So you are planning your big dream travel vacation, but are concerned about the cost? Although the when and where of the plan are the main points, it is the little details in-between that can really make a trip worthwhile. By utilizing some of the following travel tips, you may be able to achieve memorable trip while saving money and precious vacation time.Transportation* Fly “open-jaw” – If you are going to travel to multiple cities during the course of your trip, instead of a purchasing a round trip ticket, it may be cheaper overall to fly into your 1st city and fly out of your final city. This can save in transit costs between destinations. For example, if you are planning a trip to Rome, Bologna, Florence, and Milan, it will most-likely cheaper and definitely less time-consuming to fly into Rome, take a train between points, and fly home from Milan.* Use Rail and Local Transit Passes – For extended multi-city trips, an inter-city/country rail or local transit pass can be a big saver. In Europe, Eurorail offers multiple-use rail passes within and between many countries for a fraction of the cost of buying multiple individual trip tickets.* Take Regional Airlines – For short multi-city travel, small regional airlines can be a convenient and lower-cost option to the big carriers.* Turn layover cities into destinations – Instead of just providing a “fly-through” tourist experience, desirable layover cities can also become part of your vacation itinerary. For instance, you can break up what is normally a round trip route to Bangkok via Hong Kong into segments. Buy the round trip to Hong Kong instead and then use a low-cost regional carrier for the short round trip to Bangkok. The cost difference may actually be minimal and worth the net-gain of an extra regional tourism experience.* Take advantage of off-season and weekday discounts – The travel pricing laws of supply and demand apply are very well illustrated by the noticeable discounts that can be acquired by flying to certain destinations outside of the peak tourist season and during weekdays.* Last minute cruises – A week-or-two before launch, cruise lines are usually very aggressive in trying to fill vacancies. If you have an open vacation time-frame, seek out these last-minute bookings for great cruise bargains.* Fly into cheaper nearby cities or airports – The busiest hub airports are often more expensive to fly into. For instance, Paris’s Orly can sometimes be a cheaper and less-hectic alternative to the busy beehive of Charles de Gaulle.Lodging* Private homes instead of hotels – Instead of a hotel, it may be cheaper to rent a private home or condo in your target destination. To protect yourself in the case of a dispute, use a credit card and book it through a reputable vacation rental organization or website. Just like an eBay user, if a private owner wants repeat business, they will be diligent in protecting their seller rating.* Travel and sleep at the same time – You can sometimes save time and money during multi-city trips by using booking overnight rail or boat routes and sleeping along the way to the next destination.* Search for discount codes – You can sometimes find good deals on hotels and rental cars by searching online for discount codes. Popular sites like couponmountain.com and retailmenot.com specialize in listing current promotional codes on a wide range of items and services.* Bargain with hotels directly – Call area hotels and ask to speak to a manager when trying to negotiate a good nightly rate.* Take advantage of membership discounts – If hard bargaining is not your forte’, you can still take advantage of pre-negotiated group discounts by mentioning your membership in organizations such as automobile or senior discount associations.Shopping & Dining* Often, the best deals can be found just off of the beaten path – Even a few blocks from a major tourist attraction or district can make the difference between paying tourist prices versus shopping and eating like a local.Sightseeing* Use taxi drivers as tour guides – For the right price, private taxi drivers may sometimes be able to personally transport you to various sights over the course of a day. This is especially mutually beneficial in countries where a tourist can pay a fraction of a normal tour price and a driver can make more than they would for one normal day’s work.* Casual eavesdropping – If you are at a major tourist attraction and within the vicinity of a tour guide speaking loudly in your language, you can often enjoy the collateral benefits of a professional guided tour without the expense.Currency* Exchange currency at the cheapest location – Instead of using airport currency exchanges or a bank in your home country, going to a local bank in a foreign destination city or using an ATM may actually yield a better exchange rate.