Top 10 tips for an Affordable Vacation

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Oh yeah! No vacation is a fun vacation if you come back with a big gaping chunk eaten out of your bank balance.

But boy can you cost cut when you sit down and get serious about saving some buckaroos for an awesome but affordable vacation with the family.

Here are my top 10 tips for an Affordable Vacation:

1. Monitor hotel reservation rates 3-4 months prior to actually making a trip. Subscribe to travel sites. You can get some great prices if you do a little groundwork those several weeks prior to your trip.

2. Buy souvenirs or surprises from home and hide them in your travel bag. It saves spending an arm and a leg buying expensive presents at tourist destinations.

3. If you have ample vacation time off and if you know your family can handle a fun family trip on the road, I’d say drive. It always helps having your own car in a new place and saves you the hassle and finances of renting a car.

4. In some major cities you can sign up to try out the timeshare programs. For a nominal price, you can stay in a beautiful hotel close to your tourist park/destination of interest and enjoy the benefits any regular paying hotel guest would enjoy. The only requirement would be attending a timeshare presentation for perhaps 2 hours or a little longer on one morning of your stay there.

5. Search the web for coupons or online deals.

6. If you have little ones who’re yet to get into school, I’d say travel off season. The rates are just great for hotel stays, park tickets and other tourist attractions. Also try getting to your destination and leaving there sometime during the week and not during the weekend.

7. Book a hotel room that provides a free breakfast or comes with a kitchenette. This way you will save on eating out.

8. If you really want to take a vacation with the family but just can’t afford to go too far or visit a theme park, check out your local attractions. You’d be surprised how much fun can be had during a staycation! Not only will this allow you to travel to the spot and drive back the same day but it will also allow you to take several ‘mini vacations’ with the family over the summer and will help you orient you with other places around your locality.

9. If you have older kids, you can take them camping to nearby camping spots, have family cook outs and teach them a few ‘outdoor survival’ musts.

10. Carry your own ‘munch on’ snacks and beverages into parks, historical sites and tourist spots. You’d be surprised at how much even a simple bottle of water will cost! (Ouch!!) .

In the end, what’s important is being able to have a great time with the family.

You don’t really have to go somewhere extravagant or pricey nor do you have to spend a lot on a vacation.

Focus on each other and with a little research prior to your trip, you can have yourselves a family vacation to remember!.

 

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