When planning a vacation, be aware of your destinations weather and temperatures. Some folks who come to Las Vegas, NV, think just because they're coming to "the desert", that it's going to be warm.
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When my family chooses a vacation destination, I go online and order an Entertainment Book for that area. We save a lot of money by using Entertainment book coupons.
The time is near to start planning this year's summer vacation. There are some great ways to save on trips such as airfare and pre-season hotel rates, yet there are some things that are worth the extra expense.
If you are planning now for a future vacation, do a Google search for the city or area you plan to visit and get contact info for the Chamber of Commerce, Tourism Council, etc.
If you are into traveling a lot, you probably already have someone to pickup your newspapers, mail (or have the post office to hold it), but what about anything you might have dropped off to your home by UPS or FED-EX?
Here are the questions asked by community members. Read on to see the answers provided by the ThriftyFun community.
Tips for planning a vacation and saving money. Post your ideas.
When planning your vacation, alternate some free or inexpensive attractions in your itinerary, for each day. (Example: relaxing on the beach, window shopping or visiting a National Park) amongst your other stops. Easier on your wallet, this way.
By Terri H.
And ALWAYS make sure your hotel room has a refridgerator....this will save you a ton of money.
We go to the beach every summer with friends. I have kept a list of what we use in the way of groceries. Then each year, starting a few weeks before we go, I buy as much of the non-perishables as I can afford and fit in the van. This saves having to pay more in the resort town for everyday things and you can still take advantage of the sales. We then split the total between the families that go.
When planning your vacation, go online and find out what restaurants and hotels, etc. will be where you are oing. Check for printable coupons, passes or discount codes to use before making reservations. You might also like to purchase gift cards for the restaurants at home before leaving on your trip.
Just because you're going on vacation doesn't mean you want to run up your credit card while you're gone. Might as well go as cost efficient as you can.
Always remember to ask for a hotel room with a refrigerator, you'll be glad you did. Or you'll wish you had.
By Terri
We used coolers and filled w/ ice /day or night and it worked great. We were on vacation for a week in a motel w/ our 3 doxans.
When on vacation, buy or get the complimentary newspaper or flyer; it will generally have coupons or deals advertised, of anything that is "happening" in the city/town you are visiting.
If traveling by car, a cooler is a necessity, but, there is a limit to how much you can bring. I make sure I also bring along some canned goods, (salmon, tuna, ham) some cereal, and drygoods. I will purchase bread, muffins, milk, as needed, to use/stretch what I brought along. .
A good, cheap place to stay, in the summer months, is at a local University/college dorm/residence. You generally have to call ahead to reserve. The price is about 1/4 of what a hotel room might be, with the second and subsequent persons being charged a nominal fee. They sometimes still have their cafeterias open; limited menu but really reasonable.
Another good source of cafeteria food, is the local hospitals' cafeterias; they provide good, nutritious meals for reasonable prices.
Food courts in malls, often offer specials,,one of which could be a .99c-$1.99 breakfast. You could buy one to eat for breakfast, and another, to make a bacon n egg sandwich for lunch; just make sure the eggs are well done (over hard) and you refrigerate it, till lunch time.
Grocery store's salad bars, often provide a wonderful selection of salads, at a per ounce price. To complete your cold plate, you can buy a couple slices per person of nice sliced ham to go with it.
Do your research before you leave, and get as many coupons and two for one offers as you can, from wherever, the Tourism Bureau, the internet, magazines.
As a single parent of three children, and on a very, very tight budget, we travelled for two weeks, every summer, to a different location and saw many, many attractions we would not have been able to, without these moneysavers.
