Save Money on Family Vacations - 7 Different Ways to Cut Vacation Costs

Disclaimer: This post about how to save money on family vacations is sponsored by Groupon Coupons. All opinions and thoughts are still my own.

There is nothing like family vacations. The chance to relax and spend time together is good for every member of the family, but there is no denying that family vacations can get expensive. With these 7 ways to save money on family vacations you don’t have to let sticker shock keep you from enjoying precious time with your family.

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7 Ways to Save Money on Family Vacations

I have always been of the mindset that family vacations are very important. Many blog posts have come out over the last several months saying how important they actually are for kids, but being able to afford one is a whole different ballgame. There are a lot of ways to cut costs for a vacation though that help them become far more affordable.

Travel During the Off Season

There are popular travel season for every destination. Many of them are based on school calendars. There can be no denying that families are more likely to travel when their kids aren’t in school. Not everyone is effected by that though, and hot travel times might not line up with your child’s school schedule. Our school year doesn’t start until after labor day and we have found that prices start to drop around mid August when many kids are already back in school.

Not all popular travel times are based on school schedules. Certain resort locations are based more on seasons. For example, ski resorts are most popular during the winter. Those ski resorts are still open during the summer months at a lower cost. Finding when the off season for your vacation destination is can be a big way to save money on family vacations.

Travel on a Weekday

Most people travel on the weekend due to their work schedules. Travel businesses realize this and charge accordingly. A great way to save money on family vacations is to do the opposite. Leaving on a Tuesday for example instead of say a Saturday and you’re likely to find lower prices for hotels, airfare, and you might even be able to save money on gas.

Use Groupon Coupons

Have you been taking advantage of Groupon Coupons? They are amazing, and they have so many merchants listed that you can save money with. They even have quite a selection of travel merchants.

You can use Groupon Coupons to snag some amazing vacation savings. With their selection on merchants you can find deals on hotel rooms, car rentals, airfare, and even amusement park tickets! You can find a lot of ways to save money on family vacations with the Groupon Coupons deals!

Check out all of these travel merchants listed with Groupon Coupons:

Drive Instead of Flying

This tip isn’t for everyone, or even every vacation. If your vacation destination is within a reasonable driving distance I highly encourage you to consider doing so though.

We live in Michigan, but at least once a year we make the 18 hour drive to Walt Disney World. With our party of 3 (my mother, Nick, and me) we find driving a lot cheaper than flying. Especially since on the way down we drive straight through.

Airfare tickets, checked luggage, and other fees for three people can really add up. Gas for one car, some food, and a hotel one way is a whole lot cheaper.

Eat Your Big Meal at Lunch

Most restaurants still have different lunch and dinner menus. Lunch menus often aren’t all that different from the dinner menu, but the prices are usually a lot cheaper. By having your big meal of the day at lunch time you can save a lot of money on your food budget.

Buy Groceries

Besides eating your big meal at lunch another way to really save food money is to buy your own groceries, or use a service like Amazon to ship food to where you’re staying. This can save you money in so many ways.

First it can save you on snack costs. Individual snack items are always more expensive, and even more so when you’re at travel locations. You’d be amazed by how much money can you can save by reaching for a snack in your bag instead of one from a vending machine.

When you have food with you than you also can save money by eating meals in your room. Breakfast is a really easy meal to do this for. Plus as an added bonus you won’t have to waste a ton of time on your vacation waiting for food in restaurants.

When deciding on where you’re going to stay be sure to look for locations that contain a kitchen. Depending on your party size and the price for accommodations at your destination, it might be cheaper to get a room with a kitchen that allows you to eat in a lot than to get one without and pay to go out to eat a lot.

Save on Toiletries

When buying vacation toiletries at the grocery store have you really paid attention to the prices? They are crazy expensive! It can be a few dollars for a tiny bottle of shampoo. Buying only a few toiletries can quickly add up. Keep costs lower by finding ways to save on toiletries.

First take advantage of the toiletries supplied by your hotel. Unless I’m going camping I never buy or pack shampoo, conditioner, or soap. Most hotels supply lotion as well, but I am picky about my lotions so I usually bring my full size bottles of those.

Another way to save on your toiletries is to find ways to downsize your own regular toiletry bottles. For example, I like to buy a travel hairspray bottle with a screw on top. That way when it is empty I can open the bottle up and poor some hair spray from one of my larger bottles into it and use it again. You can buy empty spray bottles as well, but I figure if I’m going to buy something I might as well get something in it to use first.

I also like to buy empty travel bottles to use. I find these work great for things like my son’s body wash and shampoo. I don’t want to use the adult items supplied by the hotel for him, so just pouring what I use for him in an empty bottle makes things easier and it’s much cheaper than buying little bottles of the same stuff.

Family vacations are so important, but they can become expensive easily. I hope these tips help to save you a little money so you can have a much needed family vacation without breaking the bank.

7 Ways To Save Money On Family Vacations