Accommodation is often a significant expense, and lowering this one cost can significantly impact your overall savings. Most people think that the choice of accommodation is limited to cheap university dorms, but that's far from the truth.

There are lots of options including on-campus housing, private studios, shared apartments, homestays, hotels, hostels, AirBnB and more.

Regardless of whether you are going solo, with a friend, or as part of a university group, there are lots of ways you can save on your travel accommodation.

Here, we have some tips and tricks that can help you find the best stay deals and prevent you from being scammed and breaking the bank. 

 

Important Questions to Consider

  • How much money do you have?
  • Where are you going to be studying?
  • Do You Want Roommates or Prefer to Live Solo?
  • Does it matter if the place is furnished or unfurnished?
  • Are amenities important to you?
  • Are discounts available?

 

1. Work Out Your Budget

Before departing you will need to decide what you can afford. You will need to budget for things like flights, visas fees, insurance, tuition, food, transport, entertainment and activities. Some universities offer help with accommodation but if you aren't keen to book somewhere online before arrival you might want to book to stay in a hotel, AirBnb or a hostel on arrival and this is an extra cost to consider. When you have an idea of how much money you have this will help you to narrow down your search for somewhere to stay.

 

2. Think Location

Firstly, what will you do with a cheap location if it is miles and miles away from the town or university? What this will do is, it will add to your transportation costs.  

'Whichever part of the world you travel to, you need to stay in a central area that is close to the local attractions, public transport, food outlets, the beach, airports, and the park. Further, from your stay, you should be able to walk and reach to most places conveniently,' advises Sarah, an educator who offers online assignment help Australia services. 

Well, we agree with Sarah on this as this tip can not only help you save money but will also save you a lot of time. You also need to decide if you want to live on-campus or off, this will help you to decide the location.

 

3. Sign in to Save More

It does not take over a minute to subscribe or sign up on a booking site or a hotel website. However, this one minute that you spend there can account for some mega savings. Not sure, how? Let us explain it with an example. 

There are several online booking websites, which offer several reward programs. You can use these programs to earn a free night's stay after a certain number of days' booking or earn credit. Additionally, there are also some members rewards programs wherein members earn exquisite discounts.

Now, a lot of you may be apprehensive of signing up to these websites because they tend to swamp your inbox with e-mails. If that's your concern, fret no more. What you can do is snag the deals with a one-time sign-up option. This will give you a login ID, and then you can click on unsubscribe from all e-mails following it. 

Several companies have their members-only rewards program. These include:  

  • Expedia: It has member-only price slashes. 
  • Hotels.com – You can find members-only points and prices. So, if you book nine stays with them, the 10th one is free. 
  • Booking.com – It has exclusive members-only prices. 
  • C-trip: It is functional in China and fetches you credit with your every booking. 
  • Agoda: It has members-only prices. 

 

4. Be as Flexible as Possible

One of the best ways to save on your airfare and stay is by being flexible. So, if you can move a day backward or ahead, you may end up saving a huge sum of money while traveling. So, for this, you need to begin with the basics. 

'If you are a routine traveler - international or local, one of the most consistent and the easiest ways to save money on your hotel bookings is by using your travel rewards credit card,' suggests Raymond, an educator who offers online statistics homework help services.   

What Raymond just said may seem very trivial to you, but once you start using it, you will see a difference. See, you are going to book a hotel, so why not use your credit card for booking when it can pump 1.5 percent cash back or points of the same value into your account. It would help if you opted for a credit card that has travel-specific rewards and comes with zero foreign fees. 

You may not know, but these are the fine margins that can help you find the cheapest hotel bookings. And guess what, there is no additional effort from your end to enjoy savings like this. You can use your credit card to shop for anything from groceries to gas or make online purchases. You can even build your cashback total or points and use the reward points or cash accrued for making your hotel, flight, or train bookings. Moreover, there will be zero foreign transaction fees on your purchase, which is the card's quintessential advantage, and the cashback is only a bonus. For regular travelers, the travel rewards card is the best pick.  

 

5. Seek Discounts

Throughout the year there are discounts available online. Sometimes, calling a hotel or student accommoation direct and inquiring about the rates can work to your advantage over simply booking from the website. 

'When you call, the accommodation would want your business. So, they will most likely create an exclusive package or offer you an extra discount to nudge you into making the booking,' points out Sherry, an online precalculus tutor.  

Alternatively, calling is also a good option to find out about extras, such as checkin/checkout, if free Wi-Fi and a complimentary breakfast is included, and other things not available with direct online bookings. 

 

Studying abroad in Australia is an amazing experience but it is important to get accommodation arranged early. Hopefully our tips will help you save more. Have you ever been to study Down Under and do you have any recommedations? Let us know in the comments below.