8 Great Travel Hacks for Happy Travelers • McCool Travel
Table of Contents
My favorite Great Travel Hacks for Happy Travelers help create the best possible vacation experience while saving you money, time, and stress for every trip.
The most popular meaning of Travel Hacking is enjoy amazing travel experiences at no cost or by spending as little money as possible. To me, the best travel hacks create the best possible vacation. That can mean avoiding crowds, enjoying unique travel adventures, or just doing whatever you want to do (and not what some article tells you to do).
Please use these travel hacks for happy travelers serve as a template or as a guideline. Incorporate these powerful travel hacks into your routine one at a time or all at once, right away or over time. No one formula fits all persons or travel situations.
1. Spend Less, Be Happy
Happy travelers use discount codes to save money on travel bookings. From AAA and AARP for lodging and car rentals to Groupon and Entertainment for dining, you might have access to dozens of discount codes.
On a recent trip, I rented a car for two weeks through Costco Travel and the rate was 60% lower than any other discount code I tried. Yes, 60% lower!
Where can you find sneaky discount codes for great travel hacks? One of my sources is the FlyerTalk Forums.
2. Lighten Your Load and Save Money, Time, and Stress
One of my favorite great travel hacks is very simple and will instantly save you money, time, and stress. Pack light! Bring less stuff on trips and reduce financial expense, physical stress, and emotional anguish.
By packing light, you can more easily navigate interesting cobblestone streets and alleys of Asia and Europe, fit in at most destinations, and be a happier traveler. Be a carryon traveler and experience no more lost, stolen, damaged, or delayed baggage!
>>> For more travel hacks for happy travel, see Habits of Happy Travelers
3. Free Lodging: Travel Hacks to Save Money
Lodging is typically one of the biggest travel budget items. Besides staying with friends, other free lodging opportunities include camping, Couchsurfing, house swapping, house sitting, volunteering, working (on a farm or hostel, operating a lighthouse, helping resorts clean up during offseason), and using points (see below).
4. Lodging Amenities
On the other hand, when paying for lodging, make sure you get the most bang for your buck. Booking hotels with complimentary breakfast really helps slash your dining costs.
Reserve hotel suites (with at least a micro fridge and microwave) and buy some groceries at a local store. Both options help you control your budget and what you eat. I like vacation rentals—which could be a house, apartment, condo, boat, castle—because they usually offer more space, privacy, and amenities than hotels.
5. Earn Points: Travel Hack to Save Money
Points are the modern travel currency. Earn points for everyday purchases in addition to travel. In fact, shift your current spending to a points-earning credit card and you might earn free travel without spending extra money.
Sweet deal, right? There are even multi-day conferences devoted to optimizing travel points. The motto for one conference, FTU, is “Learn, Earn, and Burn.” P.S. another points hacking term is churn, so add that to this list! In addition to earning points, many credit cards provide special benefits like early boarding, upgrades, or free checked bags.
>>> For more happy travel hack techniques, please see Decisions to Help You Travel Happy
6. Be Special
One of my favorite travel hacks is free and simple. On flights with complimentary meal service, pre-order a special meal. Special meals are made by hand, rather than machine, and you eat relatively fresh food. A bonus is that special meals are often served first.
Make sure you reserve your special meal at least 24 hours before your flight.
7. Book Your Trip, Then Watch
AutoSlash is a powerful tool for car rentals. Use your discount codes to find the best car rental deal—see my car rental tips), register your rental details with AutoSlash, and they continue to look for better deals.
I have saved hundreds of dollars this way—plus saved a lot of time because I am not continually rechecking rates. It is done for me. Automatically. For FREE! There are similar resources for hotels.
>>> For road trip travel hacks, see the article Road Trip Habits
8. Use a Travel Professional
The best travel hack on this list might be to hire an experienced travel professional to find great travel hacks for you. Especially when your time is limited, letting someone else do complex trip planning for you may make sense.
Great travel agents, travel advisors, and other travel booking pros (ask around for recommendations) might know some great travel hacks but they will certainly save you time.
Do you use any great travel hacks not included on this list? Let me know.
Like this McCool Travel article? Please click below to add it to your favorite Pinterest board for reference later.
