Summer is coming up very quickly. That means no school for the kids, yard sales, barbecues and vacations.
Summer vacations are a great way to spend time with family and to get away from the stress of work and school. Whether you choose a weekend camping trip to a national park, a dream vacation, or a month-long cruise; I'll show you how to save money on summer travel. Your bank account (and vacation budget) will thank you when you come home with some money left!
Save Money Booking Flights
This may sound like a very specific tip but there's math behind it. A good rule of thumb is to book your flight 47 to 54 days before the intended take-off date for the best travel deals..
After crunching the numbers of millions of flights a search engine came up with the results. Domestic flight prices were the cheapest 47 days before your travel date.
Additionally, booking airline flights during off-peak times gives you an advantage. Airlines cannot afford empty seats on their planes, so on days like Tuesday, Wednesday, and Saturday fares are considerably cheaper, which makes them the perfect time to fly.
Do Your Research
Running out the door and hopping on the earliest plane out of here sounds great in theory. In practice, it is going to cost a lot more without doing a little research first.
Things to compare for the best deals are hotels or motels, different airlines, and even different car rental companies. All of these companies compete with each other and will have competitive pricing.
Another great idea is to look for bundles. Grouping your flight, hotel, and rental car can sometimes save quite a bit of money.
Take a Road Trip
Rather than spending money on airfare, you can hit the open road and take a road trip to visit locations that are just a day or two's drive from your home. It's one of the easiest ways to save money.
We rarely fly when we vacation these days. We like the flexibility of driving ourselves to the destination and not having to worry about renting a car at the airport.
I usually price out the cost of flying (since it does save time), and hands down the cost of driving is always less, even accounting for potential hotels along the way and the cost of fuel.
Visit Friends and Family
If you can avoid staying in a hotel altogether and stay with friends and family members during your trip, you won't spend much money.
We typically make a trip back to Michigan each year to visit my husband's family. We always stay with family, so we avoid paying for a hotel while we're in town. We like to contribute money towards the extra expense of feeding 4 additional people, but food at home is still cheaper than meals in restaurants for every meal!
Ditch the Hotel
Forgoing the hotel all together can save money too. There are many different options for lodging that will save money. One of those options is airbnb.com.
Airbnb allows people to rent out rooms or even whole homes to vacationers. They're generally cheaper than hotels, and having a whole home in lieu of a hotel room may be beneficial as you can cook your own meals. Home sharing is a fun way to meet fellow vacationers and can save a lot of money.
Get the Best Price on Hotels
If you do decide to go the hotel route, make sure you're getting the best deal on your hotel stay. I like to start my search by figuring out where on the map I want to stay, and then I start searching for hotels using a good resource like Trivago.
Trivago compiles the prices from a variety of sites so you can see which site has the best price. I also check the hotel site directly, since they often have the better rate.
Make sure you check the fine print on the cancellation policy for the room that you book. Some deals are prepaid where you don't get a refund, and some hotels can be canceled up to a certain time on the day of arrival.
I usually book a room with the best cancellation policy possible, since you never know when you'll have to change your plans.
Choose a Hotel with Free Breakfast
When you choose a hotel with free breakfast, that's one less meal that you have to feed your family. It may not be the best breakfast you've ever had, but every cent counts, and you can use that money towards a better lunch and dinner.
Stay in a Place with a Kitchen
Whether you stay in an Airbnb, a hotel, or with friends and family, if you have a full kitchen to make at least one or two meals a day, you'll save a ton of money on food for your family.
Plus, I love to go out to eat, but too much eating out makes my stomach rebel.
Use Public Transportation
If you're headed to a big city with lots of public transportation, perhaps you can avoid renting a car during your stay to save money. In fact, in some cities like New York City, I would much rather take public transportation than deal with having a car!
Think about how much you would actually need a car and decide if there are alternatives (like public transportation) or if you can just take an Uber or Lyft the few times you do need to go somewhere.
Give the Kids a Budget
Of course, the usual vacation spots like Disneyland are loaded with cool trinkets that the kids want to come home with. Saying "no" is hard.
Instead, have a talk with your kids before you take off. Give them each a budget to get whatever trinkets or memorabilia that they want. Be sure to explain that once they hit the limit that they won't be able to get anything else.
It saves money and gives kids a little bit of freedom and responsibility!
Have a Staycation
You don't need to leave town or even your own home to have a vacation. A staycation is exactly what it sounds like.
Cash in those vacation hours from work and hang out with the family at home. Treat it like you're on a real vacation and have a great time - no tedious housework, or office work. Lock the office door!
There are a lot of options that you can choose from. From "camping" in the back yard, visiting any local theme parks, eating at local restaurants, or just going to local attractions like museums and art exhibits. Give a staycation a shot for maximum money-saving!
Summer vacations are necessary, relaxing, and usually expensive. Now that you know how to save money on your next vacation you can keep a couple of extra dollars for your savings and still spend time with the family. From leaving town, leaving the country, or just camping in the backyard, there are so many ways to save money on vacation costs.
Do you have any tips that you want to share? We'd love to hear from you!
Kathryn @ Making Your Money Matter says
I'm all about budgeting, so my tip is to not only have a budget for the kids, but have a budget for each day's meals while on vacation. You can break it out between a certain total for breakfast, lunch and dinners so you know how much you have to spend on a daily basis. Eating out is a major expense when away from home, so I find this helps a lot to do this. Thanks for the tips!