5 Best Cheap Travel Hacks To Save Money In 2025
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Travel hacking is a term used to describe the way you can save money while exploring the world. Some believe that travel is outrageously expensive, but they’re overlooking simple ways to cut down on costs. If you’re looking for the best cheap travel hacks, you’ve made it to the right place. After a decade of traveling on an extremely small budget, I’m an expert on creating full and fulfilling travel experiences with little money, taking advantage of tools that allow me to travel smarter and longer.
Why I Care About Cheap Travel Hacks
Before we begin, I’d like to give you a small introduction to my travel roots: When I was just 19 years old (and financially broke) I decided to bike across the USA with only $300 to my name, working for food, cash, and accommodation as I went. (Spoiler alert: the $300 I set out with all went to repairing my bike after I crashed it head-first into a tree while uncontrollably flying down a hill on the Blue Ridge Parkway, so I was essentially moneyless on the trip.)
After realizing how much life-changing travel could be done on such a small budget, I felt inspired to create this online space where I could share what I was experiencing and make travel more accessible.
Fast forward and I’ve now been to 34 states in the US, 20 national parks, and over 30 countries, often traveling solo. I’ve gone across the US and back a handful of times starting with $300 or less. Now that’s a travel hack!
1. Travel Hacks To Save Money On Flights
For years I was someone who swore they would never get a credit card… until I learned about flight points. If you’re spending money and can responsibly handle a credit card, I highly suggest getting one so that you can use it for travel benefits.
👉 Here’s a guide that I wrote on how to use travel credit cards for free flights even if you don’t have a lot of money.
For those who do use credit card points to book flights, you need to know about Point.Me. It’s an awesome resource that allows you to maximize your credit card points/miles when booking flights by digging for flight options that use the smallest amount of points that your travel credit card will never show you. They say: “Our real-time search engine maximizes the value of your points. We hunt far and wide to find the best flights for your points – including seats the airlines don’t advertise. Then we show your options side-by-side, so you know you’re getting the best deal.”
🌍 Travel Hack: When using this service you have a few different options. You can either get a day pass to use the platform for a full 24 hours for $5 (which I highly recommend – you’ll definitely save over $5 using Point.Me) or browse through more expensive standard and premium yearly plans. They’re a great choice for those who use credit card points/miles to book flights regularly.
2. Get Compensated For Delayed Flights, Canceled Flights, And Lost Luggage
When I first heard about AirHelp, I thought that there was no way that the service was legit. Submitting a claim for a delayed or canceled flight, lost baggages, or other flying issues and getting cash dumped in your bank account sounded unreal. Thankfully, I went out on a limb and tried it once after I had a delayed flight. It only took me about two minutes to submit a claim on their website, where I was prompted to enter some personal information and my flight information. A couple of weeks later, AirHelp sent $213 to my bank account.
How? Their website says “We make claiming compensation straightforward for all passengers who are unsure of their rights, lack the time, or lack the expertise to embark on the claims process themselves. We stand up to airlines in court, and we campaign for national governments to introduce fair air travel rights.”
It’s a pretty sweet deal. They also speak 17 languages, and their global staff of over 350 includes the world’s largest team of lawyers specialized in air passenger rights. Combined with local knowledge from a network of law firms across 30 countries, they are uniquely placed to help air passengers all around the world. That means that you can file a claim regardless of what country you’re in which airlines you use.
🌍 Travel Hack: AirHelp handles all legal fees, and will only charge their fee when you get paid. The fee will come directly out of the money that you win, so you don’t have to pay anything upfront to file a claim. You can file claims for up to 3 years back, so browse through your delayed flights and get you some free money!
3. Book Travel Insurance
Back when I used to travel with little to no money, I would never purchase travel insurance because I thought it was too expensive. I didn’t realize how valuable it was, and how necessary it could be if you find yourself in a pinch abroad. This may not seem like a real “hack,” but if you travel long often or long enough, you’re probably going to need to take advantage of travel insurance once or twice in your life.
While abroad I’ve gotten COIVD and the flu at once, broke my foot, suffered terribly from altitude sickness and witnessed multiple robberies. Now I recommend InsureMyTrip as a great platform that’s free to use. There you can compare plans including prices, coverage, and more.
🌍 Travel Hack: While medical travel insurance may seem like a pain to buy or an extra frill, it can save you thousands of dollars in the long run.
4. Find The Cheapest Accommodation Prices
This year I found the Deal Miner extension which is a free browser extension used to uncover hidden hotel discounts on common booking sites. It only works on hotel booking websites and is otherwise completely inactive, so it won’t slow down your browsing. It’s easy to use and can be installed quickly on your phone or computer.
Additionally, if you’re new to backpacking or traveling and have never stayed a hostel before, you should know that it’s a great way to travel on a budget and meet like-minded people (or new travel buddies). There are some really fancy hostels out there as well as some really crappy ones (you can read my hostel horror story here), so it’s nice to have them all centralized on one platform where you can read reviews and ratings for each hostel while comparing prices. Knowing what you’re paying for up front — and if it is actually worth it — will save you money in the long run.
And for those of you who already use it regularly, would you please consider saving my affiliate link and using it each time you book? It’s a free and easy way to support my blog!
🌍 Travel Hack: There are so many ways to find free accommodation all over the world, which I list out in my extreme budget travel guide (it’s always sold on a sliding scale). But if you have a little money to spend, booking.com and HostelWorld are my go-to sites for budget-friendly accommodation which I pair with the Deal Miner extension.
5. Book The Best Activities In The Area
I used to head straight to Google when I was looking for worthy activities while planning trips. Now, I head over to GetYourGuide instead. We only have so much time to spend in new places and I always aim to make the most of it.
With GetYourGuide I get to scroll through the most loved experiences in said area and book them all through one platform. There you can see what experiences like-minded travelers are engaging in and read reviews left by real people. GetYourGuide is a booking platform to thousands upon thousands of unique (and popular touristy) experiences ran by larger travel companies and small local experts alike.
🌍 Travel Hack: Even if you don’t book through GetYourGuide it’s a great place to scout some of the best activities in any given area. You can then book actives in person through local vendors or through your favorite travel blogs, which don’t have the added booking fee of GetYourGuide.
Pursue Your Epic Adventure (Regardless Of Income) With The Ultimate Travel Hacks
Ready to expand your travels? The Art of Unruly Travel on a Budget helps readers everywhere travel longer, further, better, and more ethically, regardless of budget.
This isn’t another guide that robotically recommends just staying in hostels over hotels. Instead, this unique travel guide teaches you to navigate and find the essentials of life and travel with little money; tools, transportation, shelter, joy, and food. Grab a hard copy or eBook from our online store.
