If you’re looking to spend less on travel this summer, here are a few tips that can help you keep you your travel budget without sacrificing travel quality. Reservations.com offers travelers the resources and guidance they need to travel affordably, easily, and gloriously.

Whether you’re a cost-cutting family or a student with extremely limited funds, if you want to travel, you’ll have to stick to a budget. However, you don’t have to sacrifice fun or comfort just because you aren’t spending a king’s ransom on your vacation! Depending upon where and how you travel, taking a trip doesn’t have to break the bank. You might even spend less money abroad than you would have at home!

If you want to have new and memorable experiences but don’t want to spend a fortune, here are a few cost-cutting tips that will nonetheless maximize your fun!

• Choose a budget-friendly location. If you’re traveling during the summer, you’ll likely spend slightly more on airfare than you would during the off-season. So, if you want to stay within your budget, it will behoove you to select a region that is relatively inexpensive. If you’re traveling within the U.S., Albuquerque, New Mexico; San Antonio, Texas; and that old stalwart Las Vegas, Nevada are highly affordable vacation spots for even the most tight-budgeted traveler.

• Use a budget-friendly booking resource. Reservations.com offers some of the most affordable accommodations available online. It has an easy-to-use interface that allows you to compare prices, and you can find basically any type of vacation rental you want!

• Don’t be afraid to ask for discounts. If you aren’t used to asking for discounted rates, you’d be surprised to discover how many businesses are willing to negotiate or offer special price packages.

• Be strategic with your meals. Enjoying the local food is one of the main pleasures of traveling, but don’t waste your money on a tourist trap that doesn’t offer a unique local experience. Rather than eat at a restaurant at every meal, go to a local grocery store and get a few staples that you can eat cheaply in a park. When you want to dine out and enjoy a great meal, eat where the locals eat, and opt for lunch rather than dinner, since midday menu items are usually cheaper.

• Don’t shop like a tourist. You’ll naturally want a souvenir, so choose wisely, and select something that you’d be proud to display in your home. Some of the best souvenirs are photographs, so take lots of pictures and make a collage or have posters made when you get home.

Reservations.com can make summer travel easy and affordable. If you’re hankering to take a trip this summer, Reservations.com offers fantastic options for budget travel and the opportunity to enhance your enjoyment of your vacation even further with guidance from dedicated Travel Advisors. Simply opt for RCLUB membership when you book your travel accommodations, and enjoy the perks of VIP treatment without VIP prices!

I’m a perpetual vacationer, travel blogger, and food enthusiast. When I’m not on the road, I’m searching for the ultimate pinseria.