Traveling At Night To Save A Little Money?

Discussion in Travel started by Denis Hard • Feb 13, 2016.

  1. Denis Hard

    Denis HardWell-Known Member

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    The logic behind it is this: if you travel at night and sleep in the train, bus, etc, and it's a long journey then you'd have saved the money you would have spent on one night's accommodation in a hotel or elsewhere. It certainly is an easy way to save a little money but I doubt most people would try it unless circumstances force them to.

    Would you try this?
     
  2. gata montes

    gata montesActive Member

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    As my preference has always been to travel overnight - simply because - its generally a quieter more relaxing way to travel - I already do this. However - as late night travel does have the extra benefit of being way cheaper - I too would agree that it is a smart move if looking to save even more money on holidays - especially as - the reductions on mid-week late night flights - are more often than not - usually quite significant - meaning you're almost guaranteed to save more than just a little money.
     
  3. DreekLass

    DreekLassWell-Known Member

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    Hmmm. I had never really thought about this concept before, and I have never heard about it before. It seems very crafty and smart on paper, but as far as whether I would feel safe enough to do something like this is another story. Firstly, I would not be sleeping on a bus or train or anything like that. I would have to keep my eyes open, so I don't know if that defeats the purpose.
     
  4. gracer

    gracerActive Member

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    Traveling at night can indeed be a way of saving the money you're supposed to spend on a hotel accommodation but for me personally, I don't really feel rested once I wake up from my sleep on the bus so it's hard for me to function well for the rest of the day. Maybe if I'm just traveling for vacation, it could be a good choice for me but if I'm traveling for a business trip I think I would have to rent a hotel room so my mind would be clear and alert the whole day and my meetings would become successful. :)
     
  5. DreekLass

    DreekLassWell-Known Member

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    If it was a matter of me having my own personal manner of transportation, such as a vehicle of my own, or a friend's vehicle, then I would be much more relaxed about this idea. But the idea of there being strangers around me at night, and me sleeping in their presence does not sit well with me.
     
  6. Theo

    TheoWell-Known Member

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    I've done this many times to save accommodation costs or when I backpacked to save on staying overnight while transiting. Also it's a good way to travel if you only have a weekend of a few days, as you are maximizing your time. I've slept on trains, mainly and most people are used to it, or I would choose a night flight and arrive the next day somewhere instead.
     
  7. purplepen88

    purplepen88Active Member

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    I have done this when I've travelled to England. This works great on long plane rides. I don't mind sleeping on planes so this is a win win for me. You save a bit of money taking these late night flights and you save not having to get a hotel room for that night. I find if I get a 4-5 hours of sleep on the flight I can through the rest of my day when I land in the early morning and my vacation is not ruined. It is a bit harder if you are traveling across time zones and you are spending a day or two getting used to the time change.
     
  8. Briannagodess

    BriannagodessActive Member

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    We haven't really done this since we have a child with us on our trips. One, the roads are darker at night and more dangerous. Two, I don't think he can sleep continuously for eight hours on the car. Three, car accidents happen in the places we travel to.

    We like travelling during the day because it has broad daylight and allows my husband to see the road clearly. If we might need anything, it's easier to find stores when it's day time. And my son can sleep continuously on the hotel at night.

    But I figured for couples this can work and most especially for solo travellers. And after all, saving money is always good, right?
     
  9. Corzhens

    CorzhensWell-Known Member

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    We were in the travel expo the other weekend. We bought plane tickets for Bangkok, Thailand which was being offered for $300. However, the departure is at night so we arrive to the hotel by midnight. And the return trip is early in the morning. My husband immediately declined but the alternative was $380, that's quite an amount considering there were 5 of us who would travel. Hmm, after some thinking, we got the $300 round trip tickets.
     
  10. isabbbela

    isabbbelaWell-Known Member

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    I do that a lot when I'm going to my hometown. It takes 6 hours by bus, but I don't do it to save money, but to save time. If I go on the weekend, I will waste a good chunk of my time going during and coming back during the day. So I simply travel at night and enjoy the whole weekend with my family.
    And I would, definitely, do that as well to save money!
     
