It’s important to look for some bargains when your pockets aren’t as deep as they used to be. Here are some tips for traveling cheap and in style.

Sign up for e-newsletters: As annoying as they can be- signing up for discount traveling sites newsletters can help you save money when you are very flexible on your plans. Updates will come to your inbox informing you of awesome Las Vegas hotel deals, and cheap airplane tickets to Orlando (and more- those were obviously examples).

Sign up for Airline’s e-newsletters and download widgets: Along the same lines as the above tip, many airlines also have a newsletter that will ping you when they have can’t miss deals. Delta and Southwest are both known for last minute deals that can be found by their newletters or widgets. However with those deals you must act fast- they disappear as quickly as they come.

Be flexible: While many places are slashing prices to be competitive others are raising prices to keep afloat. If you are dead set on a location then try to be flexible on timing. For example many hotels are cheaper during the week then the weekend (depending if they are a tourist location- you will find the opposite if they rely on business travelers). If you are set on your timing then try to be flexible on location.

Do your research: Nobody has a ton of time to sit around and look at every discount traveler’s site, but you can find some great deals. Choose a few- because most are pretty similar and go to town comparing rates. Some good ones are priceline.com, travelocity, orbitz, kayak.com, and many others.

Don’t forget to haggle: I feel like with the internet and all other tools that we have at our disposal that haggling has become a lost art. Many have let the internet take on that role for them. While it may take guts- the payoff can be big! Having worked at a hotel before- I know that haggling can be an acceptable part of the booking process (usually done in person at the hotel). It only works if there are a lot of hotels in the area and the vacancy rate is typically below 70%- but it varies from hotel to hotel. At the hotel I worked for we would have the set rate for the day and then a separate rack that we could not go below. Obviously our goal was to upsell but it was better to go lower than to leave a vacant room.

There are many other things you can do as well to get good deals (please share your tips) but these are some of the very basic tips that have helped me in my travels. Traveling is a luxury that is most likely the first to go when making cutbacks in your budgets. But if done right it may actually help cutback other areas in your budget including therapy bills!

Apparently a flashpacker is someone who can afford to stay in luxury hotels but instead chooses the alternative, cheaper accommodations such as staying at a hostel. According to the article the term flashpacker has the prefix flash- as in stylish, and packer- which is derivative from the term backpacker. There you go a stylish backpacker. The article also specifically states that you are typically over 30 to be considered a flashpacker, that I don’t agree with- because I actually could consider myself to be a flashpacker. Sure I could afford to stay at a nice hotel but I have sometimes chosen the hostel route in order to splurge  on other things while vacationing.

During a time of economic strife, being a flashpacker is a great solution for many who still want to enjoy a good vacation now and then. I seriously recommend staying in hostels to any and everyone I meet. Plus it’s easy to find yourself getting depressed these days and what better way to freshen your mood then to head somewhere new and forget your troubles for a few days! I bet you come back with a fresh perspective on life.

Check out this blog post I wrote on staying in hostels for newbies. It may help ease your fear and tension.

In reality, when the economy falters the first thing to get cut is our vacations. As ironic as this can seem, it’s just the way it is. This reigned true in my situation. I was supposed to be going to Europe next week, but due to financial situations and an unplanned surgery- that trip has gone out the window. While I am sad about this fact it reminds me that while, no I don’t get to go on my Europe trip this year, that things could be a lot worse. We both still have our jobs, which is a blessing considering the industries we are in, and we are able to live comfortably. While there will be no traveling abroad for the likes of us this year, there are plenty of other trips we will be able to make. It’s a scary time for all of us- but as Joe Dirt would say:  “Keep on Keepin on!”