While others focus on New Year’s resolutions, my family and I make a dream list of where we want to go. Places we missed last year (Thailand and the Cook Islands) are often postponed, but we are always adding new places (South Korea this year) that – with careful planning – can be made affordable.
According to online travel agency Booking.com, in 2024, more than half of American travelers plan to travel somewhere where the cost of living is cheaper than in their hometown. Sixty percent said they would look for “copycat vacations” or cheaper alternatives to expensive accommodation.
“Consumers are increasingly eager to try new travel destinations, leading them to explore places that are less visited and more affordable,” said Brett Keller, managing director of online agency Priceline.
Frugal strategies—like traveling in the off-season or off-season, traveling where the dollar is strong, and trying unfamiliar destinations—will help make the most of your budget. The following destinations offer fresh and affordable incentives to visit in 2024.
Exchange rate favorites
With a stronger dollar, people buy more abroad. Instead of heading to typically expensive places in the US like Hawaii or New York, take your purchasing power to an affordable destination for a bonus.
Mexico, where $1 is worth more than 17 pesos, has long been a bargain for Americans and remains the most popular international destination, exceeding 33 in 2022 (the most recent year for which statistics from the National Travel and Tourism Office are available). attracted millions of visitors.
The U.S. State Department is warning travelers not to visit several Mexican states because of crime, but not Nayarit on the central Pacific coast, north of Puerto Vallarta.
There, travelers can now visit Islas Marías, a biodiverse archipelago about 60 miles off the coast that has been declared a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve. The government has recently started offering excursions to the former penal colony, which has been converted into an environmental and educational center. For now, weekend trips are available only by ferry from San Blas and cost about 5,000 pesos per person (about $300), including meals, tours and two nights in modernized former prison cells. The hassle-free excursion offers the chance to spot rare species like the yellow-headed parrot and Tres Marías raccoon, as well as migrating whale sharks.
If you pay with US dollars, the costs in Canada are about a third cheaper. Head off the beaten path to the town of Penticton in southern British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley wine region, where there are new one-hour flights from Vancouver and a new Four Points by Sheraton hotel. Prices start at around 135 Canadian dollars or around 100 US dollars. After biking the dramatic Kettle Valley Rail Trail that skirts Okanagan Lake, visit wineries in picturesque Naramata (tastings are $10 at Chain Reaction Winery).
Or travel to Montreal to see “Nature Vive,” Oasis Immersion’s immersive biodiversity-themed light and sound show premiering February 22 (tickets start at $29). This year, Montreal will also have one of six teams participating in the debut season of the Professional Women’s Hockey League (tickets start at about $25).
“Destination Dupes”
Travelers looking to avoid overly touristy and expensive locations have long sought less busy and cheaper alternatives, a trend that has recently become popular on TikTok as “destination dupes.”
With that in mind, instead of checking out the cherry blossoms in Kyoto, Japan, or Washington, DC, consider Modesto, California, the Central Valley’s gateway to agricultural country, during almond blossom season. In February and March, the region’s 1.5 million hectares of almond trees glow with pink and white blossoms. Visitors can take an audio-guided almond blossom ride ($14.99) and listen to a Spotify playlist dedicated to spring by the Modesto Symphony Orchestra.
During your stay, take the new self-guided Street Art Audio Tour ($14.99) to see many of the city’s more than 100 murals. Accommodations range from chain hotels to Airbnbs, which in a recent search started at $65 a night.
Cleveland and Indianapolis are both in the path of the April 8 total solar eclipse, making them astral tourism destinations. But they can also be seen as sporting duplicates for the Olympic Games in Paris.
Ahead of the Olympics June 15-23, America’s best swimmers will converge on Indianapolis for the U.S. Olympic Swim Team Trials at Lucas Oil Stadium, the first NFL stadium to house an Olympic-sized swimming pool (tickets start at approximately $56). U.S. dollar).
The Pan American Masters Games, an Olympic-inspired sports festival for athletes over 30 years old who compete in age groups up to 100+, will take place in Cleveland from July 12th to 21st. More than 7,500 athletes from more than 50 countries are expected to compete in dozens of sports, including stand-up paddling, curling and track and field. Admission for spectators is free.
