Vacations on a budget

I’ve mentioned that our budget is pretty tight, but we are still planning this fun trip this summer. How are we doing it? You are so lucky I’m willing to divulge my secrets.

How to travel frugally

1. Plan–the key to traveling frugally is to plan. Prioritize the most important attractions you want to see or experience.

2. Take advantage of free attractions. When we visit Philadelphia, our only expenses will be parking and meals. That’s it. We are visiting some great historical sites that are all free. Everything is within walking distance of one another. Likewise, Washington D.C. offers a plethora of free museums, historical sites, and activities. When we save so much money on attractions, then we typically choose one or two things to do that cost money.

3. Food–Stay in hotels that have a continental breakfast. Free, unlimited breakfast, enough said. We fill their bellies full–saves us money! Eat out at restaurants for lunch. Prices are typically lower and you can fill up. We plan to eat sandwiches, fruit, yogurt, etc. for dinners at the hotel.

4. Use the internet to book hotels and tickets. Travelzoo.com is a great site that searches ten other top travel sites, searching for the best bargains on hotels. I booked our hotel online by using this site. Using the search, I really was able to find the best deal for our needs.

5. Parking in big cities. When traveling to a big city, one has to consider the cost of parking. After doing some research, I realized that parking in Washington D.C. would be expensive and difficult. We found a hotel close to a metro station. So we’ll take the metro into the city and then walk or use public transportation. This is where good planning comes into play. I’ll plan activities that are close to one another.

6. Look for specials and deals online. Many cities in Europe (and possibly the U.S.) offer special weekend or day passes that allow you free entry to most museums and attractions in the city. If you take full advantage of the passes, you can really see a lot for very little money. For example, while in Paris, we bought passes and were able to: tour a perfume factory and receive samples, ride a double decker tour bus with an audio tour, visit the Louvre, walk up to the top of Notre Dame, ride the subway, tour Versailles, and take a river cruise down the Seine. We could have done even more if we had more time. We saved quite a bit of money and time purchasing the pass online and were able to tour many sites.

7. Don’t be afraid to take walking tours. My friend,Laurel, found detailed walking tours of Amsterdam on the internet. We learned so much about the city following the guide she printed up. I really got a feel for the culture and flavor of the city by walking around it. Each time we’ve explored various cities or sites by walking, we’ve come away with a richer appreciation for the place. One of my best memories of Copenhagen is the day that we took a spontaneous walking tour of the city. We found some wonderful gems.

8. Take advantage of recriprocal memberships at zoos and museums. Last year, we had an inexpensive membership to a local children’s museum. It came with a reciprocal pass to hundreds of museums throughout the country. When we visited Boston, our pass got us into the Science museum for free. Just that alone, was worth the cost of the membership.

9. Look for interesting attractions close to home. Philadelphia and Washington D.C. aren’t that far from us, so the trip won’t cost much money. Take advantage of attractions in your area. If you are stumped for ideas, check out guidebooks about your area. You may be surprised what is available for very little money. Traveling locally saves gas, money on food, and lodging. And you’ll gain a deeper appreciation for your own hometown.

I am going to link you to my friend, Christina’s blog. She has 7 children and has taken some really great adventures with her family. She wrote a great piece about traveling with kids which is well-worth the read.

http://handsfullmom.blogspot.com/2008/02/successful-traveling-with-kids-because.html

I would love to hear your best tips about traveling on a budget. I’m sure I missed things that do make a difference.

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Trip Planning

My amazing mother-in-law is coming for a visit in July in conjunction with Trent’s 8th birthday and baptism. In honor of her visit, we are taking a trip to Philadelphia, Washington D.C., and then later, to upstate New York. I’ve started planning our itinerary. This time I will be much smarter about planning restaurants to visit.

All the inspiration for planning the trip this way comes from Laurel. Two years ago, Laurel planned a trip for the two of us to Amsterdam. We spent 3 days in Amsterdam and our days and nights were completely packed with sightseeing. It was such fun. She is an amazing planner. In our previous trips, we’ve been more spontaneous, which is always fun. But I want to try this way. Also, I want to prepare my kids for the things they’ll see by doing some research.

So I planned the first day of the trip to Philadelphia. The guidebooks I checked out at the library were invaluable. I even found a restaurant complete with the menu. I plan on reserving a table and ordering ahead so we have the optimal eating experience without wasting our precious minutes in Philly.

In preparation for the trip, I’ve decided to start walking on a daily basis. I’ve become so sedentary in New York, its ridiculous. I will need all my stamina to enjoy the trip. Plus, the exercise only benefits me.

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