Tips for Saving Money to Travel

I have made it my goal/job to travel the world for a living. Many people that I know that live back home in Canada, or that I meet on the road, often ask me why and how I do and can afford to live my life like this. There are many different factors of course that play a key role into living the life that I do and I will share some of my personal best tips here with you.

1. Benefit from travel rewards cards

I have been a long time Amex Gold Rewards Cardmember and it has been my favorite Card to date because I earn 1 point for every dollar spent and 2 points for every travel related dollar that I spend. So if I purchase gas for my car, or a hotel room, with my Amex I earn double rewards points that I can then use to buy flights, hotel stays, concert tickets, luggage, and more. The points earned with the Gold Rewards Card are also conveniently transferable 1 to 1 to Avios or Aeroplan – this is just one of the Card’s TripFlex benefits that let me travel the way I want to.

If you have friends who like to travel or want to meet up with you around the world somewhere, Amex has a great Refer A Friend program where you can earn points with your family and friends just for getting them to apply and be approved for an Amex Card as well. Then you can each earn points that add up quickly and be traveling together in no time.

Whether you already have an Amex or are thinking about signing up for one, the Refer A Friend program is great for everyone. To learn more about it and/or to refer a friend right now check out: americanexpress.ca/referafriend

Once your information is entered into the site at the link above you can then refer your friend via email or even as simple as Facebook. If I were to refer just one friend, who was then approved for the Card, I would get 10,000 points which is up to $100 off my next flight and, in exchange my friend would earn 25,000 points (with a minimum spend in the first 3 months). Plus, the Gold Rewards Card has no annual fee for the first year. That is just a great deal in and of itself.

My luxury villa in Pollensa on the Spanish Island of Mallorca

2. Save on booking accommodations

I have written before about the best ways to save money while traveling through Europe (which also basically applies for traveling anywhere in the world) and my favorite tip from that post is to save money on accommodations by renting apartments as you travel. Of course hostels will always be the cheapest option but sometimes it’s nice to just have a place to relax by yourself and not be worried about loud snorers, the security of your belongings and messy people. Also depending on how long you are planning to stay in one place they can sometimes work out to be a better deal than even a private room at a hostel.

Months before your trip, start scouring apartment rental sites. For shorter stays when a hostel or hotel might work better, check out one of many booking apps like the Amex Online Travel tool, which allows you to use your Amex rewards points to redeem for travel!

image by Flickr user Shiny Things

3. Have a coin jar

Lastly, the trustiest money saving tip of them all – save your money in a coin jar. Every time you come home empty all of the change in your pockets into the change jar and don’t allow yourself to ever take any back out. Literally duct tape the lid shut so that you have to fight to get it off when you are finally going to travel. It can be amazing how much the daily change in your pocket can add up.

Hopefully some or all of these tips will get you on your way to saving money for your travels. If you have any other great suggestions leave them in the comments below.

This post was sponsored by Amex Bank of Canada. The views and opinions expressed in this blog, however, are purely my own and I truly do love my Amex Gold Card.

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