Make Me Marvellous with Minimal Money Mondays: #travelhacking

TRAVEL HACKING - OH YES!!!!!!!!!!


     Alright already, so I'm not the FIRST one to post about this Godsend known as #travelhacking, but please, be patient with me.  And, thus, the first tip to travel hacking is discovered - PATIENCE! You will get that deal, you will get that low price, the red square next to the date and time will show up (avid users of the EUROLINES website will appreciate that one  :).  Sometimes, I will find after a successful search that I have been looking for a bargain for 3-4 hours, it happens people, and guess what?  It's SO worth the time and energy.  Alright now, y'all, let's move on down to the next tip - TIME, TIME, TIME (and I hear it waits for no one).  So, c'mon then y'all, let's go!

     Oh, dear magic 8-ball, dost thou see my future? No, not possible.  DARN IT!  Guess, I'll just have to best to figure it out on my own.  Okay, here goes, 3 months from now, I will be on that flight booked on www.expedia.com and THIS will save me at least HALF the cost of the ticket.  TIME, people, TIME, its just gotta be managed.  Because I travel on a budget, I often find that if I know my schedule then I save. I don't fly often but when I do, I use www.expedia.com.  More often than not, a 2-3 month window will lower the cost dramatically.  And that makes a cheap travel queen, like myself, sleep easy.

     To sleep or not to sleep,  THAT is the real question.  Y'all know it's coming - sleeping on the bus/train in order to save on those killer accommodation prices!  WHEW!  I had to, I had to write it, I had to.  No, no one would RATHER sleep on a bus/train as opposed to sleeping in a nice comfy bed but when you wake up the next morning and realise how much you've saved, the bus/train becomes more and more appealing.  Yes, really.  And, oftentimes, the night prices are the cheaper prices.  Another perk of night travel is that on many of these bus trips movies are shown and that makes the experience even more enjoyable (see my post on EUROLINES to see that movies are more of a staple rather than a rarity).

Speaking of EUROLINES and their already low prices, there is a way to get an even lower price when booking with them - website 1 vs. website 2.  I know, a bit cheesy but accurate, nonetheless  :)  For example, let's say you would like to book a trip from London to Budapest.  First, you look on the UK website, nationalexpress.com (website 1).  Then, you go over to the Hungarian EUROLINES website, www.volanbusz.com (website 2).  Both websites will list a price of around 200 dollars US.  However, on www.volanbusz.com, you will find an even lower price based on the fact that this ticket can not be modified or refunded (which I have found to be extremely useful and worth booking).  In all fairness, www.nationalexpress.com offers a non-refundable option but I have found that www.volanbusz.com offers and even lower price. 

1)   PATIENCE
2)   TIME
3)   SLEEP
4)   COMPARISON SHOPPING

The key factors in successful #travelhacking...you need to be flexible with the above mentioned and also willing to sacrifice them, if needed.  But, it's well worth it in the end. 

Well, in the words of the ultra-savvy Mr. Bugs Bunny, THAT'S ALL FOLKS!

 

First-Time HITCHHIKING/THUMBING - in BELGIUM: Make Me Marvellous with Minimal Money Mondays

   


 I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I DID IT!  I hitchhiked!  So, y'all, I'm in Belgium and as the unofficial queen of cheap (that's me) would have it, I wanted to travel even cheaper than Eurolines or the local bus company could offer...the thumb it was!   I, or rather we, my daughter and I, were blessed to be accompanied by someone, Dido, who had hitched before. 
    
     We started out slow and we were thinking this was a bad idea but then we got our first little morsel...in the back of an even smaller car.  He took us to a roundabout where we were able to be picked up by a woman who brought us closer to our destination of Gent.  While in the car, we spoke with this woman (who also hitchhikes) about the paranoia which prevents some drivers from picking us hitchhikers.  She told us that she usually picks up hitchhikers in hopes of someone doing the same for her.  Remember that, anyone who reads this post, you know, that do unto others as you would have them do unto you thing  :)   After we exited this ride, we waited about 5 minutes before the next angel of mercy arrived to rescue us from our roadside waiting.  It was a father/son combo - I believe they stopped because they saw we were with a little girl (my daughter) and they felt a sort of connection.  This could be completely false but after this hitchhiking experience and considering the individuals and couples who did pick us up, I believe that's the secret to successful hitchhiking - finding that connection. 

     After this ride, we were picked up by a Turkish Belgian couple and while I feel he would have been just as content passing us by, the woman was more than eager to have the company.  This was the last hitch of this leg of our journey and we were kindly dropped off in the centre of town (Gent). 

 

After we had a late lunch, we headed off towards the west side of town in order to link up with the major highway to our next and final destination of Aalter.  SO many drivers passed us by and it made me realise why hitching at night isn't the greatest idea but we hadn't planned to be out so late.  I must say, though, that many a passerby offered us good advice like where to stand, once they saw our cardboard sign.

 

We set a time limit for ourselves (30 minutes) and made a plan that if no one picked us up within this time frame then we would just do the unspeakable and take public transport...but, ALAS, we were picked up with a few minutes to spare and dropped off a bit closer to Aalter.  About 10 minutes after that, we were picked up by our last car and dropped off not just at the city's edge but at the train station were a friend came and met us. 

 

All in all, this was a great experience.  We learned a lot about hitching, ourselves and surprisingly psychology...guilt is a powerful emotion, if ya know what I mean.  Until next time.  CIAO 4 NOW, Y'ALL!