Marc Serafino
I’m a planner and I like putting everything into a calendar and many lists I use. This way I can focus on other things that need my immediate attention.
However, when it comes to making certain purchases — it is better to wait. And here we go through 5 things you should buy at the last minute to save money. Without further ado, here’s what we have…
1. Hotel rooms
If you’re not travelling during peak seasons, which could include some major event or summer, you may be better off postponing to book your hotel room. And this is especially true if you plan to stay at a three-star hotel or better.
The best deals are available to those brave enough to wait for the last few days before making a room reservation. Hotels do not want empty rooms and are willing to offer huge discounts just to have most of their rooms occupied.
If you can afford to wait, you should check out the discount-minded site Booking.com, or even better — the Hotel Tonight app that will let you search for amazing deals from your phone. Between these two companies, you will be able to find spectacular deals from all of the major hotel chains.
The downside though, is that your favorite hotel could be fully booked and you will have to grab a room in some other place, instead. Nonetheless, the mentioned savings should justify this little inconvenience.
2. Show tickets
Similar to hotels, venues too don’t like empty seats and are willing to offer deep discounts just to fill them up. Whether it is a sporting event, a concert or a theater play — you could save a ton by postponing your purchase.
A good resource to check is SeatGeek, which is an event ticket marketplace and aggregator of sports, concert, and theater tickets. It has a mobile app that lets you browse events and available seating while on the go. For the best deals on sporting events, visit SeatGeek a few days before the game; and for music and theater shows – wait until the day of the concert/play.
Finally, here’s a tip for the box office — visit once they open to ask about remainder tickets. If there are some seats left, you’ll be able to scoop them for cents on the dollar.
3. Cruises & Flights
Again, like hotels — cruises and airlines aim to fill up to 100 percent capacity.
Cruises are known to offer amazing deals especially right before or after a major peak holiday, as well as during hurricane seasons. If you time it right, you can enjoy an all-inclusive vacation and save a ton.
The downside is that you may have to settle for a cruise that ends in a different port than you departed from, or you might have to go for a longer cruise, but something’s gotta give.
As for the flights, the situation is a bit different and doesn’t necessarily works as great. I was lucky a few times, but then again — there were times when I missed my flight and had to buy a more expensive ticket.
What you want to do is sign-up for alerts with flight search engines like Vayama, Kayak, SkyScanner, as well as occasionally check the Google Flights website.
If you live near a major hub city like NYC, Chicago, Atlanta and Los Angeles — you’ll have more chances of getting a better deal. But again, be careful with this — we don’t want you to miss a flight because of this article. 😉
Also read: How to Save Money on Travel Websites
4. Farmers’ market
If you are not on the lookout for some specific produce, visit a farmers’ market just before or around 2 pm. At that time, farmers crave to sell whatever has left unsold. This is especially true for perishables such as fruit and veggies, but also for other products like meat and dairy that need to be repacked and transported back to the farm. That’s a hassle and farmers would rather avoid doing it — so they could be willing to negotiate prices with you. At 2pm they have slowly started packing their bags, and that’s where you kick in, to scoop the deal.
You won’t have as wide selection as you would have it in the morning, but you’ll save a ton in return.
5. Holiday gifts
Major holidays come with major sales, with merchants offering steep discounts throughout the month. However, the best deals are during the week of the holiday. That’s when companies go crazy in their efforts to clear out their inventories and prepare for the next season.
Shopping during Christmas is the best example; to save money on gifts, buy stuff between 19th and 23rd December. Black Friday and Cyber Monday could be worth the effort, but if during those days you don’t find what you need — wait a little longer and buy at the very last second. And this is especially true for anything holiday-themed — merchants know these things have little value after the big day, so take advantage of that.
