My Travel Planning Tips

Hey everyone!

I’m so excited because I’ve been planning my next trip for a couple of months now. Anyone who knows me, knows I am a huge planner. Literally, I have my 30th birthday party planned out and I still have two years to turn 30.

Anyways, my next domestic trip is to Tulsa, Oklahoma. Every time I tell someone I’m going there, they are confused on why I chose that location. I’ll tell you briefly my reason for going, before I share with you some of my tips.

1. Transformation Church – Pastor Michael Todd is one of my favorite pastors and I like that his sermons are relatable to people in all stages of life.
2. Pioneer Woman – enough said.
3. Black Wall Street – I love Black history and I definitely would love to learn more about the history of Black Wall Street at Tulsa’s museum.

As I mentioned, I have been planning for this trip for a couple of months. Last month, I was able to secure my plane tickets and then this month I reserved my hotel and car rental.

Plane Tickets

When I planned my trip to Barcelona, I used an app called ‘Hopper.’ I told them when I wanted to go, and they informed me of price changes and when I should purchase my tickets. I would definitely recommend this app, because it does all of the leg work for you. However, this time, I had airline vouchers (due to delays with my San Antonio trip) I could use with Southwest. There are a couple of stipulations with using Southwest vouchers – like being limited to using two per trip or only using it towards air travel and not taxes – but it definitely lowers your out-of-pocket payment. Using the vouchers, I only spent $91.33 on 2-one way tickets instead of the $367.61 I would have spent without them; that’s a $276.28 difference. *I actually would have spent around $76 if I had known vouchers did not cover early bird check-in. Moral of the story, read all of the fine print.

Hotel

If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you would notice that I don’t stay in hotels often. Hotels are just expensive. I try to stay in AirBnB’s because they are more affordable and allow me to immerse myself with the locals. To save on hotel costs, there are a couple of things you can do: use search engine sites like Booking.com or Expedia.com for the best prices; stay a little outside of a city’s downtown area; book in advance; split the cost with friends (if applicable); use hotel points; book when there are promotions; and look for other deals (i.e.: AARP). For my upcoming trip, I used a combination of points and money to pay for my hotel room. What would have cost me anywhere between $450-$500, only cost me $418.89 using points. It’s still expensive, but it’s like paying around $100 per night.

Car Rental

Gone are the days when car rental companies charge me extra for being under 26 years old!! But in all seriousness, I feel like I got a really good deal with my rental car. Normally, I like to take public transportation, but everywhere I want to go is spread out around Oklahoma. Definitely do research on car rental companies’ prices, amenities, and reviews. Even more, I would suggest paying in advance for your car rental, if you are certain of your plans. Car rental companies are charging way less if you pay in advance versus paying when you get to the counter. My rate for this trip was $16/day, for a total of $64 excluding fees or $102.89 including fees.

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Before you think I put all of this on my credit card, let me assure you that everything has been/will be paid with cash before I leave for my trip. Planning for a trip goes beyond choosing what activities you’ll partake in, it also includes creating a budget to avoid getting into debt. Adjust your budget based on how close or far your trip is; I started saving about $100 per month for this trip but recently increased it to about $300 per month. I’m definitely over-saving for this trip, but I want to have enough money for food, gas, and souveniers.

Are you going on a trip this year? Where are you going? Do you have any travel tips you want to share? I’m always looking for ways to save more money before and during trips. Also, comment below with things to do in Washington state and Oregon…I’m thinking about going there in the future. Make sure to follow, share, and like. I post weekly on here and more frequently on my Instagram (@My_Attempt_At_Adulting). Thanks again for reading!

Love,

Britt ♥