6 Ways to Save Money for an Arizona Vacation

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My boyfriend and I just took a trip to Arizona and it was BEAUTIFUL! If you’re looking for a way to save money in Arizona, keep reading! I highly recommend traveling to this Southwestern state to see copious amounts of red rocks, mountains, and of course, the Grand Canyon! 

We saved a lot of money on our trip which allowed us to splurge on a tour I really wanted to take, and alleviate the guilt of spending so much money on eating out. I even left with some extra spending cash that can now go to my next vacation!

Is Arizona on your travel radar? Then read on ahead for a multitude of ways to save on your next trip.

Save Money on the Flight

There are so many ways to save on flights, we’ll go over some of the most popular here, including what I did to save.

1. Credit card points – this is how I paid for a majority of our flights. I had saved up enough points to go, but not with the same airline. We flew American Airlines to Phoenix, and United on our way home. 

Do you have a bunch of credit card points saved up? It takes a bit of planning, and I highly recommend you book far in advance, but you can find amazing deals to different areas of the country for pretty cheap, and sometimes almost free.

You do have to pay the taxes and fees, but on a domestic flight, it usually adds up to under $20 per person. I also recommend you transfer your points directly to an airline and book that way, rather than through a credit card portal. You usually get better rates that way.

2. Discount sites – there are many popular discount sites that can help you save on flights. Popular sites like Kayak and Expedia use (explain how they operate)
3. Cheaper booking days – it is actually cheaper to book at certain times. When booking with points, I have noticed it is cheaper to book as far in advance as possible before the deep discounts or gone. When booking with cash, I have noticed the cheapest times tend to be a few months before my travel dates. And yes, it is usually cheapest to book on a (insert day of the week). 

Please note that this is just advice. Airline prices fluctuate constantly, and I once booked a cheaper flight only a month ahead of my travel date rather than the usual three. Use sites like (insert flight tracking sites) to keep see flight price trends and even track prices for an upcoming trip! 

4. Search in incognito browser – I have heard this one is a myth, but I have in fact seen cheaper prices on my incognito browser than on a regular browser when searching for certain flights. I have never seen a major fluctuation (ie, I’ve never seen a flight be hundred of dollars cheaper in incognito), but I have seen my flights be up to $50 cheaper. Combine this with other discounts, and you can reach significant savings.
5. Bags and Seats – it seems like every time I turn around, airlines are adding on new fees. Here are some ways to save
   1. If your airport is a hub for a specific airline, or if you usually fly one airline when you travel, I would highly recommend getting a credit card for that airline. My United card and American Airlines card offer perks such as one free bag for a certain amount of people booked, and basic economy free seat selection. There is an up-charge for certain seats, but I do get to select seats at time of booking, rather than when checking in, allowing me and my boyfriend to sit together without paying extra. 
   2. Fare upgrade – When booking your flight, the airline tends to bombard you with fare upgrades that include perks like flight changes and a free checked bag. Pay attention to these. When I booked my flight to London, the upgrade cost less than a baggage fee, meaning I was able to bring a bag at a discounted rate.
   3. Check in early – As soon as you can check into your flight (which is usually 24 hours before the flight, and before you get a notification), you should. This ensures you get the best seat selection before others choose theirs, for free.
   4. Fly with the same airline – Many airlines have reward programs for free. Make sure to sign up for these and connect the account to your flights Once you fly enough with an airline, you can get loyalty perks like free checked bags, seat selection and early boarding.

Additional “flight” tips: these have nothing to do with booking the trip, but with the flight itself. Remember that many flights give away free snacks and soft drinks. Many flights also have free on screen entertainment. 

Did you know you can search your specific airplane to see what amenities it has, such as seat back screens or snack service? Try searching for your airplane model through the airlines website, but if that does not have the information you need, check out sites like Expert Flyer and SeatGuru.

Get Discount Hotel Prices

Not too long ago it seemed everyone was jumping onto sites like Airbnb and VRBO to get cheap and discounted housing for their vacations. Until those fees got crazy…

It’s no longer always cheaper to book a vacation rental instead of a hotel, and it’s not even as cheap as it used to be to get a hostel. I saved a lot of money in Arizona by booking a hotel.

There is a time and place for Airbnbs, especially if you want everyone to stay in one place, but don’t forget the amenities most hotels have which can boost their value. While looking for lodging for Arizona, I found very few Airbnb’s that were cheaper than the local hotels.

Ultimately I booked a hotel because of the value I was allowed to save with credit card points, and the amenities offered. We had free breakfast, which saved $20 plus per day, free gym access – which we used several times, and free happy hour drinks – two each.

