Everyone loves travelling and saving money but the most important aspect of a travelling experience is the preparation you do beforehand. It can save you time, money and hassle when you arrive. Nobody wants to lose their bag or find themselves without a hotel reservation in the middle of the night.
Here are 7 tips that every savvy Muslim traveller needs to plan the perfect holiday
Start looking for the perfect destination
I love having a travel plan where I brainstorm the places I want to visit in the upcoming year. Usually Ramadan and the New Year are perfect for your travel resolutions. Write down the destinations that you want to most visit in the world. There is something magical when you write them down. Somehow they seem to become possible and you will start seeing offers and promotions to make them a reality. No joking it happens to me all the time!
Write down your expectations
Sometimes we leave for our holidays with a massive and unrealistic list of all the expectations we have from our holiday. Then we get disappointed because we didn’t experience all these amazing things we had in our mind. In order to avoid disappointment write down the expectations and experiences you want to have. Do you want to relax reading a book or do you want to have an active holiday? Discuss them with your travel companions so you are all on the same page. It can really save you a ton of disappointment and help you have an awesome holiday.
Find the dates
Check out the dates you can start planning your holiday, the sooner the better. If you can manage to add bank holidays then it will be even better since you will need less leave.
Set a Budget
Budgeting is always important. One of the reasons why people don’t travel is because they assume it is always very expensive. It sure can be expensive if you don’t have a plan and decide last-minute. Start planning your holiday budget about 6 months in advance. Take advantage of cashback sites and savings from the small daily indulgences. It all makes a difference.
Topcashback is one of my favourite ways to save money while shopping online and offline. You can save hundreds of pounds per year, which can go towards your travelling budget.
Have a travel jar
Yes! You need a travel jar to keep all the small change, the money you receive from your cashback sites and any other spare coins around the house. I even add the unexpected savings I make on other small things, like a friend buying me a coffee instead of me paying for it myself. 🙂 Every little helps and you won’t even notice how your travel jar gets filled.
Take advantage of offers & promotions
All major hotels and airlines have quarterly sales and promotions. Currently you can have a free night with IHG and Marriott after spending two nights with each brand. Not bad for taking advantage and staying with hotel chains that you most likely will use anyways.
Airlines have the same promotions which can slash the prices of your airfare significantly. Usually you can book up to a year in advance so always plan booking your tickets during these sales. You can save almost half of your flight and hotel budget.
Be covered
Insurance is important especially for unexpected events. Like when I lost all my bags and received them only 2 days before I flew back home. Thankfully the insurance covered the necessities otherwise it would have been money out of my pocket.
Travelling doesn’t have to be expensive it can be as cheap as £200 for a weekend away and as expensive as £20,000 for a luxury holiday. Plan and have fun with it, after all you are going on holidays 🙂