Be a tourist in your local area
Ok, so this may sound like a cop-out, but bare with me. Have you actually visited the “tourist sites” in your area? I recently went on my local tourist office website and was really quite surprised at how many really cool looking places there were to visit that I had never heard of and great sounding walks. You get the bonus of seeing new places without the added costs of flights and hotels.
Make the most of bank holidays and long weekends Instead of a heavy night drinking and a 2-day hangover, or using your weekend to plough through domestic chores, book a long weekend break somewhere. Anywhere. Just get out there and do something. Go and see somewhere new and make the most of that extra day off!
Be open to visiting less-touristy destinations
If you are happy to go wherever you can find a good deal, you’ll find lots of great places to explore that you might have never considered otherwise. We recently went to Rotterdam for a long weekend. Why Rotterdam? Because the flights were really cheap and we could fly out on Friday and home on Sunday. It might not be a tourist hub, but it was still an adventure, wandering around a new city and taking in the sights.
Save up your holiday days
Most people get 4 or 5 weeks of holiday each year. If you can resist going on smaller holidays during the year and your employer allows, why not save up your holiday days and take one long holiday. Taking off longer means you can consider a long haul trip and you’ll be able to experience so much more.
Changing Jobs? Leave a travel break in between
If you’re looking at changing jobs, why not plan a small trip after you leave your old job. If you’re in a career that you don’t really love, then this can be a great opportunity to step back and get some perspective on things.
Weekend Warriors
Make the most of your weekends. Resist the urge to veg out on the sofa. Get your weekly to-do list items checked off during the week and when Friday rolls around you’re ready to head off on your next mini-adventure. Jump in the car and drive to somewhere. Road trips are a great way to see places without having to leave your own country. Just remember to give yourself the odd weekend off to just relax and chill.
Become A Savvy Shopper (and Saver)
If you really want to travel to more places, unsubscribe from all of those online retailer newsletters, cancel your Netflix subscription and sign up for airlines and holiday companies. Resisting the urge to impulse buy online and saving your money means that when a great last minute break deal comes up or an airline puts flights on sale, you’ll be able to grab that great deal. Make sure you sign up for hotel and airport loyalty schemes too. You can sometimes earn enough points on a long haul flight to buy you a free (or stupidly cheap) domestic or short haul flight at a later date.
Travel With Friends or Family
Instead of spending your precious holiday days visiting friends or family, why not try to organise a holiday together? You get to catch up with everyone and you get a real holiday too. Win-Win!
Plan Your Holidays Strategically
Make your holiday days go further by planning your trips over national holidays. You’ll end up using less of your holiday allocation, meaning you have a few extra days for a long weekend later in the year.
Add Extra Days To Work Trips
If you are in a job where you get to travel, ask if you can take a couple of extra days off before or after your work engagement. The cost of the travel tickets should be the same for the company, so all you’ll need to cover is your accommodation and expenses on those extra days that you are there.
Go and see the world!
P.S. Would you like to improve your travel photography? Do you look at other people’s holiday photos and wish you could have something similar?
I’ve written an online course to teach you how to take better travel photos, whether you’re travelling close to home or thousands of miles, and it’s currently on sale for just €9, reduced from €29. Sign up today, and start learning how to take images that you’ll want to share with the world!
