Ok, let’s be real. Who doesn’t like free stuff? And free travel? Does it get any better than that? But, the question is how to travel for free.
If you’re looking to plan a group vacation, there’s a pretty good chance you’ll be able to travel for free. Whether you’re planning an affinity group trip, an incentive trip for your top employees, a family reunion, or any other type of group travel, there are certain perks that come with it—the best one being a free trip!
We’ve outlined a few ways you can travel for free by booking a group trip. It’s more simple than you think!
How to Travel for Free
1. Plan an all-inclusive getaway for a group
If you’ve got a group dreaming about a warm-weather getaway, an all-inclusive resort will be an excellent option and is generally the easiest way to score a free stay. Depending on the resort, if your group is large enough, you may qualify for free nights.
So how does this work, you may ask? As your group travel agent, we will work with you to decide on the best resort for you. Once we narrow it down to the best fit, we will reserve a certain number of rooms based on your estimated number of travelers. Most resorts will provide incentives to boost sales such as complimentary rooms. For example, you may choose a large resort in Cancun that provides one complimentary room for every 12 that are booked. The larger the group, the more comp rooms you get!
The number of rooms booked to qualify for complimentary rooms will vary and is also dependent on peak vs. off-season. If getting a comp room is a top priority for you, we know the resort brands that have the best perks. Just let us know!
2. Plan a cruise group
The complimentary room policy for cruises is similar to that of resorts. You get one complimentary stateroom for every certain amount of rooms booked.
It’s important to remember that most of the time, the complimentary room or stateroom will be either the lowest category available or based on the average room category that the rest of the group has opted for. Upgrades for complimentary staterooms are sometimes available at an additional cost.
Also to note, when booking a group cruise, the complimentary stateroom offered is usually just the cruise fare so there will be other charges such as taxes, port expenses, gratuities, and drink packages. Even still, getting a free cruise fare is a huge perk, and, again, the more people that are booked in your group, the more complimentary staterooms you’ll get!
3. Plan a large escorted group tour
Another opportunity to get free travel is to plan a large escorted tour. An escorted tour is when you’re traveling around to multiple destinations with your group. Generally, accommodation, transportation, and a tour guide are included in the package price.
Popular destinations for escorted tours include Europe, Asia, and Africa. Much like all-inclusive resorts and cruises, if you get enough people on the tour group, your travel could be free. This will vary based on the destination and tour company used, but it is very easy to build in the tour leader’s cost to the package price.
Escorted tours can range from small groups with 10+ travelers to large coach tours with 40+ people. An affinity group is perfect for an escorted tour because it can be curated to fit the shared interest of the group. And the beauty of hosting a private escorted tour group is that it’s extremely flexible and can be built entirely around your group’s needs.
4. Build your travel costs into the group’s package pricing
Because you are the host of the group trip—whatever kind of travel or group it may be—you have the option of setting the package price. If you’d like to build in the cost of all of your travel expenses such as flights and accommodation, we can mark up the per-person package price and advertise it to travelers as such.
By adding your travel expenses to the package price, travelers will be covering your travel. And as always, the more people you get booked in your group, the more opportunity you’ll have to cover your own travel expenses and potentially make your trip free altogether.
We handle all payments and accounting on our end so when the time comes, we will let you know how much will be put toward your reservation.
Conclusion
So there you have it: how to travel for free! Sometimes free really is free. At Onward Travel, we want you to be rewarded for your hard work as the group leader. It’s not easy planning and executing a group trip, so why not get some incentives from it?
The larger the group, the more perks you may be eligible for. And if you’re feeling generous, you could even pass those complimentary rooms off to another lucky group member. Everyone can appreciate free travel!
