Travelling in the times of FOREX Fever!

An old, old jungle saying – “When the Phantom sneezes, the Rupee falls!”

The proverbial Phantom has sneezed! The Rupee is in free fall and most travel budgets have shrunk to the size of molecules! The Rupee has devalued sharply against the USD, EUR and GBP. And as luck would have it, these currencies cover the most sought after travel destinations! Can we do something about it? For the purpose of this blog post, however, we will rule out robbery, dacoity and other forms of armed coercion!

Well, as it turns out, there can be a few things that could help manage our travel budget in these times of FOREX Fever! Here are some pointers:

1. Domestic Vacations

Duh! Instead of taking stay-cations (Stay-at-home vacations!) we could explore some domestic destinations. There has never been a better time to explore Incredible India. In fact even your own state might throw up a few surprises, if you look hard enough. In recent times the State Tourism Departments have invested heavily in tourism infrastructure and some of the domestic tourist spots have truly improved. Check out the Dooars in West Bengal, Maharashtra, Gujarat, The North-East, Sikkim, Kashmir and Kerala.

2. Choose your Destination smartly!

If travelling internationally is a must, then choose a destination that burns less of a hole in the budget. With the USD and EUR scorching right now, most of Europe and US are practically ruled out. Look at destinations where the currency has not devalued sharply against the Rupee. Example: South Africa, Mauritius, Kenya, New Zealand and Australia. South East Asia and the Middle East will still remain popular destinations. In fact this link here gives a very reasonable package to South Africa. Check it out! You could also opt for destinations like Bhutan and Sri Lanka. Easy on the pocket, yet exotic enough to get your American cousin to swoon!

3. Go with a Small-wig!

You could go with a smaller travel operator, instead of the booking with the Bigwigs! They usually have high markups and will not customize your itinerary. Choose a travel operator, which promises better value for money. In fact more often than not you will find a better deal with the smaller operator. Also, you may be able to wrestle out a few extra inclusions! Here is a link which does just that!

4. Get Involved, Get Dirty!

You could plan the itinerary yourself. You will be surprised as to how much information is available on the internet when it comes to booking holidays. Here is a link to what is the Wikipedia of train travel! Another smart way to save money, take a train instead of a flight. When it comes to booking Hotels, choose hotels which are close to the city centers or airports or train stations. This helps save valuable currency on Taxi fares! Check with Tripadvisor before confirming a booking either directly or with your travel operator. If all this is too much for you, then get your travel advisor to do this for you. Some operators like this would gladly do it for you for free! However some amount of involvement always helps.

5. Deals!

Take advantage of deals. A lot of tour operators would have a certain promotional budget. This would usually be used to push sales in certain categories. This is in effect is a subsidy on your Holiday! Take it! Travel Happy! Links here and here!

6. Customise your itinerary smartly!

Beware of inclusions which are more of tourist traps. Opt out! Here your trusted friend “Google” comes mostly to help. The other option is to get someone to do it for you, preferably for free! Choose an itinerary that includes some meals. Sometimes (if meals are not included) a breakfast could cost you an arm! Beware!

7. Book early!

Plan and book your travel early so that you are insured against cost escalations. Also, the rates are much lower when the travel dates are a few months off!

This last one is not much of a tip! Feel free to ignore this or the stupid jungle saying about the Proverbial Phantom! Mostly Gibberish! We tend to do that sometimes!

Travel Smart, Travel Happy!