With the average cost of vacation about $2,000 per person, or $8,000 for a family of four, it’s no wonder that many people are searching for cheap vacations to fit their budget. You will need to lower your expectations from images of five-star hotels to maximize savings and minimize your disappointment. Here are the top ways to be adventurous and make memories.
1. Tour Your Environs
You don’t have to go far to have a vacation. You can vacation in a place or have a staycation, and make plans to explore your city, town, or region on foot, by car, or bicycle. It may be that you live close to a National Park, lakes, rivers, and you always wanted to take your family and explore these places.
You’ll save on airfares and maybe even hotels, especially if you decide to go camping or take day trips. It is a wonderful way to validate the beauty of where you live.
2. Travel Off-Season
There are benefits to traveling off-season to your destination. By going off-season, you can avoid crowds, lines, fewer tourists, and have greater availability to explore. Determine what off-season may be as they differ by cities, countries, beaches, amusements, casinos (is there ever an off-season?), or skiing resorts.
The improved supply and demand are favorable for travelers, allowing better pricing options and availability in packages, airfares, car rental, and hotels.
3. Off The Beaten Path
There are treasures to find when you go off the beaten path. Besides savings which are often considerable, it is an excellent way to explore cultures and towns chockful of beautiful surprises.
Being able to talk to the people who live in the towns, many enjoy pointing you toward unique finds, a cultural site, or an affordable restaurant with the best cuisine. These places may be outside of major cities in the US or abroad and provide benefits like a more fabulous hotel or bed & breakfast availability, cheaper accommodations, fewer tourists, giving you more time and less stress.
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4. Timeshare Vacation Rentals
A timeshare is a type of resort that divides ownership of vacation condos among multiple people. There are different resorts and retail chains to choose from and satisfy your needs. Timeshare rentals are desirable destinations for cheap vacations at premium resorts, with many amenities like pools, beaches, on-site activities, and great restaurants. You can rent condos with kitchens and living space when traveling with a large family.
5. National Parks
Have you been to Yellowstone? Our country has breathtakingly beautiful National Parks. The parks are majestic and remind us that we are small parts of our universe. There are 423 national parks in the US, DC, and our territories, including 63 with Congressional protection.
Many choices provide excellent budget options. You can enter most parks for free or get seven-day passes for $35 per carload, not per person. If you are an avid visitor, you can buy annual America the Beautiful passes for $80. Senior citizens 62 and older can get a lifetime pass for $80.
6. Camping
Enjoying the great outdoors is always a great way to have a cheap vacation with family or friends. Camping steadily grew before the pandemic and continued to experience strong growth. You can find a location with lakes, fishing, and hiking trailing.
The 2021 North American Camping report reflects the US and Canadian campers surveyed on their sentiments and behaviors on outdoor recreation. They found more than 86 million US households consider themselves campers, and 48 million of those took at least one camping trip in 2020, up over six million over 2019.
7. Book A Trip With Costco
Costco members in the US have access to exclusive discounted travel packages, cruises, hotels, rental cars, and limited deals. Just use your membership number to book travel services. There are savings for value-seeking travelers but want luxury. The retailer offers two membership levels to get more benefits for those who aren’t Costco members.
The Gold Star membership is $60 annually. In contrast, the Executive Membership costs $120 annually with extra perks, including a 2% back on your purchases up to $1,000 per year on select travel products and amenity credits.
8. Last Minute Cruises
Getting a last-minute cruise has been an excellent way to snag a bargain for those who seek to cruise for a vacation. Travel experts define last-minute cruises as roughly 60 to 90 days before embarkation as the best time to book a cruise to get $1,500-$2,000 off the price. Your best bet is to avoid peak times like Christmas and New Year’s.
9. Online Travel Auctions
Bidding online is an excellent way to find bargains for travel packages. Travelers control the prices they are willing to pay for domestic or international packages, rental car deals, hotels, or just flight deals. eBay, the company that kicked off the online auctions for everything, has a travel auction page.
You can find luxury bargains ( a bit oxymoronic) travel options on Luxury Link when you sign as a member. They have various auctions to choose from, like Dutch auctions and Best Shot auctions.
10. Airbnb And Vrbo
Airbnb is a fast-growing peer-to-peer online marketplace for people looking for a vacation rental as an alternative to standard hotels. The company has more than 5.6 million active listings in more than 100,000 cities and towns worldwide. More than 4 million hosts rent their property to guests through Airbnb. They offer a wide variety of spaces: entire place, private rooms, shared rooms, and hotel rooms.
Airbnb’s rentals are often cheaper than hotels, but not all the time. Airbnb’s colossal inventory in desirable places may be expensive, so it best to make comparisons based on the market.
11. Hostels
There are many hostels in the US and globally. They are attractive choices for single people or small groups, typically young people. It is not just for young people as there are hostels for seniors who take classes on a college campus, paint, go to museums, or ride bicycles. Hostels are budget-friendly with varying accommodations that provide shared social experiences when traveling internationally.
12. Home Exchanges
Home exchanges, also called a house swap, are economical to vacation far from home. Typically, you arrange to occupy someone’s primary residence at your desired destination while that party will occupy your place.
Home exchanges work on a membership with annual fees, where you have a better chance to swap homes. Some people have multiple homes and may opt to put a non-primary home for changing with another party. In some cases, the parties may offer just a guest room in their home when they are still occupying their place.
13. Couchsurfing
Couchsurfing is an excellent way to travel worldwide, especially for solo travelers seeking cheap vacations. It began when Casey Fenton traveled to Iceland without a place to stay. He reached out to a group of Icelandic college students, who offered accommodations.
This experience gave birth to Couchsurfing.com, an online global travel community founded by its Chairman Fenton that has grown to 14 million people in more than 200,000 cities to connect, find a place to stay or share their homes as hosts.
14. Be A House Sitter
Housesitting is an alternative to traveling on a budget and earning some money. Owners often hire house sitters when they take vacations, travel for work, or extended leave. They don’t want to leave their home empty, and it relieves their worry about burglaries and provides them with security and peace of mind.
You can live rent-free in locations you want to explore in different areas in the US and globally. Professional house-sitters may water plants, collect mail, take out the trash, and do pet care. Depending on the location, you can earn $25-$45+ per hour. House sitters may do short overnight stays or more extended stays. This option is beneficial for those who prefer not to stay with the owners.
15. Hop On A Cheap Flight
Airfares could be a significant part of your travel budget. Knowing how to save on flights can make a difference in your destination choice. We sometimes learn the hard way that booking early or last-minute doesn’t necessarily get you the best deal. These days, you can find cheap flights to your destination on various websites to make your vacation more affordable. You may have to lower your expectations if you need more perks.
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