Travel Tips And Tricks

Traveling is an expensive and some times risky business, but in photography it's practically required. On this page I will try and offer some helpful tips to save money and reduce risk, tips that do at least work for me.

Shopping around

When I am shopping for travel I shop around extensively. I use on-line resources like Expedia and Travelocity, after I find the lowest rates on-line I will call the hotel, airline or car rental and ask the what the lowest current price is. Never take for granted that the first price is the lowest. If I'm really feeling cheap and I can be flexible, I will take the lowest price I found on-line or from calling and I will take it to Priceline and knock off 10-20%. I would say I get my Priceline offer between 40-60%, this depends a lot on seasonal travel conditions.

Auto Rental

When I rent a car I always rent an economy class car, and I rent a lot! I have only once actually had to drive the economy class car. To begin with several name brand rental companies list economy, and compacts as separate price ranges when in fact you are likely to get the same type of car for either choice. With many companies this includes midsize type cars as well.

Another tip, well this is more of the trick than tip. Some companies remove the fuse from economy class cars to keep smokers from smoking in the car, however the midsize and up often don't have this feature. When I rent an economy car I get in the car and test the lighter, when it fails to operate I tell them this car won't operate my cell phone (the truth) and it's an automatic free upgrade.

Try and pick companies that allow you to pick your car from the fleet instead of automatically assigning you a car. This way it's easier to find the car with cruise and or other features you want. Most fleets in all class ranges have a few cars if not all that have cruise. At the ripe old age of 28, cruise is a big deal to me.

If one rents near a holiday try and pick your car up as late as possible, this almost always leads to the free upgrade of your choice. (reserve early enough to get a car)