Vacationing with Family- Doing Your Own Research

If you have the time and the patience, doing your own research on a vacation is much cheaper then if you hire someone to do it for you. With the Internet, you have all of the info at your fingers. Maybe even more.

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When you decide you want to go to "X" location for your vacation, go to work! Research the area. Are you going to camp or are you going to stay in a hotel? How about a house? A house sounds extravagant, BUT if you have a family or two traveling with you, this may be the way to go! If it is just you, a hotel or apartment may be the more cost effective way to go. If you are going to go camping, make sure your vehicle can withstand the traveling! If you are traveling in mountains, you may want to check with a mechanic to make sure your vehicle can handle the weight of your camper. If not, another option would be better then having to repair your van or truck when you get back! (Speaking from personal experience here!)

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So, let say you are wanting to visit Niagara Falls. First, do a search on Niagara Falls. Are there any big events going on? During the holidays, Spring Break or big events at the vacation spot itself, cost will obviously be increased during these times. Is it worth it to you to go at these times, or can you put it off a week or two? Then start to look for your housing or places to camp.

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Instead of making a thousand copies if web pages from your computer, grab a notebook and write down info (notebooks are like $.05 this time of year). If the address is too much to keep track of, tag it under your FAVORITES at the top or left side of your screen. I have a folder under my favorites labeled "Vacations", and when I see a great place or am doing research on a vacation, I save the link there.

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In your notebook, don't be afraid to take lots of notes. You don't want to come back later and find a price for SOMETHING, but you don't know if it was for the certain date you were wanting or another date. Make them detailed, and make sure to always get a phone number for the place. You can always call them and ask questions later. We always do this! The Internet does not include answers for everything!

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Also, like we have talked about before, decide a budget. How much can you spend? Keep with it. Don't be afraid to say NO to something. You don't want to have to have your electric turned off because you decided to do more then you should have on your vacation! (That of course is an extreme, but you know what I'm sayin'!)

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If you need a hotel along the way to your destination, do your own checking here also. Look at Travelocity, Priceline or TravelZoo. These are great places to compare lots of different hotel prices, as well as flights and car rental. I have used all of these and have had good experiences with them all. They will provide you with detailed maps, and phone numbers also. These also include great prices for VERY nice hotels. We have stayed in some pretty "ritzy" hotels before, and payed a lot less then you would think!

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Before you book any vacation, make sure you read up on it. Figure in all costs. Travel (gas, airline tickets, etc), Housing, Consider the reviews (is there review after review that says this place has horrible service? Don't book it!).

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A lot of this is just common sense, but I wanted to encourage you to dig, then dig further! And you can do it! I actually enjoy it! I like knowing that we aren't going to go broke on hidden costs. I love knowing I have contacted the place and they have given me more info then the Internet provided.

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Have fun, and I want to encourage you: life is short, kids grow FAST... get out there and have some fun with them without going broke!

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PS- I am in no way being compensated by Travelocity, Priceline or Travel Zoo, but if they would like to compensate me, I would humbly accept. ;)

Vacationing with Family- Tips on Traveling with Children

Today we will discussing traveling with children! This will mainly be for DRIVING with children, but some things can also apply to flying.

Traveling with children... it can definitely set a bad mood for the trip if you have children asking every 2 seconds, "Are we THERE YET???". So, how do you keep them entertained on a long card trip? How do you keep from having to make stops at the rest stops ever hour? How do you keep them from FIGHTING the WHOLE TIME? I cannot guarantee miracles, but I do know what has worked for me.

• Before you leave on your trip, a week or more before, start packing an activity bag. This should be a bag that the child is allowed to have access to, or one that you pull items out of for them during the trip. Items in this bag, should be all "new to the child" items. Items should obviously be age appropriate, and something that they are going to love doing. Ideas include (but are not limited to): Coloring books, notebooks (for drawing or writing), colored pencils, crayons (I wouldn't suggest regular markers, unless you enjoy graffiti in your vehicle), small hand-held games (anywhere from ones for $10 that have Yahtzee, Battleship, etc or Nintendo DS, our range would be more the $10 range!), card games, small toys (my boys would enjoy Hot Wheel cars, little army men, or Cowboys and Indians, etc.), travel bingo ( you can buy these, copy them off the Internet from several sources, or make your own!), plus MUCH more. You will probably want items that are relatively quiet. For obvious reasons. And all items you should not have to worry about. Example: if you gave them markers, you might be a little worried they would make a mess with them...


