Save Money by Bulk Buying
1st Jan 2015 Managing your Money
2 min read
There are some great ways of saving money by buying in bulk or grouping together with friends and family.
Train travel
- When you travel on trains with friends via National Rail, you can get group discounts—thetrainline.com allows 3 or 4 to travel together for the price of 2. You can get discounts of up to 50% off, plus up to 4 children can travel with the group for just £1 each. But you can also get a discount at the station if you want to avoid the £1 booking fee.
- If you’ve got children, or friends with children, you can also get a Family & Friends Railcard, which gives you a third off adult fares and up to 60% off kids’ fares. The card costs £28 for one year and works as long as you travel with at least one child. It also gets you discounts on restaurants, hotels and days out.
Eating out
- Restaurants have been hit particularly hard by the credit crunch, so you’ve got haggling power to get a decent discount or perks if you go out with friends. Don’t be afraid to ask what they offer groups, with the attitude that you’ll go elsewhere if their offer isn’t decent.
- You can also ask when you book direct with the restaurant. If you’re planning a meal out, phone a couple of places to see what they’re willing to offer you.
Holidays
From hotels to flights, cruises and package deals, there’s always a discount to be had when travelling in a group:
- Eurostar does special group deals and weekend getaways to destinations such as Paris, Brussels and Disneyland Paris.
- Opodo is always worth a look, especially on self-catering skiing holidays.
- Travelodge gives you cheaper rooms with group bookings.
- Virgin Holidays says that if you book with a minimum of 10 adults, you may qualify for a group discount.
Remember, too, that if you go on holiday with a group of friends, you can make money from it by doing the booking for them. You may even manage to get your part of it for free. If you use a credit card with rewards, you could get the maximum cashback, or even earn enough air miles to get yourself another holiday later on!
Electronics
- If you want a new plasma TV and so does your best friend, you can get together and make big savings. First, check prices online to find the cheapest rate, then go to your local shop and haggle. See how much they’ll charge you if you ask for 2. Remember, the worst thing that can happen is they say no. But selling 2 plasma-screen TVs at a reduced price will be appealing when they’ve got sales targets.
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