Going on vacation is something we all look forward to. But the planning phase isn’t always so much fun. We often get started with a good attitude, but when we see how much it’s going to cost, the sticker shock can really put a damper on things.

Too often, vacationers go directly through the airline, hotel or attraction to make reservations, and they assume that the prices are set in stone. But the truth is that they’re not. In most cases, there are better deals to be had. Finding them will take some work, but it could greatly reduce your vacation expenses.

Researching prices is much easier than it once was, because virtually all travel agencies have an online presence. And there are sites dedicated to finding the best deals on flights, hotels and admission to attractions. While there’s no one website that’s guaranteed to always have the best price on everything, the ability to see what a variety of providers have to offer from the comfort of your own home makes the process much easier.

There are many sites where one can find travel deals. Here are some of the most popular:

* Orbitz.com – Orbitz features deals on vacation packages, hotels, travel, cruises and more. It is a popular site for booking flights because of the Price Assurance program. If you book a flight and another Orbitz customer books it at a lower price, you automatically receive a check for the difference.

* Hotwire.com – This site features deals on the same items as Orbitz. It has a Trip Watcher feature that notifies vacationers when prices drop on the trips they are interested in.

* Expedia.com – In addition to helping find the best prices on travel and accommodations, Expedia offers a number of tools to help travelers save money and get the most out of their vacation.

* CheapTickets.com – This site offers many of the same features as other sites, but also has deals on tickets to concerts, theater, sports and other events.

* Priceline.com – Priceline reportedly offers the best deals on luxury hotels. Customers can place bids on hotel rooms in various star classes, but they do not find out the name of the hotel until they buy.

Last Minute Deals

Those who are intent on visiting a certain destination often want to plan ahead to make sure they don’t miss out. This is important if you want to attend a special event such as a concert or festival. It can also be beneficial if you have to put in for time off work well in advance. But if you can be a little more flexible in your plans, you could save with last minute travel deals.

The aforementioned sites are excellent when it comes to finding last minute deals. When other travelers cancel their reservations, airlines and hotels often make those reservations available at discounted prices through such sites. So if you aren’t picky about where you go and don’t have to strictly adhere to a date, you could save a lot of money.

Finding deals on vacations is easier than ever. If you do your homework, you could book a trip at a fraction of the normal cost.

Brought To You By:
Woody Alpern
CPA/PFS
www.yourwealth.com
woody@yourwealth.com

Have you ever had an unexpected opportunity to take some time off? Or have you planned time off to stay at home, then decided that it would be nice to take a vacation? There was a time when last minute trips were difficult to successfully plan, not to mention expensive. But today, it’s entirely possible to set up a vacation on the spur of the moment without spending a fortune.

What’s the secret? It’s the Internet. Airlines have never liked to have empty seats, and hotels have never enjoyed having empty rooms. So when they have open or cancelled reservations for dates in the near future, they are often willing to let them go at a discount in order to make at least some profit from them. Before the Internet, it was difficult for travelers to find these deals. But now, it’s a piece of cake.

How to Find Last Minute Deals

There are lots of websites where one can find last minute travel deals. Some of the most popular include LastMinute.com, CheapTickets.com and SmarterTravel.com. MSN also offers a flight search that compares prices from several of the best travel booking sites, located at Farecast.Live.com.

The key to finding last minute deals is looking for them at the right time. If you search too far ahead, airlines and hotels will not be willing to give the big discounts because there’s still a good chance that the seats/rooms will be sold at regular price. If you search too late, you could miss out on the best deals. As a general rule, try searching three to four days before your desired departure date.

Many airline and travel websites run newsletters that feature last minute deals. If you know that you will have the opportunity to travel in the near future, try subscribing to some of these. Keep a close eye on your email, and you might be able to snatch up a great deal.

Remember that you’ll have to be rather flexible if you’re set on getting a last minute deal. You may not be able to get a flight and accommodations at your choice of locations. It’s best to have a few possible destinations in mind before you start looking. If you can’t work something out for your first choice, move on to the next one on your list. Also, you may have to settle for departure or arrival from a less convenient airport.

With the ease of finding travel deals online, last minute vacations have become increasingly common. Even those who plan time off months in advance sometimes wait until the last minute to make arrangements, simply because they can get better deals. It’s kind of risky if you are intent on a particular destination, but if you just want to get away, seeking last minute deals could allow you to do it much less expensively.

When it comes to frugal vacation ideas, camping is hard to beat. Roughing it is much cheaper than traveling to a destination and shelling out for activities and accommodations. It’s a great way to spend real quality time with the family.

There are some expenses associated with camping. In fact, if you’re not careful, you can end up spending much more than you bargained for. Here are some tips to help keep camping expenses to a minimum.