If you’re looking for some ways to save on a nice hotel, here are some tips:

1. Credit card points – I used credit card points to save significantly on our hotel. I would not normally advise to purchase hotel points. Usually it’s cheaper to book the hotel with cash, BUT, while I was looking, the hotel chain we were considering was running a 100% point sale, meaning if I bought 50,000 points, I received an additional 50,000 for a total of 100,000 points. This sale, combined with the points I already had, saved us some significant cash.
2. Hotel programs – Just like airlines, most hotel chains have free programs you can join. Once you have enough stays, you can receive offers like free room upgrades, a free room night, or discounted rates just for being a member.
3. Discount sites – Discount sites like Kayak use algorithms to scour the internet for the best deal, allowing you to see some of the cheapest options when you search. Sites like Hotel Tonight are great for last minute deals – they partner with hotels to help fill last minute vacancies at cheap prices.
4. Bundling – Whether your go directly through an airline site, or use a booking site such as Priceline, airlines, hotels and rental car businesses join together to give you a discount when you book together. 

Save a Ton of Money on the Rental Car

Do you dread the trips where you know you’ll need a rental car because it’s just another vacation expense? Have no fear, we’ve got some tips below to help you save some major cash. 

On my most recent trip to Arizona we knew we were going to be doing a lot of driving, so we immediately planned to book a rental car. We saved almost $200 and got to cruise around in a hot red Camaro! Here’s how:

1. Company discount – many employers offer programs/discounts perks to their employees. I’m my case, both of my jobs offered discount options for rental cars.
   1. One was through a discount portal where I was able to choose my city and it gave me all companies they worked with that offered discounts to get me the fairest price
   2. The other job gave me a discount code to use exclusively with Hertz to get up to 15% off.

I compared the discounts from both with the same type of car selected and then approved the cheaper option

2. Negotiation – This is a big one. Did you know you could negotiate with the rental car companies?? I did not know this for years and just assumed I could only rent cars at the price shown. There are two different ways to negotiate:
   1. Before booking – when you’re searching online for a rental car, those listed prices are negotiable, but only if you call. Agents get commission when they get you to book, especially if it’s an upgrade. They have the authorization to lower the daily prices of certain cars, which gets them a commission and you some extra savings. Don’t always take the first offer either, sometimes they can go even lower.
   2. At the rental booth – so you went online and prebooked your car and now you’re picking it up. There may not be much you can do to negotiate your car, but you can negotiate the upgrades. On our trip to Arizona, my boyfriend weedled for an upgrade to a Camaro from the Malibu I had booked for $20 a day. The agent liked us so much, she added on an extra discount, saving us almost $200 total. While we paid a little more than my original booking, it wasn’t by much. You might be 
3. Credit card perks – got credit cards?? Check out those perks before you book your rental. One of my credit cards offers additional insurance and coverage for rental cars. By using this card to book, I was able to easily waive off the extra protections they offer for additional fees. This saved me almost $150 and have me the peace of mind of having the same coverage for free. 
4. Bundling – when booking your trip, you can often save overall on your flight, hotel and rental car by bundling the three together while booking. While this usually seems to save me the least amount of money, it is still savings! If you don’t have any perks such as credit card points or discount codes, this can be a great way to save some money and book everything in one place.

Bonus tip: pay attention and if you’re not sure of anything, ask. Seriously. Don’t be embarrassed, just ask. We misunderstood when they asked if we wanted to be able to return the car at any fuel level. We were told we would be charged $3.83 per gallon, while the local price was over $4. When we got the receipt, we discovered they charge you for a full tank of gas!

We thought they would charge you for the amount of gas needed to fill the tank to full. That meant if we returned the tank at half tank, we would have paid for an extra half tank we didn’t need. So we did the only thing we could – we returned the tank as close to empty as we dared. 

It worked out for us, but be sure you ask details and questions so you don’t pay for something you may not need.

Keep Food Costs Cheap

Food can be one of the most costly parts of a trip. We don’t usually have the luxuries we have at home, so it’s easy to have a majority of your meals at restaurants and over spend. 

In addition to restaurant prices, all those little quick grab snacks while you’re out and about on your trip tend to be upcharge, pushing your food bill even higher. Here are some money saving tips:

1. Pack snacks – plan ahead and save! Like I mentioned, if you’re out on a tour or at some park, the snacks offered are regularly up charged. Bringing your own snacks that you bought for a regular price can bring significant savings.
2. Book a hotel with free breakfast – this was a big cost saving for us in Arizona, and it can be for you too. There is usually not a significant price difference between the hotels that offer free breakfast and those that don’t. Our breakfast had a buffet style, and a custom order omelet station, so we eat hearty breakfasts to keep us full for the day. We also took a couple of apples and oranges from the buffet to snack on throughout the day.
3. Buy groceries – If you have the luxury of having a kitchen, buy some groceries and cook! It can be difficult and definitely needs to be planned (you don’t want to pay $20 for spices that you’ll only use once), but there are plenty of low maintenance food recipes available. And if you have a bit of a longer trip, you can cook multiple meals using the same ingredients to save even more money!

