How to get the best deals when travelling
When you’re travelling, it can get quite expensive. Costs add up quickly, whether you’re going away locally or overseas. It can be especially tempting to disregard inflated costs when you’re travelling with mobility issues or disabilities.
Of course, you know that you shouldn’t have to spend more than anyone else to enjoy a relaxing time when travelling, but for an easy life, you often have to pay more than you should.
Here, we take a look at how you can find the best deals when travelling overseas, especially if you’re concerned about the extra challenges and expenses of travelling with disabilities.
Sign up for flight or rail alerts
If you’re planning to travel abroad, it’s no surprise that flights can be incredibly expensive, and train travel can also be extremely costly. It’s worth setting up alerts of flight or rail deal sites or apps to find travel options that may cost less – especially if you’re flexible about when or where you’re travelling. For those seeking an unexpected adventure, this is a good choice.
Research areas made for accessibility
Are you heading somewhere you’ve never been before? Why not speak to a travel specialist who understands the needs of disabled people or those with mobility issues. Sometimes you’ll end up paying more upon arrival for accommodation that you’ve assumed will be the same price. A specialist travel advisor might be able to give you some insight into areas with good accessibility and give you an idea of when will be the best time of year to travel for a good deal.
in getting discounts.
Call ahead where possible
Are you flying or travelling by train? However, you get to your destination, call ahead and be clear about your needs. Again, you don’t want to be charged for extra help at a train station or airport if you can help it. This is also important for any extra stages to your journey, such as taxis. Pre-arranging all your transport and doing a good amount of research can be enormously beneficial in both taking the stress out of travel and preventing sudden increases in cost that you may not be able to afford on the spot.
Speak to your insurer
Your disability insurer will be able to tell you more about travel insurance suitable for your specific needs, and will sometimes know the best travel insurance for you which will cover health, emergencies, and loss of essential property such as your mobility aids, medication and more.
Look into discounts
If you are travelling by public transport such as trains, there are sometimes special discounts and deals for disabled passengers. This can be a reduction in your own travel costs, or those of a carer or travel companion. This may help you to make a decision on how you’re travelling, and even give you more options for where to travel as you’ll make a cost-saving.
Ask those in the know
When you arrive at your destination, it’s worth taking the time to ask those who work in the area about good deals and destinations for tourists. If you require mobility aids, then you don’t want to be caught short with a good deal to a place that isn’t accessible. Often, hotels will be happy to arrange day trips for you and will be able to offer you a fair price that can involve them doing all the heavy lifting when it comes to communicating and finding trips and guides who can give you the best experience possible. This can also be far less expensive than booking through a website that may charge extra fees without providing you with full peace of mind.
Don’t forget your rights
If you’re disabled and travelling to different countries, bear in mind that not everywhere has the same rights when it comes to disabilities, and this can result in you paying more for simple conveniences. You’ll often get better deals in areas that are considered to have a good track record of supporting the needs of disabled individuals.
No one likes to pay more than necessary when travelling, but it can be easy to believe you need to pay a higher amount for accommodations. With our advice in mind, it should be a little easier to find the best deals possible when travelling, so you can make more of your money and truly enjoy your time away.
