Planning a trip this summer? Short on cash? Here’s a quick guide to make sure you get the biggest bang for your buck.

1. Shop Around.

Sometimes the so-called “value” sites like Travelocity, Expedia, and Orbitz will give you the best price for plane tickets, but often these sites have been paid by airlines and hotels to promote their fares and rooms above all others, even if they aren’t necessarily the best deals.

Instead, use an aggregator like Momondo or Kayak that searches literally hundreds of travel websites in order to find you the best deal. These sites also feature flights from smaller airlines and airlines like Southwest that don’t actively participate in online travel booking sites. Also, aggregators don’t collect a fee like most value travel sites.

2. Going to a big city? Skip the Hotel.

If your vacation plans are to live it up in the lap of luxury at an expensive hotel, then obviously these alternatives are not for you, but if you are looking to have some money left over once you’ve booked your flight and paid for your hotel, you should look into these options. Read More »

Some of us might still be seeing snow outside our dorm windows, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t start getting ready for our spring break getaways. Planning now provides more time to find good deals and makes for less scheduling stress as the departure date draws nearer.

Here are some travel tips to keep in mind:

Students can get cheaper airfare and train tickets than older adults by using travel web sites aimed at youth. StudentUniverse is a fantastic resource that provides young people with heavily discounted plane tickets as long as riders are enrolled at least part time at a college. The European railway, Eurail, also offers student fares. A spring break tour of France and Italy is only $250.

If planning to leave the country for spring break, don’t forget about getting a passport. It takes four to six weeks to process the order, so make sure to plan ahead so you get your passport in time to start getting those fancy stamps. Passports cost $97 unless travelers procrastinate. Expedited orders can jump to nearly double that price.

Then there is always the question of where to stay when we get to the exotic locations. Many of us might pony up for nice, or at least decent, hotels. However, youth hostels can be a very economically friendly and fun option. Read More »