  11. Taraa

    TaraaActive Member

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    Yeah i also agreed with some members here. Sleeping in bus or in any other transportation means, is really hard and if i will be in such condition so i will book a room for the rest of the day and first will do proper rest and next day will continue my tour. So i won't apply this condition on myself it wouldn't save my money at all.
     
  12. Tina122321

    Tina122321Member

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    We have gone on road trips and traveled through the night. I am comfortable sleeping in the car but my husband is not. The kids sleep fine in the car. If we ever go anywhere in a plane I would be fine with a night flight. It would be great to save time as well as the money. I probably wouldn't want to sleep on a bus but then again I haven't ever traveled on a bus. It probably would depend on how nice it was. I have slept on a train before and it was no big deal.
     
  13. MrsJones

    MrsJonesActive Member

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    This is something we use to do but never thought about how that could save us money. We just enjoyed having a smooth road trip.
     
  14. steph84

    steph84Active Member

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    I did this when I took an 8 hour bus ride form Los Angeles to Oakland. I thought of it as gaining a day in town and not having to worry about traveling during the day and missing a bunch of time that I could have spent with my boyfriend while we were in a long distance relationship. Also, if you travel at night you don't really see to many kids or babies on the road and it tends to be quieter.
     
  15. Taraa

    TaraaActive Member

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    Bad Idea i never prefer to travel at night if I... so i would love to have next day for rest and would love to have a journey there from next day. I prefer to travel in a fresh mood that makes me more happy.
     
  16. DrRipley

    DrRipleyExpert

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    We used to do this but only to beat the traffic and saving on money is just a secondary result but also thought of when making the decision. I think it's great because we get sort of an extra day but it does take a bit of effort to wake up at an odd hour or to drive without sleep, not to mention that can be dangerous. I think if the trip is short then it would be okay but if it were a longer drive then there should be a lot more planning involved but yeah I think it's a pretty good and effective tactic.
     
  17. xTinx

    xTinxWell-Known Member

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    I am giving it some serious thought. I've had my fair share of night travels and not only did they frighten me but they sapped me of much needed energy the next day (causing me to miss a lot on the first day I got to my destination). I once rode a night bus going to a northern province. The trip would take 14 hours. I fell asleep an hour later, just around midnight. I didn't wake up until 6 in the morning but to my horror - the bus had froze lopsided at the middle of the road and I was the only person inside it! I semi-panicked and looked out the window. Every passenger was outside. Apparently the engine died and one of the tires almost broke. It had happened around half past 4 AM and I was oblivious to everything for nearly 2 hours! Thankfully no one was hurt.

    In another one of my night travels, I was in Vietnam, and had to spend 30,000 dong for a mere taxi ride from the Ho Chi Minh airport to the heart of Saigon. Apparently, the driver duped me and because he couldn't speak English, he was getting frustrated. Fearing that he might stab me or call some thugs to assist him, I let the issue go and just gave him what he wanted (at the cost of my budget). My bad for not sleeping in the airport until daylight.
     
  18. rz3300

    rz3300Active Member

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    Well we did not plan on it, but it did end up working out for us a couple of nights when we were in Italy, and with rates being so high for hotels we did save a good amount of money. I think that it would take a little more planning, but it makes sense if you can do it right. Why not just sleep and travel and get them out of the way at the same time.
     
  19. Taraa

    TaraaActive Member

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    I would say both of you had good time in Italy right? Was great to know for me as i was pondering to have a tour there and wants to book with some online agnecy for a week longer tour there. rz3300! Would you like to share more information with me or having any idea about how much i have to pay...??? Need an estimate from your side to get help.
     
  20. NikkiR

    NikkiRMember

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    The red eye flights are cheaper than most. I find sleeping on planes quite easy, so I usually choose them when they are available.
    I also like to road trip at night. There are fewer cars on the road so you get where you are going much faster. I hate traffic jams.