OPINION: Vacations for broke people with bad credit.

Because you all deserve a break more than the rich.

I think it’s high time the hardest working people of America get a well-deserved vacation. You know who you are. You’re the one slaving 15 hours a day at some dead-end job trying to feed yourself, your family and making ends meet. You‘re the college grad at some low-wage job, struggling to pay your student loans. You are the single mom or dad that will give anything for your kids, before you treat yourself. You are the economic engine of America, the one’s that understand life isn’t easy, the system is rigged against your own personal and financial advancement, and often than not you are forced to dole out white lies just to bend the rules to make the system work for you.

It’s a well-known fact that financial stress is the worst stress of all. It’s the cause of family arguments, high blood pressure, bad nutrition and that overall feeling of gloom of waking up in the morning having to deal with the debt collectors. It sucks.

Meanwhile the rich people sitting in luxury are clicking away at Expedia dreaming about their next 5-star vacation at some far off 7-star resort. Paying for their fancy Mai Tai cocktails with money earned from your hard labor, earning 10X reward points and 5% cash back on their excessive spending. So they can take even more breaks for free.

I say we need to change that. Aside from the fact that everyone in America should get at least 4 weeks of vacation a year. Everyone should have the ability to finance a trip without paying 30% interest and fees to the credit card sharks. Or having to worry about making rent, just because you needed a break to recuperate and regain your mental sanity.

But vacations don’t need to be expensive either. I have traveled the world, and stayed in far off places like Dubai, paying only $70 bucks a night at Ibis Styles Jumeirah, a beautiful hotel located on the BigBus Tour Route to take me around. And I also found a low-cost airline called FlyDubai to get me there for a couple hundred bucks. But Expedia won’t tell you that. They are just looking to sell you the most profitable deal by the highest paying advertiser. So I made it my mission to find websites where you can get a decent vacation, pay in reasonable installments with 0% interest and get more credit for your next trip if you build a track record.

There are some new travel startups on the web that not many people know about. These include bonvago.com where you can find cheap hotels, 0% book now-pay later options, and also get amazing Zappo’s style customer service. Far from selling advertising, this site actually finds the lowest price and showcases true hotel gems. However, there is a waitlist to get in, so get on it now. Signing up comes with amazing perks like earning up to 100,000 points for referrals, free travel insurance and more.

Similar with airlines, for every Emirates airline there is a FlyDubai low-cost carrier. And for every Air France there is a French Bee. For every Lufthansa there is a Condor, for every Iberia there is a TAP Air Portugal. Airlines like Turkish Airlines get a bad rap, but are actually one of the best airlines in the world. Which can’t be said for their American counterparts. Of course you can visit sites like Kayak.com to find them, but most recently they have taken a more advertiser centric approach. Same is true with trivago.com which is now just complete klick bait owned and controlled by you guessed it — Expedia. Go direct if you can.

Viator is another culprit in selling activities at overinflated prices. Case in point: the Vatican. Access to the Vatican Museums in Rome can be booked on their website for $5 dollars per person if you are a “pilgrim” or $20 if you don’t have a letter from your local parish. Sure, you might have to book a few months in advance, but most of us know when we are going to be there. Viator however will sell you the same “pass the line” tour for anywhere from $300 to $850 per person. Outrageous. Ultimately, hoping that your laziness will be higher than your price pain point or your credit limit. And this phenomenon of overpricing is repeated at pretty much every tourist site in Europe and around the world. Offering a healthy profit for the shareholders of TripAdvisor Inc. (Nasdaq: TRIP)

If anything I hope bonvago.com expands their product offering to include more things like tours and activities, because there will be a big reconning when someone actually cares about the American traveler, rather than just selling to the highest bidder and making you think you are getting a deal. I can certainly understand why they are making people wait, as I am sure the onslaught of web traffic is huge. But don’t say I didn’t give you a heads up about this amazing opportunity to finally get the vacation you so much deserve.

Just to drive home my point, I’ll give you another example for Switzerland. Probably one of the most expensive places to visit, where even a sausage on a bun from a street vendor will cost you $35 bucks. I always wanted to visit Lucerne, known for its preserved medieval architecture, sitting amid snowcapped mountains on Lake Lucerne. I decided to rent a car from a tiny local provider, not only to better appreciate the countryside, but also to avoid costly train tickets. And instead of staying in Lucerne proper, where hotel rooms will set you back $600 per night, I stayed across the lake in Weggis at the Hotel Alpenblick Weggis for $99 per night. The views from my room were breathtaking and even better than any hotel in the city could have offered.

So, just remember, “recommended” on the travel sites just means that someone has paid Booking Holdings a small fortune to be listed at the top. It’s not a deal, its not actually a recommendation and doesn’t even come close to true value or bang for the buck. Unfortunately, it takes a bit of digging to find the true gems.

In closing, here are a four tips to finally get a vacay at a manageable price:

• Fly with international low cost carriers, take only a carry-on and forget about early boarding and seat assignments. If you are travelling as a family, its highly improbable that the airline will place your kids away from you as long as you are all on the same ticket.
• Choose solid discount hotel chains like IBIS, or capsule hotels like Yotel near a bus tour stop. Avoid American chain hotels, there are some many wonderful no-name boutique hotels around the world.
• Instead of Uber and Taxi’s, purchase a Hop-on-Hop-Off bus tour ticket to get you around town for a flat rate. In Europe, try rental cars from local providers, they are all high quality and offer better rates than the American branded behemoths.
• Keep an eye out for online travel startups like bonvago.com that will have the best deals, maximum points and offers available. And for tours book direct on local websites, rather than the big tour aggregators. Your bank account will thank you.

Wishing you safe and happy travels!

Thomas

Thomas is a full-service travel advisor based in Miami, FL. The opinions expressed in this article are solely his and no compensation was paid by any supplier mentioned or referenced in this article.