John Connellan

John is Savoo's UK Country Manager and a senior member of the Sales Team. John is also our resident jet-setting travel expert, having visited six of the seven continents. Bringing his travel expertise to Savoo’s money-saving pages for ten years, John is one of Savoo’s longest-standing employees.

Starting with a solo trip to Edinburgh, Scotland, aged just 16, the travel bug has been with John ever since! 20 years of travel later and you won’t find a trip that John hasn’t taken; from skiing holidays and business trips to all-inclusive holidays and backpacking trips.

"Volcano boarding" in Leon, Nicaragua

“Having an interest in different cultures; especially local food and local people, a sense of adventure, and a love of nature has spurred my interest in travel. My aim is to visit every country at least once!"

You’ll see John’s face on all our saving guidance for cheap travel (check out the best ways to save on your hostel at Hostelworld) and how to do luxury travel on a budget (you might be surprised to hear you can even snap up a discount travelling Emirates). Even if travel for you means a two-day jaunt to Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, John knows just the Trainline hack to get your UK train tickets for a fraction of the price.

In fact, he’s saved over £1,000 on travel just using Savoo deals for big-name travel providers like Booking.com and TUI (John’s own estimate). Of course, the money saved has all gone to funding the next adventure.

Map of countries visited by John

John’s favourite locations have included the Phillipines, Goa, Columbia, Nicaragua and Georgia (Europe). Having returned from a trip to Puerto Rico, in the spring of 2024, his top saving tip for budding explorers is:

“Lots of people think it’s better to book trips and activities before you travel, but actually, this is not the case. It’s much more cost-effective to wait until you are abroad and then book your itinerary using local providers, who will often offer a better rate".

ATV Tour near San Juan, Puerto Rico

We asked John to put this guidance into actionable tips for travellers to take while looking for ways to travel on a budget.

“While you’re out travelling…

• In order to not be overcharged on taxi fares (especially travelling from the airport on arrival), I always message or call my hostel to check what the local rate should typically be. You can usually message hostels on social media like Facebook or Instagram and they will often message back quickly.
• Using this same tip is a great way to ask for other general advice, whether that’s for saving money or not, as staff members are often local to the area or country.
• If you want accommodation on a budget but don’t think cheap hostels are worth sharing a dorm for, make a private hostel room your first choice as this will still likely be more affordable than a hotel.
• Don’t forget to haggle: if you do this in a way that is polite and respectful, you can save yourself some extra dosh. Be sure to research beforehand to make sure your destination is a place in which haggling is socially acceptable.

Not only was John behind the creation of Savoo’s Youtube video “Travel Hacks- Get Cheaper Flights", but he’s also the mastermind behind some of our most popular articles on travel hacks and cheap holidays (these can be found below).