Your tasks are all about curating unforgettable experiences while ensuring your clients get the most value for their money. Although there are many common sense ways you can save money for your travellers, lets summarize some of the main ones in this article.
Before you begin with travel planning, fully discuss everything with your client to understand their needs and expectations for their holidays.
Apply these budget travel tips to help you maximize your clients' holiday funds:
1. Prioritizing and Planning:
- Determine Their Destination and Preferences: What is your clients' expectation for a dream holiday. Is it a tropical beach getaway, a city adventure, delving into exploring historical sites, or a cultural immersion? This will help narrow down potential destinations and activities.
- Research Costs: Once you have this information, with the help of your travel partnerships and using online travel platforms, it is simple to get an estimate of flight costs, accommodation rates, and local attractions.
- Create a Detailed Budget: Use spreadsheets and tools to break down the costs into categories like flights, accommodation, transportation, food, activities, and miscellaneous expenses. This will give your clients a clear picture of exactly where their money will go.
- Consider Different Alternatives: as an ITA you know of all the types of holiday accommodation. This means you can suggest options like apartments, guesthouses, or hostels, which can offer significant savings compared to luxury hotels.
- All-Inclusive Packages: This is the top savings option namely all-inclusive deals which bundle accommodation, meals, and sometimes activities, providing a more predictable budget. Browse around to compare some deals to find what is suitable for your client’s needs.
- Off-Peak Travel: Travelling during off peak times results in great savings from lower rates in flights and accommodation. Encourage your clients to consider traveling during shoulder seasons if they are able.
- Public Transportation: let your clients know all options available for transportation at their destinations. This can be local buses, trains, or metros, which can be significantly cheaper than taxis or private transportation.
- Car Rental Alternatives: If renting a car is preferred then, suggest sharing with other travellers or exploring carpooling options. (*Take a look at the car rental savings tips article in this forum for savings ideas)
- Airport Transfers: From airport to accommodation transport, look for budget-friendly airport transfer options, such as shared shuttles or public transportation. Some hotels provide this as a free service for guests.
- Local Cuisine: Instead of restaurants which can be expensive suggest clients to try local eateries and street food, which are often more affordable and offer authentic experiences. However always stress that they ensure food is prepared in hygienic conditions
- Free Activities: For additional holiday fun investigate free attractions and activities, such as parks, museums with free days, or walking tours. Your DMC partners and local tour guides can help you with this point
- Group Tours: To save money on sightseeing excursions. suggest joining group tours, which can often offer discounted rates and the opportunity to meet other likeminded travellers.
- Travel Insurance: While it's essential for every traveller, compare different policies to find the most affordable option that covers your clients' needs.
- Currency Exchange: Advise clients to research exchange rates at their destinations, and consider using a travel card or withdrawing cash from ATMs to avoid excessive fees.
- Packing Light: Encourage clients to check airline baggage restrictions and pack efficiently to avoid excess baggage charges.
Remember, it's about finding the right balance between affordability and the desired experience, and happy clients mean repeat business and word of mouth advertising afterwards.
