How to travel for free

November 14, 12:07 PMNY Budget Travel ExaminerSusan Finch

Previous Next

Comment Print Email RSS Subscribe

Subscribe

Get alerts when there is a new article from the NY Budget Travel Examiner. Read Examiner.com's terms of use.

Email Address   Include other special offers from Examiner.com Terms of Use

When I was growing up, my father was a commercial pilot and my brother later became a pilot as well. I'm also from a community south of Atlanta where it seems everyone over the age of 30 works in the airline industry.  Everyone I knew flew for free and used airline industry discounts at hotels, or found them for free.

So it was always completely natural to me not to pay for travel. 

When I got older, it was more difficult to use my Dad and brother's flight passes because of my work schedule and full flights. So I started paying for my own travel and decided pretty quickly that it was crap. 

Surely there were ways to travel for free without working for the airline industry. I had no desire to become a pilot, flight attendant, or work in an airport.  And so after maneuvering my way around different career paths, I found a few ways that people often overlook as being too complicated or saturated.  But in reality, they're really not.

Tips for Finding Free Travel:

Travel Writing - This is how I travel for free, and while it did take some time to figure out, it's not that difficult once you get the hang of how the system works.  I write a blog at www.dontforgettowrite.org about travel writing as a career, and most of my posts and emails revolve around how to break in. 

I'm surprised how many people think travel writing is an elusive job that only the lucky fall into. It's a skill editors need and pay for.  It's really that simple. There are countless websites, newspapers, magazines, and trade publications that need reporting on travel. You just need to get organized and do the work.

Break in by studying a publication, determining your own expertise on a subject, writing a lucid pitch letter to an editor, pitching a appropriate topic, and being persistence.  It might take several dozen tries before you hit on a market that's a good fit. From there you can start contacting hotels, travel PR companies, and join writer's groups to uncover press trips or negotiate free or discounted travel. Many of the free trips I've gone on is a result of asking an editor if I can write a specific story, contacting hotels and convention and tourism bureaus myself, and asking for assistance.

It's true you might not break into Travel and Leisure for awhile. But keep in mind that smaller tier cities will be happy for coverage in any publication.  I met a writer on a press trip in Ohio who worked for a paper in Indiana with a 2,500 circulation.  That's pretty small, but the PR company gladly hosted him and his family for free.  They knew his small paper could entice local visitors to make the 4-hour drive over to Ohio.

Independent Travel Agent - There are scores of online programs out there on how to become a travel agent, usually MLM style, that promise fortunes if you just sell their fabulous cruise packages.  I'm sure some people can make a nice living doing so, but that's not what I'm suggesting. Google 'become a travel agent' and invest in a program to get set up with an International Association of Travelers Network ID card.  You can use this for discounted and free travel around the world at hotels, tour operators, and sometimes even airfare depending on the circumstances. 

Remember that the hospitality industry is expecting you to promote their services in exchange.  It's always a good idea to keep a blog, submit free articles, or spread your travel experiences word of mouth.  You want to make sure you're offering something of value in return.

Group Travel - Most people seem to glaze over at the thought of leading group travel, but it doesn't have to be that difficult.  Identify a topic of interest or expertise and start brainstorming.  If you're an expert on architecture, consider developing an itinerary in a destination like Prague. Uncover unique and valuable programs including museum stops, appropriate attractions, arrange interviews with local experts, and start researching group discounts at hotels and restaurants or local tour operators.  With enough people in your group, you can easily earn free airfare, a hotel room, and meals. Start a blog for self-promotion and recruit clients through local organizations, churches, senior groups, and beyond.

Consulting/Freelancing - In the days before becoming a travel writer, I worked as a video editor on national commercials.  I decided I wanted to work in San Francisco for awhile and made contacts who were eager to arrange interviews for freelance work. My schedule was such that I could never get away, but I always wished I had branched out in other markets and cities and take a 'working vacation'.

If you're already a freelance or have flex time you can devote to a side career, seek out clients in other cities.  Use your current business contacts, ask your boss about upcoming business trips, and develop expertise around local interest. I know of a school teacher who spends all her vacations and summers in the Caribbean running a local resort's Kids Club.  Her expenses are taken care of, and she gets paid.

Contests - I have a friend who entered a contest regarding cigarette trivia and won a an all expenses paid trip to Arizona for two. She didn't smoke, but had to pretend she did and was forced to spend many a day hot-boxing it in a tour van with other winners who actually were avid smokers.  She spent the week in a nice hotel room, eating great food, and seeing amazing sites. Despite the smoke, she said it was worth it and the company even paid for the taxes for the prize.

While I don't recommend pretending you're a smoker or lying to forge a path to free travel, I do recommend entering sweepstakes and contests to earn free hotel rooms, airfare, and tours. With the current economy, the travel industry is getting creative about enticing visitors, so start researching and get to work.

Credit Cards - Frequent flyer miles, free hotel rooms, and free reward incentives are common.  I've found most people don't earn frequent flyer miles because they never take the time to sign up.  They think it'll take too long to earn anything of real value.  It took my husband and I 3-years to earn enough miles for two round-trip tickets to Europe.  It was worth it and those years seemed like a small investment for free travel.  The taxes and fees ended up being about $300 total for both of us, but compare that to upwards of $1,600 for airfare to Scotland.

Services - People will pay someone reliable to deliver their precious artwork, antiques, TV's and more for a fee.  Go on craigslist or post ads to find customers in route to your vacation destination. You could also consider driving a car across country in exchange for expenses and an airline ticket back.

Freegan Travel - New York has a strong freegan presence and  everyone knows move-out day at NYU is prime real estate for dumpster diving.  Rumors of working ipods, new TV's, computers, and pristine books rip through the city. While I don't necessarily advocate dumpster diving, you can get creative about freegan-style travel. Find a ride-share and barter your services, go online and find free events, show up at free wine tastings, attend free seminars, find a free place to stay at couchsurfing.com, and meet up with like-minded semi-freegan travelers.

However you decide to travel, just remember that paying for it, at least in full, is an archaic and limiting idea. Don't let preconceived notions about travel being expensive keep you from doing it for free.

If you liked this story, you also might like:

Unique lodging for the budget traveler
Tips from a Budget Traveler
Put your vacation on layaway

Email me your budget travel questions and challenges at travelexaminer@yahoo.com.  I'll post them here and help you get on the open road.