Traveling the World on a Budget – Berlin , Germany

I’m very analytical on everything I do…   so it’s no surprise that when I travel,  I try to get the most for my money.  After all,  the extra money I am giving to the airlines could be working to make me additional money on my marketing endeavors…. Yes,  everything unfortunately has a cost.   More specifically,  everything has an opportunity cost.  What am I giving up by spending more on a ticket?   What am I forfeiting by driving 4 hours to an airport to save 1K?   Could the time I spent traveling be better spent making money and opting for the closest airport instead?  Fortunately for me,  I can be productive about anywhere that has an internet connection or in the very least electricity.  But not everyone has that option.

But it’s not ALL about the money for me.  I also take into consideration what cities I will get to sample during the layovers and even the type of aircraft I will be flying on.   In the Chicago example,  we would get to sample  London.  I’ve always wanted to go there,  it’d be a neat way to get a taste of the country before actually committing to it.

So as you can see,  it’s not all about the money.  Don’t get me wrong,  I’m not one to jump over dollar bills to pick up pennies.  It’s so easy to do that if you don’t plan carefully and take everything into consideration.

This brings me to my goal:   I would like to visit Berlin,  a place I used to live as a child.  To get this done the way I want it and get it done cost effectively,  I start crunching the numbers, as illustrated in the table below.

The following table highlights flights originating from different cities for two (2) passengers arriving  in Berlin, Germany (TXL – Tegal Airport) at varying times.

**You can scroll by swiping the table to the right (mobile or touch screen) and by using the scrolling bar at the table’s bottom.

[wpsm_comparison_table id=”1″]
**Remember, to see all options,  scroll the table above by swiping to the right (mobile or touch screen) and by using the scrolling bar at the table’s bottom.

Rewards Perks

One thing I like to consider are rewards perks.  You can often get a free flight or nice upgrades (especially useful on a long journey) if you stay loyal to one airline.  I prefer American Airlines or Delta;  but my calcuations are based on American below.

**based on an economy fare. You can click on the image to get a better view.

mileage_analysis_aa1

 

There are advantages to flying First/Business class, especially if you are going a long distance.  If you are interested in how I evaluate that,  check out my post below.

Traveling the World First|Business Class – Getting the Most for Your Money

Below is a sample Rewards Chart from American Airlines.

aa_rewards_chart1

 

 

So as you can see,  specific attention needs to be made in the number of miles you are giving up by not being loyal to a particular airline.  Is it worth the extra costs?  It just depends on your goals and your situation in life.  The point is,  to get the best value for your situation,  you need to look at everything that goes into the equation.   By flying to an airport away from your home base you most likely will incur extra costs such as gas and lodging. Be smart and choose your options carefully.

 

 

Personally,  I chose to leave from Chicago on this trip.  Why?

  • It is relatively close and I’ve made the trip a couple of times before.
    I get American Airlines miles for the trip.
    It’s more than half the cost of leaving from Columbus – money I can put into something else.  Why let the airline have it?

 

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