Travel Discounts for Older Adults Exist. Not All Are Worth It

Many older adults have the money, freedom and desire to take trips. The travel industry recognizes that and seeks the business of folks 50-plus by trumpeting lots of discounts. But the process of finding real savings can be bewildering. So we asked Pauline Frommer, editorial director of Frommer’s guidebooks and host of The Frommer’s Travel Show podcast, to give us her best tips for senior travel discounts. Her first advice: The search for discounts is made trickier because the travel industry usually doesn’t have set prices, so don’t jump at the first shiny deal. “I find that often things listed as a senior discount are just come-ons,” she says.

Here are her tips for real savings:

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Hotels

Alice Mollon

You can usually do better than an advertised senior rate at hotels. Almost all hotels in the world have contracts with brokers such as Expedia, Travelocity or Orbitz stipulating that they can’t advertise prices that are significantly lower than those posted publicly by the broker. Instead you can save 25 to 30 percent at “clubs” such as @Hotels on Instagram. Travel + Leisure magazine and many professional organizations have clubs, but they charge fees while @Hotels is free. Once you find a club rate, call the hotel and see if they can beat it. Sometimes a direct call to the hotel will get the best rate because they don’t have to pay a middleman.

Airlines

Alice Mollon

A few airlines, including British Airways, American Airlines and United Airlines, still offer discounts for older adults, but these are rarely the best rates. Each year, Frommer’s tests the top airfare search engines, aggregators and booking sites to see which find the lowest fares on more than a dozen identical flight searches. Top billing for 2024 went to Momondo/Kayak, followed by Skyscanner and Skiplagged.

Public transportation and attractions

Alice Mollon

Many cities provide a discount for older adults for public transportation, including buses and subways, as well as attractions such as museums. Sometimes all you need is an ID that proves your age. Other times, you need to fill out an application to get a card. So check online well in advance of your trip. And be aware that some of these discounts are only available to residents.

National parks

Alice Mollon

U.S. citizens and permanent residents 62 and older can purchase an annual national parks pass for $20 or a lifetime pass for $80. (A $10 processing fee is added if ordered online.) Most parks are free, but some charge people under 62 up to $70 for an annual pass for that one park alone, plus a fee that varies from park to park. Check the National Park Service website to see if any fees are charged at parks you’ll visit.