Affordable Luxury Travel

Yeah right!  Affordable luxury travel.  Yes it can be done.  You just have to think outside of the box.  In fact after you look at some of the options that I will present to you, you might find yourself taking more luxury vacations than you might think.  So grab a pad and paper, fire up your handy dandy web browser and let’s get to work.

Getting there.

This is always challenge.  Getting to your preferred travel destination in style without breaking the bank.  First consider the mode of travel.  My rule of thumb is if you are traveling less than 300 miles, drive.  If this is where you find yourself, you can rent a nice luxury or sports car for a reasonable price.  Checkout priceline, hotwire, or other travel auction sites.  Nothing says cool like rolling up in a Cadillac or Mustang convertible.

Now for those who want a bit of nostalgia, a taste of yesteryear, an era gone by, . . .  you should consider the train.  Yes the train (Amtrak).  You can ride in comfort for an affordable price.  You just sacrifice a bit of speed due to a lot of stops.  But this is a valid option to consider.

Now on to air travel.  In the United States air travel leaves something to be desired (bites big wind).  Even domestic first class on most legacy carriers is suspect.  In fact, I have been told that todays first class is yesteryears coach class.  That being said, if you desire to sit up front buy the cheapest upgradeable coach fare and upgrade with frequent flyer points.  Got no points, well you can buy points from most carriers, however you gotta weigh the cost, most of the time it’s not worth it.  If you need points in a hurry head over to the frugal travel guy and get some tips on how to rack up frequent flyer points to take that first class trip you have always dreamed of.

Luxury digs - lodging

This is easy.  Point your browser over to airbnb.  You can find a variety of lodging options that will blow you away.  Now I know what you are thinking.  You heard the negative press about airbnb but remember this situation was about a douche bag who trashed an apt in San Francisco.  You aren’t a douche bag!  You are one of the good guys (although frugal CHEAP!!!!!!) who is looking for great travel deals.  Don’t let the douche bags of the world win - grab a great deal at airbnb, have a good time, just don’t trash the place and make it tough for the next guy.

Luxury eats

This to is easy if you adopt what I can the European Meal Plan (EMP).  This simply means that you eat a small breakfast - rolls, croissants, fruit, coffee or tea.  Make lunch your biggest meal of the day.  Be sure to eat you protein - chicken, beef, lamb, etc.  Here is the catch - never order an entre - order two or three appetizers.  Most places offer big portion on thier entres, appetizers on the other hand tend to be just enough to satisfy your hunger without causing you to remember your mom telling you to finish your plate because children in Africa are starving.  Hey I said it and you know its true!  Anyway, you get to try three different mini meals, you save a few buck, and you are satisfied.  When the evening comes, do the wine and cheese thing - it will impress your friends and you will be ready to hit the town.

There you have it - affordable luxury travel.  Try it and tell me what you think!!!

Remember there are only two types of people: those who want to travel and those that do, which one are you?