Affordable wellness
Wellness trips tend to lose luxury, but the popularity of things like forest bathing and meditation have proven that healthy practices don’t have to cost a fortune.
“In 2024, I predict the resurgence of social wellness,” said Yuki Kiyono, global head of health and wellness development at high-end resort group Aman. The company will open Janu Tokyo in March with extensive swimming and therapy pools, which are considered social gathering places in Japan.
For cheaper and closer to home, travelers can gather and relax at hot springs, including the Glenwood Hot Springs Resort in Glenwood Springs, Colorado. This year, the late 19th-century complex about 40 miles north of Aspen plans to expand with five new pools, two with waterfalls (admission starts at $32; rooms at the resort currently start at $179).
For the full spa experience, consider the Art of Living Retreat Center in Boone, NC, which has responded to a 20 percent increase in bookings in 2023 with more than 40 renovated rooms and the installation of a flotation tanks plans.
His three-day happiness retreat uses yoga, breathing and meditation to improve well-being. Bring a few friends and the experience costs $595 per person in a triple room, including program and meals.
Connected with nature
Most visitors head to the Destin-Fort Walton Beach area on the Florida Panhandle to enjoy the white-sand beaches of the Gulf Coast. But the destination is working hard to connect visitors with nature, including installing eight artificial snorkeling reefs since 2019 that attract groupers, snappers, sea turtles and, in the summer, tropical fish. The Little Adventures program runs from April to October and offers educational excursions for children to snorkel, fish and surf (free).
Launched in 2019, the Emerald Coast Open Lionfish Tournament runs May 17-18 ($75) and encourages divers to hunt invasive lionfish and has helped create a culinary market for the fish through partnerships with local restaurants to accomplish. Last year, the event caught nearly 25,000 lionfish, voracious feeders that have no predators and are more easily caught by spearfishing.
“Lionfish are here to stay,” said Andy Fogg, a marine biologist who works for the Destin-Fort Walton Beach tourism bureau. The event’s catch, he added, “gives the native species a breather and establishes them as food fish.”
Visitors can find plenty of affordable accommodations in the area, including La Quinta by Wyndham Fort Walton Beach, which offers rooms starting at $111 per night on Booking.com.
Eco-travellers should consider traveling to southern New Mexico to take part in the Gila Wilderness Area’s centennial celebrations. The first wilderness area in the United States was designated in 1924 after visionary conservationist Aldo Leopold advocated for large areas to be set aside primarily for ecosystem functioning with minimal intervention.
Its original 755,000-acre area is now divided between the Gila Wilderness and the neighboring Aldo Leopold Wilderness, with more than 800 miles of trails between them (access is free). Events in the anniversary year include guided hikes, stargazing and a film festival starting in March. And everything is affordable, including nightly rates in the nearby town of Truth or Consequences, which cost less than $100 a night, according to online travel agency Expedia.
Insider tips
Always take into account what has been overlooked – for savings, of course, but also for surprises.
Lonely Planet highlighted Poland as a budget destination this year (the dollar is worth about 4 Polish zlotys) and pointed out that the Museum of Modern Art in Warsaw will open later this year.
“In Europe we are seeing a growing interest in more unique destinations such as Poland and Bulgaria,” said Bruce Poon Tip, the founder of tour operator G Adventures, who visited Warsaw last year and praised its cultural offerings, including music. G Adventures’ seven-day Budapest to Berlin trip includes Krakow and starts at $1,161.
Travelers interested in architecture and history should consider Tucson, Arizona, where the downtown neighborhood of Barrio Viejo is receiving National Historic Landmark designation this year, officially recognizing its colorful adobe houses built between 1860 and 1900.
Head to the area from the Downtown Clifton Hotel, a stylishly updated 1948 motel (rooms from about $99), and tour with a guide from the Presidio San Agustín del Tucson Museum ($30) or Airbnb Experiences ($50). $).
Follow New York Times Travel on Instagram and sign up for our weekly Travel Dispatch newsletter to get expert tips for traveling smarter and inspiration for your next vacation. Are you dreaming of a future getaway or just armchair traveling? Check out our 52 destinations in 2024.
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2024-01-31 10:00:54
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