Food can be costly, but as long as you plan ahead and budget for it, you can easily save some money on your meals.

Save on Drinks

Saving money on drinks may not be your first thought, but it’s definitely something you should consider. We’re not just talking alcoholic drinks here, there are ways to save on regular drinks too!

1. Our hotel had a free happy hour. That’s right, free! We got two drinks each for their happy hour from 5p-6:30 pm. We would not have gone out of our way to come back to the hotel for this, but it happened to line up with the time we were swinging by before dinner. This saved us from buying extra drinks at dinner, saving almost $20 each every night.
2. Check out the local spots, not those flashy advertised areas – I didn’t really see this in Arizona, but in a lot of tourist spots, it can be advantageous to go off the beaten path. Think of places like Margaritaville. A margarita can be $16 or more, and even just a pop (soda) can be $4 plus. If you travel away a bit and go to an authentic restaurant, you can get a pitcher of that margarita for the same price, and a pop for a little over $1. 
3. Ask for samples – this one might be a bit stingy, but it works. At most of the breweries I went to, I’d sample a few beers. By the end of the night, I usually sampled the equivalent of one beer, making it one less that I’d buy throughout the night.
4. Bring extra water – seriously, bring extra water!. Especially if you’re on an active trip, or somewhere like an amusement park, bring as much water as you can. Bottles of water at tourist locations can be $6 or more. By bringing your own water, you can save significantly on little costs like these.
5. Take advantage of fountains – Pay attention to free water fillers such as fountains. Save your water bottle and fill it up if you can, rather than buying another bottle. This water is filtered, and, again, can add up significantly if you’re used to just buying a new drink.

Saving on drinks may not save you as much as a flight or hotel, but it can still save you quite a bit. When my boyfriend and I were on a hike, we went through three bottles of water. Had we needed to buy those, it could have added up to over $15. Imagine if you were spending that every day on a week long trip? That could be $105 that you could save, just by bringing your own water and filling it up when you can.

Get Discounted Activities

What is the point in going on vacation if you don’t do anything? Tours and entrance fees can add up very quickly, so it’s best to plan ahead and look for alternative options.

1. Do you have a fourth grader?? Did you know they get National Parks passes FOR FREE!? If you’re thinking of visiting one of our country’s beautiful national parks, plan it around your kids grade! Once they get that free annual pass, you’ll save on the $30-$40 entry fee wherever you go (entry fee varies by park, but I’ve noticed most of the ones I look at are in that range)
2. Combination passes – with a little bit of research, you may learn that certain passes can be used at multiple locations. We had lunch at a cute little marina that we had to buy a pass for. The pass was also good for a nearby park that had an amazing view. (Truth: we did not make it to the second park so this did not actually save us money, but the pictures I saw online looked amazing.)
3. Are you military or disabled or traveling with someone who is? Many parks and tours offer discounts just for showing your ID. Don’t shy away from these deals, in the long run they can save you a ton of money. 
4. Pre-book – Now this is not true for a lot of activities, BUT, there are plenty of activities out there where you can save some money by pre-buying your tickets. If you have an idea of some events or places you want to see, you may see on their site that it’s $5-$10 cheaper per person when you pre-order. 
5. Take advantage of those free options – If you’re not sure where to go, ask the concierge desk or some locals. I have never been to a city that didn’t offer free tours or activities. In Arizona, we were recommended multiple places to go hiking and walking near our hotel that had amazing views and no entrance fees. Most cities have free tours, and you can learn so much about the area you’re in without spending any money.

Conclusion

Some of the tips in this article may seem inconsequential, but when you add up those little savings over time, they can be significant. It’s best during vacation to be aware of how much you are spending and on what.

Spending a little bit of time doing a lot of research can save significant amounts during your trip, and help save money for other things, including your next trip.

Arizona is such a beautiful state. Don’t miss out because of money, find ways to make it work. And get your camera ready – you will need it!

Breakdown of our trip:

Category	Should Have Cost	Actual Cost
Flight	472.57	220
Hotel	583.5	310
Car	336	219
Food/Gas/Activities	420.25	373.96
Total	1812.32	1122.96
Savings		689.36

*Note – these amounts are just for me. They do not include my boyfriend’s costs – so the flight and hotel costs are halved. 

**Also, had we booked a little sooner, or if I had more credit card points, we could have had this trip for under $800.