Affordable Travel - Staycations

This year a lot has been made of the so called - staycations, vacations which are taken near or at home. Staycations are a great way to achieve affordable travel whether in tough economic times or not.

The nice thing about staycations is that they are more flexible, if it happens to rain on the day planned to go to a local event, go the day before or after. Spontaneous day trips or getaways are also a fun way to add affordable travel into plans between bigger, more expensive trips.

One way to go for a staycation is to visit local festivals and events, museums etc.
Check with the local city, state/province to see what events and festivals are held. Make a day of it or even plan an overnight trip.

Some event ideas as an example in the Greater Toronto Area for are:
Blues festival
Jazz festival
Taste of the Danforth
South East Asia festival
among many more

Rainy day events:
The AGO, ROM, Science Centre, Eaton's Center etc.

Check out your city/regional tourism websites for ideas in your area.

What if your heart is set on Italy but your budget is set on staying home?

Want to feel transported to another country without leaving the city?

Many cities have ethnic neighbourhoods. Explore the neighborhoods for a day. Do some shopping, eat lunch and/or dinner. Mingle with the people in the neighbourhood. Visit Little Italy one weekend, Greek town, Chinatown etc the next. Many of these neighborhoods also hold festivals to celebrate their culture, check them out and feel as though you've travelled the world without the jet lag.

Some ethnic neighborhoods are more authentic than others, keep this in mind when visiting. If the neighborhood is authentic, spending some time in the neighborhood could give you a good idea if you'd actually like to visit the country. Consider it a little sneak peak.

Now that's affordable travel.