SWG2L: Working On My Travel Budget

This post contains a lot more detailed information than usual and is, in fact, supplemental to a previous post of mine. Read this new post if you're interested in learning where to trim.

The moral of the story is: research, research, research.

The other moral is to not give away your moral before people have heard the story. I obviously ignored that one.

I decided to do some number crunching today. (Imagine that -- me opting to crunch numbers. Who'da thunk it.) It didn't take long for me to realize that a) I am my mother's daughter, and b) that makes going on vacation much more affordable.

When I started thinking about going to England, I budgeted a fair chunk of change, figuring for a huge plane ticket, a train pass for the week, and six nights in a hotel. I had no idea what to truly expect when it first occurred to me that I could actually take this trip.

Then the whittling process started.

I waited to buy my plane ticket ... First, because the sticker shock of my initial price check was rather extreme. Then I wasn't sure what days I would be going. After some unnecessarily long deliberation, I decided to fly in and out on weekdays -- and just like that my plane ticket dropped by about 30%. Then, I stalled just a bit longer -- long enough for the price of tickets to freefall for a bit. When I finally bought it, it was well below half of what I originally expected ... and best of all, that was when I bought the ticket with my preferred carrier instead of the cheapest option.

The next step: hotels.

The first issue was solved without my help: while I'm in Derby for the wedding, I'll have a place to stay. (Have I mentioned how awesome Anya is? Because she's awesome.) I think I'll pay for a part of a hotel room one night; the other two nights I'm staying at the house of friends of the groom's.

It's a good thing I don’t have major issues with strangers. Hopefully that's mutual.

Then, I started looking at hotels in Bath and London, where I'll be the other three nights. It was here that I learned that Expedia was my friend. Did you know you can get discounts if you book more than one night -- and for that matter, if you book more than one hotel?

I was already using Expedia for my plane ticket, so it seemed like a natural choice for my hotel reservations. Wouldn't you know, I can get special miles with the right chain and special rates with so many nights. It worked like a dream.

Compared to the hotels' websites, I'm saving about 20% from their advanced reservation rates (which are in turn lower than their walk-in rates -- which I'd rather not think about).

And then, the fun part. Transportation while I'm there.

There was no way -- NO WAY -- I was renting a car. No way. I'm not 25 yet and I don't want to drive on the left side of the road. But six months ago, I somehow knew they had a pretty good rail system so I started digging around for prices.

The first time I found one -- for a pass I could use all week, whenever -- I nearly cried. Expensive. Convenient, but holy cow.

I budgeted with that in mind. Then I met the Brit.

The Brit is a visiting engineer working out of our office for a year on a specific project so that his engineering firm has someone on-site and in the country for meetings. Lucky for me they posted him here; not only is he a lot of fun, the Brit is a train geek.

I sent him my itinerary and he checked his usual websites for prices, then sat down with me and told me where the best tickets could be found, where I would pick them up, and most humorously, how to handle myself on a train. (Turns out if I ask someone to get out of my seat, I'll give myself away as not British.)

Given this help (and after some credit card issues that managed to resolve themselves in less than thirty seconds once I knew what the issue was), I bought advance tickets. Now I'm committed to certain trains, but since I'll mostly be on my own that's perfectly fine.

The best part? I paid less than 25% of my original budgeted price (even threw in one first-class ticket for my own amusement), and something like 20% of what I would have paid if I bought each ticket individually at the station.

I'm guessing my meal allotment is about the same, and the "extra" money I tossed in stays as it is. Altogether, I'm looking at spending about half of my original budget.

I have to admit -- I feel mildly triumphant.

The lessons learned?

Get organized. Having a "where I'm landing that night" plan is almost necessary on a trip of this size and purpose. (If I were backpacking across Europe, the rules would be different.) I have a lot of confirmation numbers to keep track of, and you can bet that I'll have them listed in several places. There's a lot of room for spontaneity in my trip, but there are things I have to stick with, too.

Budget first, then figure out what fits. Don't go crazy trying to get the best of everything; sometimes it's those out-of-the-way places that'll win you over. At the same time, don't be afraid to treat yourself a little if you have the budget space. I got that one first-class ticket because it was just a few dollars more and I'm spending eight hours on a plane right before I get on that train. By the time I bought it, I was so far below budget that the few dollars were insignificant -- and I'm pretty sure my body will appreciate a slightly more cushioned seat.

Don't overlook seemingly minor details. Is there somewhere in particular you're dying to go? Find out the hours of operation so you don't miss it. Routes you already know you'll take? Tickets for almost anything -- planes, trains, buses, even some museums -- are cheaper in advance. For instance, I got one particular train ticket in advance -- a short trip, a frequently run train, one I certainly didn't need to buy early -- for about twenty dollars US. The same ticket at the station? $95. Yeah.

Always, ALWAYS look at all possible options. Sometimes you can find some sweet deals for things you might not always be able to afford otherwise. Abuse the Internet -- it was made for this kind of thing.

Get help! I struck gold when the Brit moved here, but there are about half a dozen other people who have given me valuable advice and let me buy their English pounds off them (now I have some cash before I get there -- very convenient). I have insight now on what museums to catch and which to simply walk past and take pictures.

Don't plan every second. This one might look familiar -- it's my biggest travel tip. If you have every last second planned, you'll miss out on the fun, random things that come up -- and odds are good you'll rush through other things you've planned. Don't do that to yourself. Figure out what you can't live without seeing and work around those. (Another for instance -- I got a different train ticket so I can go to the Jane Austen Center in Bath. Yeah. That important. However, I have no concrete plans for my days in London -- just a list of suggestions of places to see.)

There's no foolproof way to make sure your trip goes off without a hitch -- as I'm sure I'll learn. But there are things that can make it easier to enjoy, and they're well worth the effort!

With that, I need to get back to all of my other prep. Happy trails!