How to Save Money on Summer Vacation Fun
One of the best times of year is summertime: the weather is nicer, people seem more friendly and there is a great laid back attitude towards life. Although you may be enjoying the great weather and wanting to spend more time with the kids now that they are out of school, you don't want to blow your whole budget or risk financial ruin having a good time. Here are some helpful tips to save money on your summer vacations.
1. Drive, don't fly when you can. Baggage fees, smaller seats, flight delays can make air travel a nightmare especially when it can ruin what was supposed to be a great summer holiday. Many times it is better just to drive to your destination (if reasonable), and although it may take longer, you can stop at places along the way, spend time with family/friends in the car and make some great memories of your journey to your destination. Also, if you drive you have more flexibility about when to leave, when to come back and can take that extra person along with you.
2. Budget for souvenirs, eating out. Although you want to get that great momento from your trip to the beach or those Mickey Mouse ears from Disney World, make sure you choose one or two souvenirs that are worth it. Spending $5-$10 on a couple of keychains (which will probably just be buried in some drawer within a few months) won't be as memorable as spending $30 on a beautiful statue that you can keep in your house. Also, make sure to limit what you get when eating out: choose water instead of overpriced sodas and specialty drinks, share entrees (which are usually over sized for one person at most restaurants) and eat light if doing a lot of sightseeing (after all, you're out to see the sights not get too groggy from a food coma).
3. Bring water, snacks on walking tours, sightseeing trips. Most people think they won't need water, snacks on all-day sightseeing tours, and then end of being the victims of price gouging by paying too much for snacks and drinks when they are too tired to care. You can eat out when going on an all-day sightseeing tour, but just leave it for lunch, and bring along snacks in a purse or fanny pack so that way when you are hungry you are saving money (which you can use for souvenirs instead!).
4. Don't let kids dictate what you should or shouldn't buy. It's an all too familiar scene, kids screaming in the gift shop they want some over priced stuffed animal, and then parents caving in because they are embarrassed the whole store is looking at them and judging what kind of parent they are. Tell your kids in advance what kind of souvenir or gift they will get or decide ahead of time with them what they would like and choose one nice gift rather than a series of small gifts. For example, if you are visiting Disney World, tell your kids they can get one big Mickey Mouse stuffed animal vs. getting a Mickey Mouse keychain at Epcot Center, a small Donald Duck glass at Magic Kingdom and a kitchen magnet with Goofy at the Blizzard Beach water park. If you're worried about your kids making a scene in the gift stores, let them make a scene, your job as a parent is to teach them financial responsibility, which is more important than the looks from some strangers whom you'll likely never see again (and the people who are looking likely don't have kids).
5. Spend time with family. Most of us have family in different parts of the country and if you have family near a major tourist attraction, you can save a lot on hotel costs by staying with them and you get the benefit of spending time with family members you wouldn't otherwise see regularly. You can thank your family whom you are staying with by all going out to dinner and picking up the tab or by asking them to come along.
6. Don't forget the other "parks," our National Parks. Most of the time when people think of parks to have fun during the summer, most people think about an amusement park. However, national parks are not only a great place to visit during the summer, but they are often cheaper then shelling out over $60 per person to wait in long, hour-long lines to ride a 30 second ride. You can see some amazing sites at National Parks and see things that aren't in any other place in the world. Although your kids won't want to "learn" during their summer break, they'll enjoy hiking in the woods and they'll learn how they were meant to learn by being genuinly curious about how the geyser Old Faithful really works (vs. reading about it in a book in school).
Have a great time with your summer vacation and remember if you can save money and have a great time, you'll be even closer to having another great vacation sooner than you think!
One of the best times of year is summertime: the weather is nicer, people seem more friendly and there is a great laid back attitude towards life. Although you may be enjoying the great weather and wanting to spend more time with the kids now that they are out of school, you don't want to blow your whole budget or risk financial ruin having a good time. Here are some helpful tips to save money on your summer vacations.
1. Drive, don't fly when you can. Baggage fees, smaller seats, flight delays can make air travel a nightmare especially when it can ruin what was supposed to be a great summer holiday. Many times it is better just to drive to your destination (if reasonable), and although it may take longer, you can stop at places along the way, spend time with family/friends in the car and make some great memories of your journey to your destination. Also, if you drive you have more flexibility about when to leave, when to come back and can take that extra person along with you.
2. Budget for souvenirs, eating out. Although you want to get that great momento from your trip to the beach or those Mickey Mouse ears from Disney World, make sure you choose one or two souvenirs that are worth it. Spending $5-$10 on a couple of keychains (which will probably just be buried in some drawer within a few months) won't be as memorable as spending $30 on a beautiful statue that you can keep in your house. Also, make sure to limit what you get when eating out: choose water instead of overpriced sodas and specialty drinks, share entrees (which are usually over sized for one person at most restaurants) and eat light if doing a lot of sightseeing (after all, you're out to see the sights not get too groggy from a food coma).
3. Bring water, snacks on walking tours, sightseeing trips. Most people think they won't need water, snacks on all-day sightseeing tours, and then end of being the victims of price gouging by paying too much for snacks and drinks when they are too tired to care. You can eat out when going on an all-day sightseeing tour, but just leave it for lunch, and bring along snacks in a purse or fanny pack so that way when you are hungry you are saving money (which you can use for souvenirs instead!).
4. Don't let kids dictate what you should or shouldn't buy. It's an all too familiar scene, kids screaming in the gift shop they want some over priced stuffed animal, and then parents caving in because they are embarrassed the whole store is looking at them and judging what kind of parent they are. Tell your kids in advance what kind of souvenir or gift they will get or decide ahead of time with them what they would like and choose one nice gift rather than a series of small gifts. For example, if you are visiting Disney World, tell your kids they can get one big Mickey Mouse stuffed animal vs. getting a Mickey Mouse keychain at Epcot Center, a small Donald Duck glass at Magic Kingdom and a kitchen magnet with Goofy at the Blizzard Beach water park. If you're worried about your kids making a scene in the gift stores, let them make a scene, your job as a parent is to teach them financial responsibility, which is more important than the looks from some strangers whom you'll likely never see again (and the people who are looking likely don't have kids).
5. Spend time with family. Most of us have family in different parts of the country and if you have family near a major tourist attraction, you can save a lot on hotel costs by staying with them and you get the benefit of spending time with family members you wouldn't otherwise see regularly. You can thank your family whom you are staying with by all going out to dinner and picking up the tab or by asking them to come along.
6. Don't forget the other "parks," our National Parks. Most of the time when people think of parks to have fun during the summer, most people think about an amusement park. However, national parks are not only a great place to visit during the summer, but they are often cheaper then shelling out over $60 per person to wait in long, hour-long lines to ride a 30 second ride. You can see some amazing sites at National Parks and see things that aren't in any other place in the world. Although your kids won't want to "learn" during their summer break, they'll enjoy hiking in the woods and they'll learn how they were meant to learn by being genuinly curious about how the geyser Old Faithful really works (vs. reading about it in a book in school).
Have a great time with your summer vacation and remember if you can save money and have a great time, you'll be even closer to having another great vacation sooner than you think!
