Luxury vacations sound like an awesome thing, but some of us believe that they’re simply too expensive. With these tips, you’ll be able to have a luxury vacation for cheap now.

How to have a luxury vacation for cheap?

1. Visit a cheap destination

The best way to have a luxury vacation for cheap is to visit a cheap destination. There’s no way you’re going to find a deal in the Maldives, but perhaps Thailand will do? In Thailand, you can get a decent hotel for $50 a night, nice meals for just a few dollars, and a 30-minute massage for next to nothing. Even if you added all that up, you still wouldn’t be spending very much a night.

Visiting a cheap destination is also a relative term. It doesn’t matter if you’re visiting Jamaica, the Dominican Republic, or Mexico, each country has “cheaper” parts where you can get good value. Also, if you book a 3-star hotel instead of a 5 star, you can still get a great vacation at a reasonable price.

2. Travel during the off-season

You must know by now that travelling the off-season can save you big. Not only are flights cheaper during the off-season, but so are hotels. These opportunities to save can mean a luxury vacation for cheap. Visiting a city that’s normally popular in the summer such as Boston or New York will be way cheaper in the winter. The best thing is, these cities usually have plenty of winter activities or special events to keep things interesting.

You also need to think about the seasons of the locations where you’re headed to. Australia’s winter is from June until the end of August. It’ll be colder, but again, prices will be cheaper. You could also travel during typhoon season in parts of Asia. There’s definitely a risk that weather can ruin a few days, but if you’re looking to have a luxury vacation for cheap, sometimes you need to take that gamble.

3. Join a rewards program

Don’t ever underestimate the value of rewards programs. They’re simple enough. Sign up, be loyal, and you’ll eventually be rewarded for that loyalty. It may seem like it’ll take forever to earn something, but there are a few ways to earn rewards faster. First off, get a credit card that co-branded with your favourite airline or hotel chain. By doing so, you’ll earn points for every purchase you make.

Now think about other rewards programs available to you such as grocery store rewards or even cash-back cards. Although those rewards programs won’t earn you free travel, what you could do is take the money you’ve saved from those programs and then put it towards your vacation. It’s really just about maximizing your rewards regardless of where they come from.

4. Splurge on one night

Luxury vacations for cheap is a relative term. First, you need to decide on what you actually define as luxury. Is it a nice hotel room, fancy meals, or cool activities? Even if it’s all of the above, you can make that luxury vacation affordable by splurging for one night. Think about it, if you splurged for a night on a fancy hotel room and took advantage of all the amenities, that’s pretty much a luxury vacation. It won’t be for your entire trip, but that’s how you make things affordable.

The same thing applies to meals and activities. I think it’s just fine if you want to book yourself a table at the nicest restaurant wherever you’re visiting. Just don’t do it every night. Want to do a day cruise or off-roading as an experience? What’s stopping you? You’re always going to spend while on vacation, as long as you manage your budget, you can have those luxury experiences at a reasonable price.

5. Take advantage of flight deals.

Sometimes, finding an awesome flight deal is all you need for a luxury vacation. If you’re fully flexible, try a search everywhere feature while selecting cheapest month as your date. We’ll search our 1,200+ partners to find you the best flight prices available right now. Even if you have a set location in mind, we’ll still show you the cheapest upcoming flights.

Now if you have a set location in mind, there can still be deals to be found. Search for your flights with the dates entered after you’ve selected search and we’ve returned the available flights, just click on the get price alerts button. After inputting your info, we’ll send you an email whenever prices change.