The warmth and cheer of the holidays have departed, leaving much of the U.S. with at least three more months of face-numbing winter. But vacations to warmer destinations don’t need to be exclusively reserved for the significantly well-off. Read on for seven ways to travel without having to live on ramen noodles for a month.
Go when and where no one else will.Flying to Hawaii in the winter or Europe in early summer will almost never be the most economical decision, but as Amanda Sundt of iExplore.com told NPR, travelers looking to save money should head to the Caribbean during hurricane season and check out countries in the throes of recession, where prices on hotels and airfare will be low — and tourism revenues will be welcome.

As for seasonal getaways, vacationers on a tight budget need to think outside of the box.
“If you’re going skiing at Christmas,” Sundt said, “it’s going to be expensive.”
Go where the dollar is stronger. The greenback has been surging in value since October, making everything inthe Eurozone, Japan and especially Great Britain essentially on sale.
The best timing for a trip to London or the Scottish Highlands may be around March, when British Prime Minister Theresa May plans to trigger Article 50 of the European Union’s foundational Lisbon Treaty, detaching Britain from the European Union. Both the success of the “leave” vote and May’s more recent comments on the so-called “Brexit” have sunken the pound to historic lows, so there’s no telling what the separation’s execution will do to the U.K.’s currency.
Rent out your room while you’re gone.Why pay rent for a month if you’re only using your room for three weeks? WithAirbnb, travelers can rent out a room for the equivalent of the cost to live there — and then some.
Car owners can do the same with vehicles they don’t plan on using during vacations. Turo allows drivers to temporarily rent out their cars, with coverage under the app’s $1 million insurance policy to boot.
Use alternatives to hotels and rental agencies. Just as vacationers can make some extra cash on their rooms and cars while their gone, they can save by using the same apps while traveling. BlaBlaCar, for example, is an international carpooling service for longer trips than the standard Uber — which itself is generally cheaper than the average taxi.
For even less expensive lodging than Airbnb, travelers should look to hostels. While cleanliness, safety and noise can vary, there are ways to prepare for these bumps in the road as well: As thrift blogger Mel Bondarwrote in a U.S. News & World Report piece on the subject, travel with a friend, pack headphones and bring shower shoes.
Keep a constant eye on airfares.According to an anonymous fare manager interviewed byairfarewatchdog.com, the common perception of an optimal time for ticket buying is a myth, and what’s needed is a bit of obsessive observation.