• SNACKS & DRINKS. This one seems obvious, but there is a better way to do it. DO NOT purchase snacks on the road. You are going to overpay BIG TIME. Instead a week before you leave, make a list of all good snacks to travel with. Like pretzels, fruit & veggies (grapes, apples, celery, carrots, etc), cookies (homemade or store bought), crackers, etc. All snack should be lower in processed sugar so your kids don't get a huge burst of energy while you are driving. Also, don't buy the small snack bags. MAKE YOUR OWN! This will also save you lots of money. Plus on everyone's baggie, you can put their name. Little kids think this is extra special. Drinks. Ah drinks... to be real here, I am going to tell you I give MY kids VERY LITTLE to drink while we travel. Reason, my oldest son has a bladder the size of a grape. You give that boy something to drink, he will have to go potty within 5 minutes. I am not exaggerating. Ask my extended family. My in laws took my oldest with them on a 2 day trip. I told them not to give him anything to drink. So what did grandpa and grandma do? The first stop they made, they got him a big drink! My SIL said to them, she heard me say he shouldn't have anything to drink. But they said he would be fine. Long story short, they end up pulling over on the side of the road and he ends of pottying in someone's yard. SO! Know your child's potty habits, and give them VERY LITTLE if their bladder is very little!


• Meals. If you can, pack them on your own. It not only means less stops, but it also means it will be cheaper, and healthier! Make a cold meat sandwich with lettuce and tomato, or something else easy, non-greasy, and not too heavy. Obviously, a cooler is a good idea here. If you have to use ice in your cooler, make sure everything is packed in Ziploc bags, to keep from getting wet. If you have to stop somewhere, make sure you eat as healthy as possible. You don't want car sickness or upset bellies.


• Make sure you have necessities handy. Necessities like Tylenol, kid's Tylenol, bandaid's, fingernail clippers, etc. You never know when you will need it! I know we usually need those things in the most unexpected time, like while traveling! Also, carry lots of wet wipes. This a re a blessing when you have an unexpected accident with juice or sticky fingers from that PB &J.


• If you have a long drive, discuss leaving after dinner time. If you leave in the evening, your kids will have had all day to get tired, and will most likely sleep all night in the car for you. This has been a wonderful time for us travel when we are going longer distances. This is only an option if you don't mind driving through the night. I would suggest doing the following: See if a friend or family member can take the kids during the day. You wake early that morning, get all of your packing done, then take a long nap. Then, when you wake up, kids are tired and you are ready to go!


• Traveling with a baby. This can be easy, or it can be hard! With my kids, it was easy for one simple reason. They were on a feeding schedule. By the time my #3 was 2.5 mo, we were going to drive to Florida (from Indiana, 19 hours). We ended up only having to stop ever 4 hours because that is when my son ate. In between, he slept!


• When you make your stops, make the MOST of them. Don't just stop for gas, and nothing else. When you stop for gas, make that a potty break, a food stop and an energy-out break, if possible.


• When you stop, use it as an opportunity to let your kids run! Make sure they are in a safe spot (not a parking lot). And let them RUN! We can't expect them to sit for 12 hours and not get antsy!

The last thing I will leave you with is that I suggest that you PLAN. Plan ahead on snack, activity bag, etc. If you have everything you need at your fingertips, your trip will go much smoother.

I hope this helps you. I know these things have really helped me. I am actually making a driving trip to Florida in about 2 weeks, and will be taking my 4 yo. I will definitely be following everything here!

Any of you have great tips for traveling with your kids??? Please share!

Happy Traveling!

Vacationing with Family- Tips & Reviews

One thing I absolutely LOVE to do with my family, is to go on vacation! Who doesn't? But, travel with kids can be difficult and expensive.

So, what I want to try to do with this segment is to try to share what has worked (and what hasn't!) when we plan a vacation and travel with family. This can include your kids and also extended family.

I also want to share some of our favorite vacations, and tips for those places also. As always, your comments and info are important too. So if you have some helpful info that has worked for your family, please share! Many of MY travel tips have been used for years by me, and passed down from my mother who had 5 children who made travel interesting for her! So, we will say there is a lot of experience here...

So, first things first! You have decided 'We need a vacation! We want to go to _______(insert name of vacation location)!'. NOW what do you do?

What you need to do as you explore ideas, and get information, is you need to make sure you keep all of that info together. I use a notebook, a regular school notebook. First, I write down our ideas. We want to go _______. While we are there we want to see _______. We want to do _______.

Second, establish a budget for your trip. If you are planning to fly to Paris, your budget cannot be $2000. for a family of 6. Probably impossible. Give yourself a realistic amount. Maybe vacation somewhere a little closer.

