Planning a trip to Paris doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg. With great planning you can save tons of money and make the best out of your trip. In this blog post, I will share top 15 ways to save money on your Paris trip.
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Top 15 Ways To Save Money On Your Paris Trip
Like I was saying on the onset, traveling to Paris doesn’t have to cost you an arm and a leg even though Paris is currently one of the most expensive cities in the world according to a recent study, you can still even on a tight budget enjoy the best activities of the city. You can also have some left over money to treat yourself to something fancy. In this blog post, let’s see the top 15 Ways that you can save money on your Paris Trip.
Before your Paris Trip
Book your flights in advance at least 6 months before your departure dates. You have probably heard it several times but it is true, planning early can save you lots of money than to book a trip last minute.
Booking platforms
If you arent’t familiar with booking platforms, I encourage to do so. Familiarizing yourself with different booking platforms allows you to understand the range of options available for flights, accommodations, transportation, and activities. Each platform may offer different prices, deals, and features, so knowing which platforms to check can help you find the best deals and options for your trip.
Some are some of the booking platforms that you can look up:
- Expedia
- Hotwire
- Kayak
- Priceline
- Agoda
- Google Flights
- Skyscanner
Read reviews
Many booking platforms include user reviews and ratings for accommodations, tours, and activities. By browsing these reviews, you can gain insights into the quality and experiences of other travelers. Doing so will ensure that you make informed decisions regarding your trip.
Understanding Policies
Each booking platform has its own set of terms, conditions, and cancellation policies. By familiarizing yourself with these policies beforehand, you can avoid surprises. This is particularly important when it comes to cancellation fees, refund policies, and booking flexibility, especially if you fall sick right before or during a trip.
Travel off season to Paris
Traveling during the busiest seasons of the year will cost you and arm and a leg. If you can try to stay away from traveling uring that time. Tickets prices can easisy doubled, tripled etc… and you will be the left with less money to spend on other activities.
Speaking from experience, I remember booking a trip from Paris to Copenhagen, Danemark during one of the busiest travel seasons in France. I ended up paying my ticket round trip, 150 euros. A week later, while on the metro, I saw an advertising for the same destination with the same airline for half of the price I spent. I learned my lesson the hard way. Unless it is a family emergency or a necessity try to travel off peak travel/holiday season.
Travel on cheaper days to Paris
I usually book my flights early Tuesday and wednesday morning to get the best deals.Althought some might argue that this does not really matter, I disagree with them. I have noticed from experience that booking my flights on a Tuesday or Wednesday cost me less money. One thing that I do agree with many travel experts is that you have to be flexible when it comes to traveling. This means that you may even have to travel to a favoirte destination at a time that you probably wish not to travel to.
Clear up your browser
Clearing up your browser cache and cookies before searching for flights is a tactic that I and many people use to potentially find cheaper fares. Airlines and travel websites sometimes use cookies to track your browsing history and may adjust prices based on your search behavior.
The effectiveness of this tactic isn’t guaranteed, as airlines use various factors to determine ticket prices. Ticket prices can fluctuate rapidly due to demand and other variables. Consequently, get ready to book your flight the minute you find a good deal.
Use a VPN
A VPN stands for Virtual Private Network. It’s a technology that creates a secure and encrypted connection over a less secure network, such as the internet. VPNs are commonly used to protect sensitive data transmission and ensure online privacy by routing your internet traffic through a remote server and hiding your IP address. They’re also used to bypass geo-restrictions and allowing users to access content that may be restricted in their region.
With a VPN installed on your Pc, laptop of phone, you can book a trip to Paris by using a different location where it cost less money to do so.
Shop around
Shop around different travel sites to get the best deals on flights. As I previously stated the sooner you start the better you can book your international trip and save on airfares.
Book an apartment in Paris
Booking an apartment will cost you less than booking a hotel. If for whatever reason you rather be in a hotel room, book one that has a kitchenette that way you can prepare your own meals and save big on eating out. Also booking a room with free breakfast included is also a great option. TFor Paris travel, try sites such as:
- Booking.com
- Airbnb
- Apparthotel
You can also save money by contacting a hotel directly to see what promotion or discount they might be willing to give you. Although Booking.com is a well known platform to book hotel stays, I have noticed that some hotel prices are higher on booking.
Free breakast
Eating out can definitely set you back so if you can, find a hotel with breakfast included. As you know not all hotels serve a great breakfast. You will have to read comments on travel Facebook groups and forums to get some recommendations from fellow travelers. If you are like me and rather eat breakfast at a coffee shop outside of the hotel, search for one with affordable prices.
While in Paris
Limit going out. If you do, go where locals go. I love the Belleville open market for affordable fruits and veggies. It is one of the cheapest markets in Paris. The market is open on Tuesday and Friday. Get there via line 2 and exit at Belleville.
Walk in Paris
If you can walk instead of spending money on public transportation then do it. The great think about Paris is that you can walk easily to a lot of places.
Do free things In Paris
If you are searching for free things to do in Paris you might like these posts:
Stay away from tourists traps
Unfortunately, there are lots of tourist traps in Paris. One area that I will not advice you to go eat is Saint Michel in the 5th district. There are lots of restaurants there and based on what I have seen on TV and experienced, it is not worth going there to eat. If you want to eat for cheap try a Bouillon. They have several locations thoughout the city.
Conclusion
Planning and booking a trip is not that complicated and to save money, you just have to be ready to do some research. I hope that these 15 ways to save money on your trip to Paris helps you make an educated decision. Feel free to share this post with others and to bookmark it to refer back to it later.
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