Tips for Getting Cheap Accommodations

If you’re traveling on a budget then getting cheap or discounted accommodations is the ultimate dream! Even if you’re not traveling on such a tight budget spending less on a place to stay leaves more money for other things such as food or activities! Since we started to travel full time we’ve learned a few tricks in order to get cheaper accommodations. Here are our top tips for getting cheap accommodations to help make your travel budget go a little farther!

When you’re choosing a place to stay there are quite a few things to consider:

Is location important to you? Does it have to be in walking distance to certain places?

Do you need a kitchen, wifi, or other amenities such as laundry?
Does the type of accommodation matter to you? Apartment, guesthouse, shared room, etc.
Are you looking for a quiet oasis or a lively place to meet people?

What is your budget?
If you had to cut out one or two things, what would they be?

Whichever one of those is most important to you will usually help bring one place to the top of your list when choosing where to stay. For us a large factor is budget simply because full time travel is expensive and we know we need to maintain a reasonable budget to continue traveling. We also prioritize amenities such as a kitchen when we’re looking to cook for ourselves. We use internet for pretty much everything so we also always filter our searches for places that have wifi.

There are some locations in the world where you’re able to get an amazing place with everything you want for a great price. Other places are generally more expensive (looking at you, Europe) to stay and therefore mean sometimes not getting every amenity you would like. Make sure you know what is important to you when starting your search!

1. Look For a Location Away from the Touristy Area

When first looking for accommodations we always start by doing some research on the best neighborhoods or areas to stay. With a quick Google search you can find out the names of a couple neighborhoods and an overall idea for how the city or area is laid out.

This is especially helpful in making sure the area you stay in is safe and has the type of things you are looking for or is in close proximity to things you need or want.

Often times staying in the most popular or touristic area is more expensive. If it’s mostly tourists that stay there the price gets driven up especially in popular destinations. If you can, look to stay away from the main tourist area and a lot of times you will see slightly lower prices. Both Airbnb and Booking.com have a feature where you can search using a map and filter by price. This allows you to see what the prices are like in different areas so you can weigh your options!

Sometimes this backfires because it can mean you stay farther from all the things you want to see in an area. But a lot of times we have found options with more amenities (private apartment, fast wifi, kitchen, etc.) for less money in a slightly farther neighborhood. It all depends on what is important to you!

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2. Consider New Listings without Reviews

We all love reviews and hearing from other people that things are as they are advertised. But places, especially on Airbnb, are sometimes discounted when they are first listed. By offering a slightly lower price they entice more people to stay there which ends up getting the listing more reviews early on.

Consider new or recent listings that either have no reviews or only a few if it’s a better deal than a place with a lot of reviews for a higher price tag. It won’t be for everyone but it’s a way to spend less on a place. We have done it quite a few times and it’s worked out well for us!

3. Stay in a Private Room / Dorm Room

One of the easiest ways to get less expensive accommodations is to ask for less. An entire apartment on Airbnb or a private room in a hostel is going to cost a lot more than a private room in a shared Airbnb or a bed in a dorm room. If you’re willing to forgo some privacy, staying in a shared apartment or a dorm room can save a lot of money!

We spent 3 months in Europe staying in almost all private rooms in shared Airbnbs. At first we were hesitant but it’s really the only way we could afford to stay in some of more expensive European cities.

A private room in a shared Airbnb means you have a private room to yourself that is in a larger house or apartment that you are sharing with other people. Spaces like the kitchen and bathroom are shared either with the owners of the place or other guests.

Because we are two people we’ve found that paying for 2 beds in a dorm room isn’t always cheaper than getting a private room so we haven’t done that as much. But if you’re just one person is it definitely the least expensive way to travel!

Travel Truth: If you are getting a private room in a shared Airbnb make sure to read which amenities are available to you. Sometimes rooms such as the kitchen are not open to guests which is on the listing and something you want to know ahead of time!

4. Filter By Your Budget

There’s nothing worse than seeing the most perfect place to stay and then realizing its way out of your budget and then comparing every other place with that one. To make it easier we always filter places to stay by our budget at the beginning. We also always check off “must have” amenities such as wifi. Figure out ahead of time what your must haves are so that you can filter for them early on.

Then I know that all of the options are already in our budget and have at least the bare minimum criteria. Seeing beautiful places that either don’t have what we need or are too expensive is just sad so we filter so we don’t even see those ones!

Sometimes we’ll also check off other amenities such as a kitchen or in-unit laundry and then uncheck them in least important to most important order to see more and more options. This will give you a good idea of what your budget can afford as well as what you can get if you choose to increase your budget at all.

5. Look for Long Term Discounts

If you’re staying for more than a few days many listings on Airbnb and Booking.com give you a weekly or monthly discount because you’re booking it for an extended stay. Obviously you have to be traveling slow enough for this one to work for you but it’s a way that we’ve been able to stay in places that we otherwise wouldn’t have been able to afford. Usually discounts are anywhere from 5-20% if you book for more than 7 days.

This all depends on the listing and what the host is willing to offer so it’s not always an option.

You can also always reach out to the host or contact person asking for a discount prior to booking because you’re looking to stay there for a longer period of time.

6. Change Your Requirements

The last option is simply change your requirements. All those things you would love to have (an infinity pool overlooking the ocean, a private bathroom, etc.) are wants but not necessarily needs. If you take one of those requirements off and change your search you will come up with more options that are in your budget. A lot of times you won’t see places because of specific amenities or location filters. If you change that slightly and widen your search you can see more!

It’s not always the most fun way but eliminating some of the requirements that are harder to find might leave you with more places to choose from. As well looking at different dates can sometimes show you more availability if you’re looking during a particularly busy time.