The Ugly Flight

Finding reasonable airfares can be one of the most frustrating parts of planning a trip. Everyone wants the best route, seat and airline but the reality of it is that no one, no matter the price, is going to find the full package.

The Golden Rule when it comes to booking flights is to always compare your rates and airlines. Even though the last airline you used gave you the cheapest rates for your last trip does not mean they are offering the cheapest rates the next trip.

Money.usnews.com says that it is best to book flights 7 weeks in advance and 14 weeks in advance if traveling on a holiday. It is also known that cheaper flights are found when departing late at night or early in the morning. You are also likely to experience a layover at some point in your trip. Don’t be afraid or discouraged by a layover, embrace it and use it as time to catch up on missed work or your favorite Netflix show while having peace in mind that you are saving money!

According to farecompare.com Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday are the cheapest days to fly due to them being unpopular travel days. This may be true, but it is important to understand that cheaper rates, days, airlines, and airports are constantly fluctuating with their offers. So do not be upset or discouraged when having a hard time find the best rates while doing everything your research told you to do.

I think flying is one of the best experiences of traveling. It gives you the opportunity to see the world God made from a completely different point of view. It’s beauty shines in its natural state of existence.

So go and fly, take time to compare and find the best deals and if you fall short of what you are looking for don’t let it hold you back. The world was created for you to see it from all highs and lows.

Go & Do

Twitter  (@KirBKell)

Summer Daze

Hello dear readers,

Summer has arrived and with summer comes happiness, sun, family, beaches, lakes and TRAVEL. I took the time to do a little research and to create an infographic on piktochart, a great tool for writers and creative minds, that I think you all will enjoy. Maybe you will find yourself in one of the top three travel destinations in the next few months.

Please read and do a little research of your own on traveling this summer. One of my favorite sites to find travel topics is TravelPulse. I learned a lot and what is below is only a glimpse of what comes with this sunny season!

 

Go & Do

Twitter  (@KirBKell)

“Whatever Is Cheaper, Please.”

“Ugh. Does that cost extra?”

One of the most expensive parts of traveling can be hotels and overnight stays. It’s so hard to find a decent stay for a decent price. What I am about to explain to you is a great risk. This website seems to have more negative than positive reviews but I have thought long and hard and decided to give you the insight instead. It is a multi-billion-dollar company and I encourage you to hang on tight and keep an open mind.

AirbnB is a room-letting website. These rooms are not professional businesses/hotels they are simply residents and families who are looking to make a little extra money on a vacant room. Just like your normal booking website you enter in your destination and dates of travel. It then gives you several options of locations and prices of overnight stays. There are stays as cheap as $16 a night and some locations have a maximum guest quantity and minimum night stay. Listings provide pictures and descriptions of the residents and city/town life that goes on around it. After booking you can easily communicate with the owner of the listing through SMS on the website. 

I know it may seem a little sketchy at first but find the light in the darkness when it comes to traveling. Remember that you are taking a chance when you decide to travel cheap. Take a look around the website and read its reviews. There are unhappy people wherever you go; make sure you aren’t being influenced by them.

Go & Do

Twitter  (@KirBKell)

kirbykell@yahoo.com

 

I Must Apps You A Question…

Let’s be honest, when it comes to being prepared for anything in life are you really prepared to your full potential? I can answer that question on the behalf of us all, no. We can rewrite our packing list 100 times, have all the tickets and passports organized, cash on hand, carry-on ready to go, but there is always going to be something that we feel like we haven’t prepared for.

When traveling to new places, especially to foreign countries, it can be very intimidating. Lucky for us, we live in a very digital world that gives us endless access to the internet on our smartphones which leads to the downloading of very helpful apps! When traveling it is very convenient to have travel, converting, event, packing and all other kinds of apps just a thumb click away.

Thats right, I’m about to open a Pandora’s box of apps on you. No worries, this Pandora’s box contains no evil, only very helpful and convenient artifacts!

1) Google Translate

Google Translate is an obvious download if you are about to embark on a trip out of the country. You need to remember that not every country’s first language might be your own. It can be very frustrating when you are in a new place and have no idea where to go, what to do and you can’t communicate with the locals. So please don’t be that traveler who skips over the language barrier and says they will figure it out as they go. Trying to read a different language is a lot harder than trying to speak it, so at least be prepared with some type of translator.

2) Pack Point

If you are like me, you probably refuse to write out a packing list because you think it’s a waste of time. Luckily, I have found PackPoint that pretty much gives you a packing list immediately. It’s very simple, all you do is type in where you are going, the dates of the trip, length of the trip and activities you plan on doing during your trip. Based on what you submitted into the app, under each activity you are given a packing list of useful items that are normally needed. This app gave me suggestions on items I had never even thought of packing that ended up being very useful on my trips.

3) Convert

There is one thing that makes me extremely nervous and that is  traveling out of the country and experiencing different currencies. That is also the one thing that makes me stand still in a confused daze feeling like an idiot. So one app I always love having handy is a converting app. Convert is very straightforward letting you pick what currency you want to convert to another. I love it because before I leave wifi zones it gives me a sense of the difference in the currencies and if I am in a more expensive country.

4) WiFi Map

THE BEST APP IN THE WORLD! How stressful is it to be out of the country and not being able to use the internet or cellular data to keep in contact with loved ones and social media? Extremely stressful. WiFi Map simply takes in your current location and then gives you a never ending list of places that offer free wifi. It is great to map out these locations beforehand where they are easy to find. I have a short memory and very often kid myself saying I will remember things. 

Are you prepared for the great unknown?

Go & Do

Twitter

kirbykell@yahoo.com

This is why..

I created this blog for all of you free spirits and gypsy souls. At some point, even the dullest of humans dream about the magical places they wish to see one day. I tend to dream of those places everyday and find myself in a Pinterest travel section binge frequently. While there are negative strings pulling at every dream we have, money seems to be the biggest one for travel.

I want you to leave this blog knowing that you do have the opportunity to “Go & DO” with my helpful travel tips and information. Reading this blog will help you learn to budget your money, find cheaper overnight stays, and what destinations have the best deals.

As I have said before, this blog is not about your upper class, high quality vacations. This is about sacrificing that extra bag and packing the minimum. Traveling is about experiences and connecting with nature and the people around you. It isn’t just about getting a really artsy picture that will make the discover page on Instagram.

You may recognize by blog title and tagline, especially if you took 10th grade english. Robert Frost was an incredible man and one of his best works is “The Road Not Taken.” This poem has always been an encouragement for me. Everyone seems to take the familiar and common path, so often that some don’t even recognize there is another option. I don’t want to be a commoner my whole life and neither should you.

Upcoming in Two Roads, I will be providing you with information on best travel modes, destinations, packing tips, travel playlist, budgeting, and generally learning how “roughing it” makes for one heck of an adventure.

There are two roads to choose from in traveling, the one of luxury or the one of connection. I encourage you all to take the one less traveled, the one that everyone is nervous to venture down. Like Robert Frost said, “It will make all the difference.”

Go & Do