Vacationing On A Budget
Over the past 5 years, my family has been blessed enough to take a vacation every year. And every year I am faced with the challenge of putting together a fun, memorable vacation that everyone will love and that fits into our budget.
When our family was smaller, this process was a little easier because it seems like the whole world is based on your family size not exceeding FOUR! Well, we are now a family of 6 and the standard hotel room with 2 double beds is just not an option; at least not for stays longer than 2 nights. Airfare would eat up more than of our budget, food would take up the other , and I will not even start on the theme park tickets. So what is a family to do?
Decide what type of vacation your family wants to take: adventure, relaxation, beaches and sun, theme parks, or history and culture.
Adventure vacations and sandy beach vacations are by far the most cost-friendly vacation themes.
Adventure vacations offer economical outdoor activities such as fishing, hiking, bike riding, and camping. This vacation theme is perfect for older children.
Top Adventurous Destinations Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee Park City, Utah Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona Yosemite National Park, California Moab, Utah Glacier National Park, Montana Olympic National Park, Washington, Acadia National Park, Maine
Sandy beach vacations are also economical and include surfable waves, sandcastle building, great dining, and mile long boardwalks. This type of vacation is ideal for all ages especially babies and toddlers.
Family Beaches Locations Coronado Beach, Calif. Nantucket Island, Mass. Newport Beach, Calif. Santa Barbara, Calif. Siesta Key, Fla. Duck, N.C. Hilton Head, S.C. Myrtle Beach, S.C. South Padre Island, Texas
* However, if you have your heart set on taking a theme park vacation, check to see if your your bank or employer provides discounted tickets. Try not to purchase tickets on EBay or Craig's List, unless it is from a seller or broker that you trust because you run the risk of purchasing invalid tickets. Also, many theme parks now offer child swap. With child swap, one adult can go through the long lines with the older child or children while the other adult goes up the exit ramp with the younger children who cannot get on the ride. When the other adult gets off the ride, you get on. without waiting in line again.
Decide how you will get there: fly, train, bus or car.
Driving your own car would save you the most money. Many people don't want to add miles to their car and decide to rent a car and that is fine too, but it will add additional costs. Even if you find cheap train, bus or airline tickets, consider the fact that you might still need to rent a car once you arrive at your destination, so get rid of the middle man and drive. If driving is not an option, check out www.priceline.com where you can 'Name your Price' on airfare and car rentals and save a significant amount of money.
Choose the best time for your family to travel: peak or off peak.
You will find cheaper deals if you travel during the off peak seasons. This season depends on the location. Orlando's peak season begins around May/June and ends August 10th. I use that as a guide to plan my vacations. Try to steer clear of traveling on holiday weekends; you would save more money by taking the day off the following week.
Accommodations: vacation home, hotel, or condo.
Vacation home are perfect when traveling with a large group. Not only do you get a huge home to hang out in for a week, but you also have the company of other adults and hopefully other children to keep your children busy. Vacation homes, generally, need to be book several months in advance and you have to clean up after yourselves daily.
Standard hotel rooms are great for small families, there is a larger inventory of standard rooms, and they provide housekeeping. However, with hotel rooms there is no privacy for the parents and you have to eat at restaurants every day, which can total up to over $500 for food alone. If you are looking for a standard room, Hotwire or Priceline (Name your Price) are your best options. Caution: with these two sites you don't know where you will stay until you have purchased the room. I have used Priceline on several occasions and have always been pleased with my accommodations and have been upgraded to a higher star hotel on many occasions.
I personally prefer a condo because you have the best of both worlds. Parents and children have their own rooms and they are equipped with full kitchens. You can use the kitchen to prepare simple meals for breakfast and dinner saving you hundreds of dollars. Generally there is a washer and dryer in your room. You can use the washer and dryer to wash all your clothes before returning home making it a breeze to unpack when you get home. Cake topper, housekeeping is available!
Another option is to take a time share tour; I know it sucks spending 2-3 hours of your day on the tour because it never only takes 90 minutes. But you can get a great 1 or 2 bedroom condo at an unbelievable rate.
Every family is different and must decide what is most important for them, location, transportation, entertainment or accommodations. Whatever you choose, spend the most money on what is most important and skimp on everything else. So if you want to go to Hawaii, you will spend the most money on airfare and you will have to skimp on entertainment and accommodations, but at least you made it to Hawaii.
