsewhere…#KCACOLS

    Reply
    • amomentwithfranca says

      3 March 2018 at

      Oh I would love to visit all those plays too. I have been in Malaysia before but it is lovely so it is worth a second visit perhaps this time with my family too! 🙂 x

      Reply
  5. Tracey Bowden says

    4 March 2018 at

    These are great tips, we usually book all inclusive when we go abroad but when staying the UK we follow a lot of these tips #kcacols

    Reply
  6. Madeline (This Glorious Life) says

    4 March 2018 at

    Some really great tips here, especially about being flexible with the dates you travel and looking at flying from smaller airports. x #KCACOLS

    Reply
  7. Helen says

    4 March 2018 at

    I have just bookmarked skyscanner – can’t believe I didn’t know about this. Gives me an excuse to start planning my summer holiday, as I sit inside not wanting to venture out into the cold.

    #kcacols

    Reply
    • amomentwithfranca says

      4 March 2018 at

      Fantastic! 🙂 x

      Reply
  8. Becky @ Educating roversi says

    4 March 2018 at

    Great tips! We’ve just booked for July but I could have done with reading this before I did! Ha ha! Although we are limited because we are going with family for a wedding. #KCACOLS

    Reply
  9. Andrea @ topsy turvy tribe says

    4 March 2018 at

    Great tips that we already follow all of them. If we do stay in a hotel (very rare nowadays) we always go for the breakfast take out option and add a few bread rolls in to make lunch…doesn’t everyone!! #KCACOLS

    Reply
  10. Mummy Setra says

    4 March 2018 at

    Thanks – some really good tips! I’m lucky we can go out of term time as my little one is only 18 months. Need to make the most of that! #KCACOLS

    Reply
  11. Pen says

    4 March 2018 at

    I have never tried an AirBNB, but I know lots of people who have and it has always been great. Thanks Pen x #thesatsesh

    Reply
  12. Carol Cameleon says

    5 March 2018 at

    OOh expensive ice cream for breakfast… go on then! To be fair, we don’t travel much as a family, tending to stick to the old faithfuls but these tips are really handy. Definitely filling your boots at breakfast, that would be my top tip! Thanks for hosting #kcacols

    Reply
  13. Tubbs says

    5 March 2018 at

    We have family abroad so we’re able to stay with them which really helps cut costs but not everyone is so lucky. There are some great tips here. #KCACOLS

    Reply
  14. Sarah | Digital Motherhood says

    5 March 2018 at

    Great tips. I always use Skyscanner for finding cheaper flights. We’re staying in an Airbnb for the first time this summer! #KCACOLS

    Reply
    • amomentwithfranca says

      6 March 2018 at

      I want to do that too! 🙂 x

      Reply
  15. Christy says

    7 March 2018 at

    I’m always interested in finding out how to make my money go further and traveling has definitely risen in price since having to accomodate for our little one as well. I definitely agree with being flexible about dates – especially when your kids aren’t in school yet so you can still travel just outside the school dates to save money (and have a much quieter holiday!) #KCACOLS

    Reply
  16. Frankie says

    7 March 2018 at

    I haven’t tried Airbnb yet but it’s definitely on my to try list #KCACOLS

    Reply
  17. Bread says

    8 March 2018 at

    I definitely want to try an Ari BNB, having a kitchen would make a holiday so much easier. #kcacols

    Reply
  18. Stella Wilson says

    4 September 2020 at

    Thank you so much for sharing thesse holiday budget planning tips. I’ll definitely use them on my next travel planning.

    Reply

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Hi, I'm Franca, a lawyer mum of 2 gorgeous girls married to my best friend, living in London. Award nominated parenting & lifestyle blogger. Read More…

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