Nathan Randall

If you plan to travel overseas and rent a car or borrow a car while you're there, there is something you need to do before leaving the United States. Get yourself an international driving permit (IDP) to accompany your U.S. state-issued driver's license. If you search on the term "IDP" in the TripAdvisor Forums you will find plenty of traveler comments about this topic.

I was playing around on my new Android phone over the weekend looking at apps to download to help save money on travel. One good one you should download is TripAdvisor. You can also use TripAdvisor at their website and it is a great resource for customer reviews and opinions about hotels, attractions and restaurants. It works nicely with Google Maps too.

Bank of America has its share of customer complaints, but they offer their customers at least one really cool service that helps save money on travel. Did you know that Bank of America customers can get free general admission to participating museums, zoos, science centers, botanical gardens and more on the first full weekend of every month? All you have to do is show up and present your Bank of America or Merrill Lynch bank card.

I was at the deli of my local Publix supermarket the other day. The woman behind the counter struck up a conversation with another customer and asked her with the school year ending soon are they planning a summer vacation somewhere. The customer said that they were going to Colorado for three weeks because that's where her mother lived. That got me to thinking about how exactly Americans will manage to pay for their summer vacation escapes this year.

Scams are something we like to pay attention to on our radar screens and our research has helped readers be alert so that they do not fall victim to a scam. Falling victim to a scam is an an express elevator to having empty pockets. In the past we have shared other warnings in diverse areas such as: Sweepstakes Fraud Craigslist Vehicle Scam Timeshare Telemarketing Scam Nationwide Debit Card PIN Pad Tampering Scam Scholarship Scam Payday Loan Collections Scam Our team has uncovered another scam, this time involving a fake vacation contest.

Consumers cut spending in June by the most in nearly two years and saved at a faster rate according to government reports. Less spending means that vacation dependent companies like hotels and cruise ships have to cut prices and organize special travel deals to incent people like you to spend a little money. Want to keep alert about the latest money saving deals for vacation? Here are 4 penny pinching vacation travel tips to help keep more of your hard earned money in your own wallet.

I happen to be traveling as I write this article and I am learning more money saving travel tips on the fly, no pun intended. Two areas of travel that can help you save money are the planning and booking phase and the on site phase once you arrive at your destination. Shopping for travel deals A friend of mine recently shared with me that they were having a lot of success locking in hotel discounts using Priceline's name your own price service.

It is back to school season and our team has provided some money saving back to school ideas. Although spring break may seem eons away, travel companies are busy in the fall booking spring break vacation packages. If you are using a special tour package, you may think everything's taken care of. How sure are you? Flights for many school break trips are by public charter, which have different rules than commercial flights.

There are lots of ways to prevent lost wallet when traveling. Vacation areas frequented by tourists during the day are not generally prone to crime, but vacationers should exercise caution and good judgment at all times. Common Scam To Steal Wallets From Tourists One common approach is for criminals to entice victims into accepting a ride, either as a "personal favor" or by claiming to offer taxi service, and then robbing and, or even worse, assaulting the passenger once they are in the car.

Although these tips may cut short your time with family over the holiday, if you are on a very tight travel budget, follow these five money saving airfare tips: 1. Do Not Procrastinate Booking ahead of time usually saves money. Once you are within two weeks of your travel date, you will pay more, especially on popular routes. Trust us when we tell you that the airlines aren't adding extra flights once they fill up.