18 Travel Hacks That Save Time & Money (#12 is the Most Beneficial)

Whether domestically or internationally, traveling is a hobby of everyone. Exploring unknown places is fun. It provides you an opportunity to explore different cultures and art festivals happening around the world. You meet new people, make friends, learn about their lifestyle, cuisines, and a lot more. Overall, traveling is an amazing experience that everyone should have.

Maybe you are looking for beach travel destinations or a family place to spend quality time with your loved ones, make sure that you do smart savings when booking tickets. You are planning to have a relaxing time with your family and booked a hotel or resort in a beautiful location.

Later, you get to know that you paid a much higher price than usual for the flight tickets. How will you react to it? You will feel sad and angry. But there’s nothing you can do now. So how about knowing a few travel hacks to enjoy a vacation in a better way?

Know how you can travel and book hotels at a lower price, get a personal travel guide, and more. But before that, keep these important things in mind if you are traveling to unknown places. Check out amazing travel hacks to save time, money, and space.

Brilliant Travel Hacks You Wished You Knew Earlier

1. Download Google Maps to Use it Offline on Mobile

One of the easiest ways to get directions to any place is Google maps. If you have space on your phone, download Google maps, and later use it offline to reach any destination. All you have to do is to add the location you want to go and then type Ok map into the search box and then download it.

You can’t use a Wi-fi connection while exploring the places. Use the latest version of Google maps that allows you to save the map on the phone and use it later. I never knew that maps could also be used offline.

2. Save on Travel Booking

Not every travel website, but many websites give free cashback on booking the tickets. Search for the websites that are partnered with popular travel websites and earn cashback.

In other words, you are getting discounts for travel booking. Make sure that you check the website is authenticated and has good reviews.

3. Keep a Dryer Sheet to Keep Your Clothes Fresh

You don’t wash your clothes on your trips, but keep extra clothes in the long run. Keeping the worn clothes in the suitcase make the suitcase dirty. Also, it spreads the smell everywhere.

For the next time, if you are going for a long trip, keep a dryer sheet in the suitcase so that the whole bag doesn’t smell. Alternatively, you can also keep soap in the bag for fragrance.

4. Put Rechargeable Batteries in the Fridge to Retain Charge

This might sound weird, but it is the most helpful travel hacks on the list. If you are taking a camera along with you, make sure that you keep rechargeable batteries in the bag.

Keep the batteries in the fridge. This way, batteries retain 90% of their charge, and you don’t need to charge them repeatedly on the trip. When kept in cold temperatures, batteries retain charge for longer.

5. Ask for Late Checkout

Ask at reception, what’s the last time to check out tomorrow. If you will ask the time to leave, then they would tell you to leave before their time.  So, ask about the last time and later for an extra hour.

If you are respectful during the conversation, you can get an extra hour plus other upgrades. You don’t have to be a member of the hotel to get this. Be respectful and nice, and you can get premium offers.

6. Roll Your Clothes Instead of Folding

Rolling allows more space and to fit more things. Do not fold your clothes but roll them like a tube and arrange them in the suitcase. This will save space and also stop wrinkles. You can also roll your UGs into clothes for more space.

Do you like this travel hack? Try it next time when you have more clothes but less space. This hack is easy for clothes like t-shirts, jeans, lowers, and other clothes. Remember not to fold sweaters or woolens because they take more space.

7. Use Straws to Carry Shampoo and Conditioner

What I do is, carry a sachet of shampoo and conditioner, but it sometimes gets leaked. People also carry shampoo bottles (half) left at home on their trip. But this travel hack is easier plus would save your weight. Take a straw, fill shampoo, or other things you needed in a straw and seal it. That’s it.

Take travel-size portions of things you want and keep in the bag. You can also take small bottles to fill shampoos and oil.

8. Use ATM Machines to Take Out Currency

Most of the time, when people travel, they exchange currency before they land into other countries. Money converters have fees and some exchange rates. This could be more than your bank. So, you better use ATMs or cash machines at the place you are traveling. Look for the account that offers Visa debit card, which can run worldwide.

Whether you need dollars, pounds, or euros, making a withdrawal from a cash machine or ATMs are the easiest way to get cash abroad. Local banks can add transaction fees, which can easily spend 2-3% of your travel.

