Travel tip: jetting on a budget

I have traveled to a different city on a different plane almost every week this year, so I’ve had my fair share of experience dealing with airfare bookings. If you have a credit card that has no foreign transaction fees: you’re in luck. If you don’t, time to get one!

I typically travel to Europe every month or month 1/2, and have been quite loyal to Norwegian airlines. They’re probably the best low-cost, long-haul airline you’ll find for a transatlantic flight and – trust – the prices don’t disappoint.

So, about the credit card: if you buy a plane ticket with a card [without foreign transaction fees] in the airline carrier’s currency (especially if it’s weak against the dollar), you’ll save between $50- hundreds of dollars. Check out the example below of a roundtrip ticket on Norwegian from LAX-Helsinki (a frequent route of mine 😉

In USD:

Total RT price: $793.60

In Norwegian NOK:

Total RT price: 5,363 NOK

Savings:

Total Savings: $135.90

With this method, you save $135.90!  So far, I’ve been able to use this method on Norwegian Airlines, Virgin Australia, and Czech Airlines. [Side note: on some sites, especially Norwegian, you will have to change the language in order to pay in the country’s currency].

Happy Airfare booking!