When our family was smaller, this process was a little easier because it seems like the whole world is based on your family size not exceeding FOUR! Well, we are now a family of 6 and the standard hotel room with 2 double beds is just not an option; at least not for stays longer than 2 nights. Airfare would eat up more than of our budget, food would take up the other , and I will not even start on the theme park tickets. So what is a family to do?
Decide what type of vacation your family wants to take: adventure, relaxation, beaches and sun, theme parks, or history and culture.
Adventure vacations and sandy beach vacations are by far the most cost-friendly vacation themes.
Adventure vacations offer economical outdoor activities such as fishing, hiking, bike riding, and camping. This vacation theme is perfect for older children.
Top Adventurous Destinations Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee Park City, Utah Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona Yosemite National Park, California Moab, Utah Glacier National Park, Montana Olympic National Park, Washington, Acadia National Park, Maine
Sandy beach vacations are also economical and include surfable waves, sandcastle building, great dining, and mile long boardwalks. This type of vacation is ideal for all ages especially babies and toddlers.
Family Beaches Locations Coronado Beach, Calif. Nantucket Island, Mass. Newport Beach, Calif. Santa Barbara, Calif. Siesta Key, Fla. Duck, N.C. Hilton Head, S.C. Myrtle Beach, S.C. South Padre Island, Texas
* However, if you have your heart set on taking a theme park vacation, check to see if your your bank or employer provides discounted tickets. Try not to purchase tickets on EBay or Craig's List, unless it is from a seller or broker that you trust because you run the risk of purchasing invalid tickets. Also, many theme parks now offer child swap. With child swap, one adult can go through the long lines with the older child or children while the other adult goes up the exit ramp with the younger children who cannot get on the ride. When the other adult gets off the ride, you get on. without waiting in line again.
Decide how you will get there: fly, train, bus or car.
Driving your own car would save you the most money. Many people don't want to add miles to their car and decide to rent a car and that is fine too, but it will add additional costs. Even if you find cheap train, bus or airline tickets, consider the fact that you might still need to rent a car once you arrive at your destination, so get rid of the middle man and drive. If driving is not an option, check out www.priceline.com where you can 'Name your Price' on airfare and car rentals and save a significant amount of money.
Choose the best time for your family to travel: peak or off peak.
You will find cheaper deals if you travel during the off peak seasons. This season depends on the location. Orlando's peak season begins around May/June and ends August 10th. I use that as a guide to plan my vacations. Try to steer clear of traveling on holiday weekends; you would save more money by taking the day off the following week.
Accommodations: vacation home, hotel, or condo.
Vacation home are perfect when traveling with a large group. Not only do you get a huge home to hang out in for a week, but you also have the company of other adults and hopefully other children to keep your children busy. Vacation homes, generally, need to be book several months in advance and you have to clean up after yourselves daily.
Standard hotel rooms are great for small families, there is a larger inventory of standard rooms, and they provide housekeeping. However, with hotel rooms there is no privacy for the parents and you have to eat at restaurants every day, which can total up to over $500 for food alone. If you are looking for a standard room, Hotwire or Priceline (Name your Price) are your best options. Caution: with these two sites you don't know where you will stay until you have purchased the room. I have used Priceline on several occasions and have always been pleased with my accommodations and have been upgraded to a higher star hotel on many occasions.
I personally prefer a condo because you have the best of both worlds. Parents and children have their own rooms and they are equipped with full kitchens. You can use the kitchen to prepare simple meals for breakfast and dinner saving you hundreds of dollars. Generally there is a washer and dryer in your room. You can use the washer and dryer to wash all your clothes before returning home making it a breeze to unpack when you get home. Cake topper, housekeeping is available!
Another option is to take a time share tour; I know it sucks spending 2-3 hours of your day on the tour because it never only takes 90 minutes. But you can get a great 1 or 2 bedroom condo at an unbelievable rate.
Every family is different and must decide what is most important for them, location, transportation, entertainment or accommodations. Whatever you choose, spend the most money on what is most important and skimp on everything else. So if you want to go to Hawaii, you will spend the most money on airfare and you will have to skimp on entertainment and accommodations, but at least you made it to Hawaii.
About the Author:
I am frugal by nature and am sharing my greatest ways to save money for all who are interested. Check out this site if you are looking for easy, realistic ways to save money, the steps for using a budget spreadsheet, and ways to reduce monthly bills. See you on the inside!!
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