During my summer job I have the privilege of traveling around the entirety of eastern South Dakota to do computer support at about a dozen different courthouses. This is no small territory to cover when there are problems that we can’t fix remotely, so there’s usually a day or two every week that I get to drive out to one of those places, take care whatever the issue is and come back. Last summer I probably drove about 3,000 miles between courthouses when all was said and done. Going on such business trips can be quite expensive if you don’t be careful. Here are some great ways to save money while traveling on business trips.

Take mileage if you can – At a lot of places of employment, you’ll have the travel option of either driving a company vehicle or being reimbursed at about 40 cents a mile. If you don’t have a brand new vehicle, in most cases it’s a better option to take the mileage. If gas is $2.50 a gallon, and you have to drive 200 miles at 25 miles to the gallon, you would only spend $20.00 in gas, but be reimbursed $80.00. That’s an easy $60.00 you can pocket if you have an older car that you’re going to drive until the wheels fall off anyway.

Be Smart With Your Meals – It’s very tempting to go out to a nice sit-down restaurant when you’re traveling and enjoy a nice meal because you’re being reimbursed for it. If they reimburse you by receipts, go ahead and enjoy eating all you want. Some places, such as my employer, pay a flat rate of $9.00 for lunch. Usually I end up spending about $3.00 for lunch on a soda for the road and a burger, and pocket the other $6.00. Try to shop at grocery stores and get inexpensive food rather than going out to eat for every meal.

Don’t Go Overboard with Snacks – It’s very tempting to stop at a gas station every couple hours and pick up a soda, some beef jerky, a candy bar, chips, or some other munchies for the road. One stop won’t kill you, but over time they’re going to add up to $10.00 or $20.00 a trip that you didn’t need to spend. Buy snacks at the grocery store beforehand to save money instead of overpaying at convenience stores.

Stay at The Right Hotel – if you’re reimbursed based on the hotel’s rate or your company has a contract with a specific hotel chain, you don’t really need to do any comparison shopping for hotels. If you’re reimbursed a flat rate, find the cheapest safe hotel you can and pocket the difference! If they give you $100 a night and can find a place to stay at $40 a night, that’s $60 extra for each night of your trip. Better yet, stay at a friend’s house in the city you are visiting to save all of that money!

Drink lots of water – A lot of time we confuse hunger and dehydration. It’s hard to stay hydrated while on the road, so make sure that you get plenty of water on your trip. This will prevent you from thinking that you are hungry and unnecessarily snacking while on the trip

Drive Smart – Practice common tricks to improve your gas mileage. Don’t break excessively, make sure all of your fluids are proper levels, buy the right type of gasoline, ensure that your oil filter is clean and make sure that your tires are properly inflated. You want your car to be in the best shape possible so that you can get the most mileage on your vehicle.

Your business trip doesn’t have to be expensive if you let it, often times you can come back with even more money because of your reimbursements from work.

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