Black Friday is almost upon us and it’s a great time to grab a bargain! Whether you’re buying Christmas presents or expensive items for yourself that you’ve been swooning over for months, Black Friday is the time to get them.
But did you know Black Friday is also a great time to bag a travel bargain? Hotels, airlines, tour companies, car hire companies and train lines also promote special offers, discounts and deals around Black Friday.
If you’re planning to find some travel deals in the Black Friday sales, here are 5 travel hacks to make sure you really are getting the best value for money.
Sign up to emails and create a ‘travel deals’ folder
Sign up to the emails for your favourite airlines, hotel chains and any other travel booking company you love.
If I’m looking for budget trips then I use a combination of Ryanair and ibis hotels. But if I’m looking for a more luxurious trip then you can travel cheaper with Voyage Privé and Black Friday so get yourself signed up to that one!
Travel Hack Tip: We all get hundreds of emails a day so to avoid these travel deals getting lost in your inbox make a folder and keep them together. When you read an email and there’s an offer you think looks good, move it to your ‘travel deals’ folder to look at properly when you’ve got the time.
Write your bucket list
If you haven’t written a travel bucket list yet then you need to do this, particularly if you’ll be travelling with your partner or a friend. Write your bucket list together to help you focus your attention during the Black Friday sales. It can be easy to get distracted by cheap flights to Timbuktu and you want to stay focused on your dream trip.
Be aware of how much things normally cost
The only way to know if you’re getting a real bargain in the Black Friday sales is to know how much things normally cost.
You might get an email saying flights to Paris are only £200 if you book NOW! And it’s tempting to book it, especially if it’s a limited time offer. You panic and book the flight, only to realise that flights to Paris are always around £200 so this wasn’t much of a deal after all.
Travel Hack Tip: Download a few travel apps onto your phone and regularly check the costs of flights, hotel prices etc. Even if you’re not planning on booking, it can be fun to have a browse – it’s like window shopping for holidays! This will eventually make you a much savvier shopper when it comes to booking travel because you’ll know how much things tend to cost throughout the year and you’ll know when you’re genuinely getting a deal.
Set yourself a budget
It can be really easy to get carried away when booking travel. For me, it goes something like this:
Oh look, there’s a 5* hotel reduced to £100 a night. Perfect, that’s within budget.
Oooh but if I upgrade to a junior suite it’s half price! That’s only £200 and you get free wine and a living room!
Ooo, a junior suite with sea views is only £25 extra.
They’re also doing VIP airport transfers with 10% off, that’s a bargain.
And before I know it, my £100 a night budget has been forgotten and I’m spending £300 a night on a load of additional extras I don’t really want or need.
Travel Hack Tip: I like to use Monzo when I travel. You can easily set up saving pots so it’s really easy to budget for particular trips.
Sit down with your computer and calendar and book your deals for the year
If you’re anything like me and you’re signed up to email notifications, you’ll read these special offers at completely random times.
You’re sat on the train and get a cheap hotel offer. You’re on your lunch break and see cheap flights to Thailand.
The impulsive part of me wants to jump right on the deal and book it but I beg you to wait.
There are often T&Cs attached to the cheap deals and you realise the cheap flights to Thailand are during the monsoon season and that hotel offer only applies midweek.
Sit down with your calendar and book things calmly and rationally!