Last updated on March 31st, 2024 at 08:50 pm
The azure waters surrounding the beaches on Fiji. The spectacular seascapes pummeling the shores of South Africa. The hauntingly beautiful contrasts of sea, sky, and mountain in Greece. We’ve all thought about getting away to these places and more — but the costs hold many of us back.
Is there a better way? Yes! Here’s a collection of travel tips that could save you thousands of dollars and make your travel dreams come true.
From DC to Abu Dhabi to Cape Town to Athens for $571! Here’s how we did it!
In 2015 we flew from Dulles International Airport (IAD), to Abu Dhabi, to Cape Town, South Africa, and then on to Athens, Greece — all for $571 per person! How did we do it?
Travel Tip #1: Buy Flight Tickets 60-90 Days Before You Travel
You know the story here: airlines discount their tickets for early buyers but raise prices as the time to travel draws nearer. By buying 90 days ahead of time, you’ll find a window here and there for one day with ultra low discounts on airfares.
Travel Tip #2: Book one-way flights
Look, if you’re reading this post, chances are you are a rover or interested in becoming one. Rovers ROVE! Why buy return trip tickets when you book? You know you’re going to wander. Leave yourself open to your nomadic lifestyle. It’s almost always cheaper to fly one-way just about anywhere (there are some notable exceptions to this “rule”). Only ONCE in 2015 did we book a round-trip airfare. And that was because the cost of a particular route with one airline was cheaper round-trip than it was one-way! We got a “free” flight back to our point of origin!
Travel Tip #3: Book multiple segments over time
This is probably THE biggest tip in this series. Book your flights with breaks of 3 weeks or more between each segment to different countries. This lowers your flight costs for reasons we’re not quite sure about. It might be they calculate your airfare based on the time you’ll spend at a destination. Or it could have something to do with the airlines lead generation and profit sharing with partners at destinations. Or it simply could involve prices changing as seasons change over time.
Travel Tip #4: Travel off-season
For us, as rovers, we find this to be the best time to travel just about anywhere. The service is better, the prices are lower, business owners are less harried and accessible to sit-down talks, and, we find we have more time to spend interviewing locals and travelers for our stories. And we get the best pictures and videos when tourists are not around!
For example, in February 2015 we couldn’t find a reasonably priced hotel in the Cape Town area. So we turned to AirBnB. One owner told us their unit was no longer available but volunteered that she owned a hotel in Somerset West that was closing for the season. We ended up getting a $480 per night, two bedroom, penthouse suite for $40 a night for 6 weeks! The 180° panoramic views from Strand to Cape Town were stunning.
Two oceans were before us! With the keys to the hotel and the private parking lot, we were among two other occupants in the hotel for the winter months.
We have many more tips to share. Stay with us here on RoverTreks and you won’t miss one of them!
Until next time … Tom @ RoverTreks