Vacations are much more enjoyable when you don’t have to worry about going over your budget. But scouring the internet for offers takes time. If you’re an AARP member, though, you have plenty of travel deals already included in your membership.

Formerly known as the American Association of Retired Persons, AARP memberships are open to anyone age 50 or older. Memberships cost $16 per year and come with a host of benefits such as a subscription to AARP: The Magazine, AARP Rewards and, of course, deals on dining, travel and more. 

There are so many details to consider when planning a trip, which means there are also plenty of opportunities to score some savings. Here are some of AARP's best travel deals and discounts. 

AARP flight deals 

Expedia: You can earn money on your booking when you choose a flight package with AARP’s dedicated Expedia link. When you book a flight and a hotel room or a flight and a rental car, you’ll get a $50 gift card. You can also book a flight, hotel and rental car for the deal.

British Airways: Book by June 30, 2024, for $200 off business class flights and $65 off standard and premium economy bookings. You must use the exclusive AARP British Airways link and be an AARP member or travel with an AARP member for the deal.

AARP hotel deals

Expedia: Save up to an extra 10% on your lodging when you book with the AARP Travel Center powered by Expedia. You can also find limited-time offers such as $75 off your summer vacation.

Hotel chains: Choose from dozens of hotels on the AARP deals page to save at least 10% and up to 20% off the best room rate. From Hilton to Holiday Inn, there are options for wherever you go.

All Resort store: Get 25% off your weekly resort stay and up to 10% off vacation homes when you create a free All Resort account and choose “AARP” as your organization. 

Travel Agencies: Group travel is more affordable when you save up to $100 on small group tours with Collette Travel Agency. Call the agency at 800-437-0241 and mention your AARP membership for the deal. Or, save up to $100 on guided vacations with Grand European Travel (GET), which offers tours all around the world.

AARP rental car deals 

Expedia: Transportation doesn’t have to be a hefty cost when you save 30% on car rentals with the AARP Travel Center.

Avis, Budget, and Payless: Get up to 35% off your Avis or Budget car rental and 5% off a Payless rental.

Zipcar: Enjoy savings beyond your trip when you get $20 off a yearly Zipcar membership and $40 in driving credit for new users.

ParkRideFly: To save money before you even take off on your flight, use this 12% off airport parking deal.

AARP cruise deals

Expedia: Earn $100 in onboard credits for your cruise when you book with the AARP Travel Center. Destinations include the Caribbean, Alaska and Europe, and you may sometimes find deals with up to 82% off the original price of the cruise.

Travel Agencies: Collette and GET offer up to $100 off cruises to locations across the globe. Cruises can be expensive, so 5% off from Travel By Rail could save you a good amount of money.

Entertainment and dining

Keep the deals coming when you get to your destination. Get 10% off when you present your AARP card at restaurants such as Carrabba's, Moe's and Bonefish Grill. Your AARP card can also save you money on local activities when you search your vacation destination’s zip code.

AARP travel tips

AARP lists dozens of explicit travel deals on its website, but it’s not exhaustive. As long as you have your AARP card on you, it doesn’t hurt to ask your hotel or any establishment about deals you might have missed.

You can also use planning resources on the AARP website exclusive to members. It offers destination guides to help build your itinerary, members only content such as travel podcasts and articles and vacation inspiration when you don't know where to start. If you need vacation inspiration, also check out Kiplinger's articles on the 10 Cheapest Countries to Visit and Best Places to Visit Where The Dollar is Strong.

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If you are not yet on Medicare and use a drug manufacturer’s discount coupon or co-pay assistance card to save money on medicine, check your health plan before you fill your next prescription. Otherwise, you could be in for an unpleasant surprise at the pharmacy counter. You might be subject to a co-pay accumulator program, which is a new restriction that prevents your discount card or coupon from counting toward your deductible.

Some experts say co-pay accumulators drive down drug prices as patients seek cheaper drugs. But the programs also add complexity for people who are ill and dealing with health issues, says Dan Klein, president of the Patient Access Network Foundation, which provides charitable co-pay help.

Co-pay accumulator programs began appearing in 2016 in employer-provided private health plans and in Affordable Care Act marketplace plans. The programs change the way your out-of-pocket costs are calculated if you use a manufacturer’s discount card or coupon to reduce your prescription costs.

Patients can download discount coupons or cards from a drug company’s website or get them from their doctors. You use them with your insurance; in some cases, you pay as little as $5 or $10 for your medication. But the total cost for the medicine counts toward your deductible, substantially lowering your out-of-pocket costs for future refills.

If a plan has a co-pay accumulator adjustment program, you still can use a co-pay assistance card or coupon. But the drug’s full cost won’t count against your deductible. And most assistance cards have a dollar limit on how much they will pay. After that, you still have to pay your full deductible before your plan’s cost-sharing kicks in, says Anna Hyde, vice president of advocacy and access at the Arthritis Foundation.

Let’s say your health plan has a $4,000 deductible and your arthritis drug costs $3,000 a month. At the start of the year, you use your co-pay assistance card at the pharmacy, which covers most of the cost of the drug, and you make your usual co-payment, Hyde says.

But within three months, you reach the limit on your co-pay assistance. When you pick up your medicine in April, you owe $3,000—the drug’s full cost. Without the accumulator, you would have already met your deductible while using the discount card. When the assistance ran out, you’d only pay your plan’s cost-sharing for your drug—sometimes as low as 5%. With the co-pay accumulator, you owe the full deductible, which can be thousands of dollars.

About 30% of large employers have a co-pay accumulator program now, according to a survey by the National Business Group on Health.

Drug Cost Assistance on Rise

Co-pay assistance from manufacturers or from co-pay charitable foundations has become more popular in recent years, as more people are living with chronic conditions such as cancer or Parkinson’s, which require the regular use of costly drugs, and as high-deductible insurance plans have become more common. About 43% of workers with private coverage had a high-deductible plan in 2017, government figures show.

But Medicare beneficiaries can’t use co-pay cards or other co-pay assistance with their insurance, so co-pay accumulator programs aren’t a concern after enrolling in Medicare. Medicare beneficiaries are permitted to get co-pay assistance from charitable organizations, such as the PAN Foundation, the HealthWell Foundation or the Patient Advocate Foundation. The charitable help applies to Part D’s out-of-pocket spending requirements to reach catastrophic coverage, under which beneficiaries pay only 5% of a drug’s cost.

If you are not yet on Medicare and are concerned your health plan may have a co-pay accumulator, call your provider directly or check your insurance plan documents, says Carla Dellaporta, director of education for NeedyMeds. The programs often aren’t listed on the summary of benefits page and may be labeled differently across plans.