9. Binge on Local Cuisine

If you are a food lover, eat local cuisines rather than binging on McDonald’s on your trip. Local cuisines will be cheaper than fancy cuisines that you cannot eat anywhere. This will not only save your money, plus you will experience new flavorful meals.

If you are a non-vegetarian, you must try these non-veg dishes that are common and might be available on the restaurant’s menu.

10. Make an Awesome Travel Beverage

Bring lemons, tea bags, honey, and other essential things that you require on the journey. Ask the flight attendant to fill the thermos with hot water. This makes flight traveling easier and more relaxing.

You can also order lemonade or other beverage on the flight, but it can be costly. So, if you want to save money, bring your ingredients, and only ask for water.

11. Exercise Before Your Trip

Sometimes traveling is best, other times it can be worst. 3-4 days before your flight, you can prepare yourself to recover from jet lag. That means getting some exercise and sleeping on time. A bit of exercise before traveling can save you from the jet lag and would leave you fresh for the entire day. Exercising can help your body to improve your sleep cycle.

If you are a gym freak, do workouts before a flight, but make sure that you do not do an intense workout. This will prevent the body from properly recovering from the workout. Work out, but save some energy that you will need for traveling.

12. Find Your Personal AI Tour Guide

It is not difficult to find a guide on tour, but it can be out of your budget. Also, if you want to avoid people and explore alone, a personal AI tour guide is best. Install Google Goggles on your phone and click photos of your destination or wherever you are going. The app then shares interesting information about the place for you.

The app is available for Android-based devices and iPhones. This will not only save your bucks but could let you know the history and culture of the place. Wow! That’s cool. So, the next time you are failing in budget, use this app to guide you about the place.

13. Avoid More Clothes

Unless you are planning for hiking or trekking through the Himalayas, don’t take jackets and woolens with you. Instead, carry a pair of pajamas and clothes that are lightweight and can be folded easily. This will make your baggage easier to carry and also lightweight for check-ins.

14. Email Yourself a Copy of Your Passport and Other Important Documents

While all the things you carry are important and shouldn’t be lost, the most important thing apart from money is your identity. So, first email a copy of the passport, license, and other documents to yourself. This will save a lot of time and headache in proving who you are in any case.

Also, put a luggage tag with a phone number on your suitcase. This will keep your bag safe if it is lost at the airport or hotel.

15. Bring Empty Water Bottle to the Airport

Fill the water bottle after you cross security at the airport. Alternatively, some people freeze their water bottle so that water doesn’t turn into a liquid. This could work easily, but what if you have to wait for the water to melt and you are thirsty?

So, better bring an empty bottle and fill at the places that offer free water services like airports, mother-child rooms, and a few restaurants. The water bottle costs a lot in hotels or when you buy from the store.

The terrorists can bring liquid explosives or anything liquid to make explosives, so any liquid is not allowed through airport security. Also, it is known that only 100ml or less liquid is allowed.

16. Select the Best Time to Travel

Which is the best time to travel? If you have low-budget, make sure that you choose the shoulder season to travel. During this time, you can get a lower price for hotels and less crowded areas.

Shoulder season is the time between high and low season. You can also take the help of our vacation planning guide to choose the best time for booking the tickets.

17. Get Travel Insurance

You might be having travel insurance, but it doesn’t guarantee to cover all illnesses or injuries in another country. So make sure that you carry travel insurance on your trip.

Travel insurance offers recovery for medical expenses, protection against trip cancellation. Other types of coverage that insurance buyers can get covers accidental death, legal expenses, repatriation, and others. This is also beneficial in the case of the loss of passport.

18. Book Window and Aisle Seat

If you are traveling with your partner, book an aisle and window seat. You can be lucky and get the entire row if no one books the middle seat. If it gets booked, ask politely to sit next to your partner. Mostly, no one chooses the middle seat.

So, the next time when you are booking tickets, don’t forget to book the aisle and window seat for a more comfortable journey.

Final Words

Traveling doesn’t only mean to explore and have fun. But it also gives the knowledge of the best transportation services, hotels, car rental experiences, and the cultures of other people. A wrong or lack of information gives a bad traveling experience. So better you follow these travel hacks for your next trip to get the most of it.

Which of the above travel hacks have you followed before? Do you know other hacks to make traveling easier and more fun? If yes, share them with us below. Also, if you liked our post, do share with your friends who are frequent travelers.