By Melissa
Traveling as a family is expensive! Heck – just driving your car around town is expensive so when traveling out of town or going on vacation either with your spouse or as an entire family use a few of these tips to save you money and help eliminate the dreaded “where are we eating” conversation.
Keep these tips in mind even if your not traveling or if your just going to visit family for the holidays. You’ll be able to save some cash so you can take a (much deserved) vacation!
*Request a visitors guide in advance. This will allow you to see the restaurants in the area you will be visiting. You can then be on the look out for coupons in the paper or online. Many times these books will also contain coupons.
*Research the areas television and radio stations. Many have weekly promotions that include 1/2 off dining and entertainment packages to the areas most popular restaurants and attractions. Do this as soon as you plan your trip. These sale out quick especially during tourist season and often take a week for you to receive them in the mail. Most I have seen have an expiration date of one year but double check.
*Look to see what restaurants offer “kids eat free” promotions and try to take advantage of these at least one night while traveling.
*Stop at the state or town visitor center. These are full of coupons. Hotel lobby brochure stands are also a good place to look for these.
*Pick up a few $10 or $20 gift cards to the fast food restaurants you know you will frequent on your travels. While this isn’t necessarily saving you money, it does make a few meals easier on your wallet during your travels. I received a “thank you” from my bank which allowed me to choose a $10 gift card from a list of merchants. I used this as an opportunity to pick up a gift card to a restaurant that we can always go to.
*If you are staying in a hotel, consider paying a few dollars more for a hotel with continental breakfast and/or an evening happy hour. Do the math and see if its worth it for you. How much is your family’s breakfast costs? Do you order a few adult beverages at dinner? Think about it and make the decision that works for your budget.
* If your family drinks sodas, bottled water, etc bring those with you in a cooler and purchase ice or if your staying in a hotel, its free. Why pay $1 for a can of soda when you can buy a case for $3?!
*If your lucky enough to live in a tourist town you can take advantage of many of these bargains year round!
So to sum it up – traveling is still expensive but by using a few of these tips you won’t be stealing dinner rolls for tomorrows breakfast!