Third, research! Look on the Internet, look in magazines, talk to people! I have never went with a travel agent. I AM THE TRAVEL AGENT! I don't want to pay someone else to do work that I can do myself! While you are researching, and brainstorming, and gathering ideas... WRITE EVERYTHING DOWN! Write down that Aunt Jane told you about their vacation to Hawaii, and how they found this really great hotel, that was reasonably priced and had many accommodations for kids. Or your next door neighbor just took a trip to New York City and found a great place where their family ate cheaply for the whole vacation. After you write these things down, research it for yourself. Look up how much it costs. Look up if it really even exists! Make sure these places are as great as people are saying they are.

Make sure you are making accommodations you can all live with for a week (or however long your vacation is). If you have kids traveling with you, make sure you have accommodations that will suit them! We don't like to stay in hotel with the boys, because USUALLY there is no play area, there is no areas that they can run and we get glared at for letting them! We also prefer, when traveling with our kids, that we have (at least) a kitchenette so we can have food and eat in, if we want. This is SO much cheaper for us. So we make sure our vacations include this. Make sure each person has what they need!

Once you get all of these great ideas and research done, you will want to make some final plans. Planning months ahead is great, especially for reserving hotels or vacation spots. 1 year in advance is the best time. Many places will only take reservations for hotels and homes a year in advance. Sometimes this is different. Call on the place you want to stay at. Make sure the Internet or brochure price is the correct price. If they tell you more over the phone, don't be afraid to question the price you see on the Internet (or brochure). Sometimes they will end up giving you that price! If they are a lot more then what you expected them to be, don't be afraid to tell them that their info was misleading and you won't be staying with them! This is NOT rude, as long as you act professionally. They need to know that they need to change their info if they want people to vacation with them! Also, make your final arrangements according to what you want to spend, etc. Cross out info for the items that are out of budget!

Look into buying tickets to attractions and shows before you leave. Sometimes, a lot of times, this can save you money. And you may have a better spot at a show if you reserve early! Make sure to get confirmation numbers and final costs, and write them down in your notebook. Also ask them to send you a receipt. When you get the receipt, keep it in your notebook (staple it in or paper clip it, or have a folder with your notebook). This is important because if they don't have your info, and you show up waiting to see the show, then you may not be staying if you can't prove you paid for it! Bring all info with you!

How much is gas going to cost? Figure up the miles, guesstimate the gas prices (make them a little high) then figure out your total cost for gas. (also make sure your vehicle has proper tune-ups and such BEFORE you leave).

When I have all of my prices, I add it to my budget. Like this (please don't critique my math skills, I am NOT a mathmatician!):

• Gas $2.90 p/gal, 500 miles (round trip), Vehicle mileage is 18 miles per gallon highway. 18 /500 = 27.77 x $2.9 = $80.55 Total Cost for gas



• Housing House for 1 week $400 per family + $50 deposit = $450.



• Amusement Park tickets (bought ahead) 1 day, $45. per adult, $30 per child= $90 adult + $90 kids= $180. total for tickets



• Food Eat out 5 times, $40 x 5= $200 to eat out. Groceries (use your own judgement to guesstimate this total, go high) $300. + $200= $500 Total for food.



• Shopping (This is also however much you feel you want to spend on your vacation. Figure in all of the places you are going, and are you going to want to buy something from each place? ). $200. Total Shopping

Your total figured for you vacation $1410.55.

So, if your total is $1410, take at least $1500 with you, and have money somewhere in case of emergency. You don't want to be stuck somewhere with a flat tire, and to buy a new one, you have to spend your food money for the week!

I do this for any vacation that we plan. And we just make sure that we know once the shopping money is gone, that's it! And once the eating out money is gone, we go back to the house and make sandwiches! It is a vacation, BUT you don't want to break the bank to have fun!

You also want to make sure you save ahead for your vacation. You don't want to not have electricity when you come back because you wanted to buy all of your kids the "I went to Texas, and all I got was this stupid T-shirt" shirt. Know what I'm sayin'?

When planning your vacation, PLANNING is the key word. If you are planning for your extended family, make sure everyone knows the costs. I usually make a paper (Like the budget above) and print it out for everyone, so they know what their costs are. I usually write what they owe on one thing or another, or when they need to send in the money for the housing, etc. It helps if at least ONE person is organized, and has all of the information. It can actually be counterproductive to have a different person take care of different parts of the trip. Sometimes wires get crossed, and Susan thought Janet was supposed to take care of the amusement park tickets... Ooops.

So, that my friends, is a brief rundown of how I get organized for vacation planning. If you have any questions, don't be afraid to ask! It is hard to get all of the info in without writing a book! Also, if you have any suggestions for planning a vacation, please leave a comment! Any helpful info is appreciated!

More Vacationing with Family- Tips & Reviews COMING SOON!