When you’re on a budget, making a travel plan can be time-consuming. You may spend hours searching for a cheap flight, hotel, and car rental, not to mention identifying low-cost or free things to do once you’ve arrived at your vacation destination.
Our budget vacation planning guide is here to help! We’ve gathered the best travel budgeting tips to help you create a vacation budget, identify the best deals for travel and accommodations, and even share the best low-cost getaways to help you save money on travel. Whether you’re going to Disney World for summer vacation or cross-country for a road trip, here are 8 vacation planning tips.
The first tip we’re offering is the one that all other tips will build upon. You can’t travel on a budget without a trip budget, so that’s where you should begin.
The budgeting process should start with a review of your savings and your regular family budget. If you’ve already got vacation savings, then you know what you can spend. On the other hand, you may decide on a total spending amount and then create a saving schedule to reach your goal.
Your vacation cost breakdown should include all trip expenses, including:Affordable travel planning is successful only when you take everything into consideration, and add it to your budget.
One of the best ways to be budget travelers is to choose a budget-friendly destination. Keep in mind that the best cheap destinations may offer significant savings on many of the costs that you’ll encounter during your trip.
Here are some of the most affordable vacation destinations in 2025. We’ve included both domestic and international options.
Some quick online research can help you get a handle on how much each popular destination might cost to visit.
Signing up for a rewards credit card can help you accrue points or miles to put toward your trip expenses and earn rewards while you’re on vacation. Many people like to use travel rewards cards for this reason.
Depending on where you’re going, you may prefer a card that offers points or cash back in every category, including things like restaurants, gas, and retail shopping.
If you want to know how to decrease travel costs, one of the best things to do is to take advantage of last-minute travel deals and other savings opportunities. Here are some things to try:
Pick travel dates in the off season for lower overall costs and fewer crowds.
Consider alternative airports, since fares may be more affordable from some locations than others.
Take advantage of sites like Going.com, where you can enter your starting point and get recommendations for affordable destinations.
Look into accommodations that are near, but not in, your destination.
For example, if you’re flying from Chicago to London, you could save by traveling during the off-season—especially if you don’t mind a little rain. Choosing to depart from Midway instead of O’Hare, flying into Gatwick instead of Heathrow, and staying just outside the city can all help cut costs. You get the idea!
You should also consider opting for travel insurance. While it might be a little more expensive up front, it can help you get your money back if the unexpected should happen and you have to cancel at the last minute.
If you decide on a destination early, you can take advantage of travel apps to help you keep an eye on prices and buy when costs are at their lowest.
Some apps to try include Kayak, Google Flights, or Skyscanner, or an app for a specific airline. You can set up parameters to be notified when prices change, something that makes it easy to find the most affordable tickets possible. Many of these budget traveler websites also let you build a vacation package to save money by bundling your flight, hotel, and car rental.
While the often-repeated hack of searching for a flight in an incognito tab has been debunked, there may be benefits to using a VPN to plan your next trip.
The cost of accommodations can add up quickly, particularly if you’re in a popular tourist destination or major city.
Using a site or app that aggregates hotel room prices and availability can save you a significant amount on your trip. Examples include Google Hotels, Booking.com, or HotelsCombined.com, all of which have been highly rated by Frommer's.
Of course, if you’re a member of a hotel chain rewards program, that may be your best bet. Keep in mind what we mentioned above: staying in a suburb or another location close to your main destination can help you save money, too.
A vacation rental is still popular, so make sure to check Airbnb or VRBO before you book. They may cost substantially less money if you have a large group that would require you to reserve multiple hotel rooms.
Finally, don’t overspend on a hotel you won’t fully use. If you’re only planning to be there to sleep and get ready for the day, there’s no need to splurge on a place with fancy amenities. As long as it’s clean, safe, and comfortable, you’re good to go.
Eating every meal out can quickly become a large expense, so one of the best budget travel hacks we know is to choose accommodations with a kitchen and cook some of your meals there.
There are a lot of motels and hotels that come with a kitchenette and refrigerator. If you choose an Airbnb rental, you’ll almost certainly have a full kitchen and plenty of food storage. Either way, you can then scope out the most affordable groceries in the area to lower this particular travel expense.
In terms of eating out, a related suggestion is to eat like the locals. Ask people you meet where they like to grab a meal, as these will often be the most affordable (and delicious) places to try the local cuisine.
What we like about this hack is that you can still splurge on one or two nice restaurant meals without breaking your travel budget.
Our final budget vacation tip is to plan ahead and find some low cost or free vacation activities that will keep you entertained without overspending.
Let’s start with some things that might be free. A lot of museums don’t charge admission at all, or request a donation of any amount instead of an admission fee. The same is true of art galleries, castles, ruins, and other historical landmarks.
A lot of cities offer free walking tours, and these provide a terrific way to learn your way around as well as a little about your destination’s history. If you’re in an area with walking trails and other natural attractions, these are often free, too.
If you’re looking for low cost or discounted activities, you might want to consider purchasing a city tourism card or coupon book. They often provide discounts for tourist attractions, transportation, and restaurants.
Even with a vacation budget and the best intentions, you may be tempted to spend more than you planned during your travels. Here are some of our best tips to help you avoid overspending:
These things are all easy to do and can help you create and stick to a budget while still having a wonderful travel experience!
Vacationing can be expensive, but our 8 budget travel tips can help you plan ahead, create a budget, and enjoy your dream trip—without the stress of overspending or coming home to debt.
To make budgeting for travel (and everyday life) even easier, download our free Smart Budgeting Toolkit. It’s packed with helpful templates and tips to keep your finances on track while you save for your next getaway.
One way to start planning for your next trip is to open a vacation savings account where you can work toward a savings goal and be sure to have the money you need when it’s time to travel.
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