* Invest in a good tent. You can find cheap tents with ease, but you get what you pay for. Spending the money to get a quality tent that’s big enough for your needs is wise. As long as you take good care of it you won’t have to replace it as soon, so you’ll be much better off in the long run.

* Seek out free camping spots. If you have friends or family members who are landowners, you might be able to talk them into letting you camp out on their property instead of renting space at a campground.

* Bring along plenty of food. You can eat very inexpensively when you go camping, but only if you avoid making runs for fast food and takeout.

* Be sure to store your food properly. A large, well insulated cooler is a must for keeping perishable food and drinks cold. Other food should be kept where animals can’t get to it. Large plastic tubs with snug-fitting lids are great for this purpose.

* Be realistic about what you will eat. If you’re going on a week-long camping trip, you’ll need to plan a little variety. Roasting hot dogs every night or eating cold sandwiches three meals a day gets old fast. Bring along a camp stove or grill and a few different things to cook.

* Consider taking reusable dishes, cups and flatware. Campers usually use paper plates and plastic cups and forks for convenience, but these are unnecessary expenses. If you bring along plenty of water, a camp stove to heat the water and some dishwashing liquid, you can easily wash up the dishes and use them again.

* Bring plenty of things for the kids (and the adults) to do. A long camping trip can get boring if you don’t. Some popular camping pastimes include volleyball, badminton, horseshoes and cards.

* Pack plenty of clothing and blankets. Make sure everyone brings a jacket and a pair or two of long pants, even if it’s hot out. It could get chilly at night. If you have all the clothes and blankets you need, you won’t have to make a trip to get more.

* Don’t forget the first aid kit. You can buy kits at drug or discount stores, or you could make your own. The essentials include band aids, antibiotic ointment, tweezers and needles (for removing splinters), an ace bandage, and a bottle of over-the-counter pain reliever. Also be sure to bring any medications that anyone on the trip may need. These things could save you a trip to the drugstore or doctor.

Camping is usually far less expensive than most outings. And if you keep a close eye on your expenses, you can have a fun vacation for next to nothing.

Brought To You By:
Woody Alpern
CPA/PFS
www.yourwealth.com
woody@yourwealth.com

We all need a vacation every now and then. Getting away from the stresses of everyday life for a while leaves us refreshed and gives us a new sense of purpose. But when money is a concern, jetting off to a remote island may not be an option. Even going on a road trip could put an undue strain on the budget.

It can be disappointing when we’re not able to take the vacation of our dreams, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t take a break. And it certainly doesn’t mean we can’t have fun. More than anything, vacation is a state of mind. If we can get ourselves into that state of mind, we can enjoy ourselves and destress without going far from home.

No matter where you live, there’s something inexpensive you can do during summer vacation. Here are some ideas:

* Get acquainted with the arts in your area. Visit nearby galleries, or take in a show put on by the local theatre troop. Large cities may have more to choose from when it comes to art, but most smaller cities and towns have something to offer too. You might be surprised at what you find if you try.

* Plan a camping trip. Whether you rent a spot from a campground or just set up a tent in the back yard, camping is a great way to break the monotony without breaking the bank. There’s just something about roasting marshmallows and sleeping under the stars that soothes the spirit.

* Visit a museum. Chances are there’s a museum of some kind in your town. Whether it’s a history museum or just some wacky collection, it will be a learning experience.

* Take advantage of the park system. State and national parks are wonderful recreation destinations, and they offer lots of activities that are cheap or free. Some have lakes that you can swim, boat or fish in, and most have hiking trails. There are also picnic areas, and some parks host special events for the public.

* Set up your own water park in the back yard. Invest in a quick-set pool, a slip and slide, some water guns and other inexpensive water toys. You can have lots of fun without the crowds for less than the price of a couple of days’ admission at most water parks.

* Organize a block party. Have each guest bring a dish, fire up the grill and set up the badminton net. If everyone pitches in, each person’s costs will be minimal and everybody will have lots of fun.

No matter what you do during your vacation, it’s important that you relax. The idea is to take a break from work and everyday life, not to stay close enough to keep tabs on it. So resist the urge to check your email incessantly or go back to work early.

Vacationing at home has become a popular way to save money. But it doesn’t have to be a sentence to boredom. If you treat it like a true vacation and make it a point to schedule things to do, an at-home vacation can be just as fun and beneficial as a trip to a traditional vacation spot.

Vacationing in an exotic location is a distant dream for some of us. For those who are fortunate enough to live in such places, it’s an everyday thing.

If you have friends and relatives who live on an island paradise or other popular vacation spot, the thought of going to visit them has probably crossed your mind. But you can’t just invite yourself, can you? That depends on your relationship with them.

When it comes to immediate family such as parents and siblings, inviting yourself to visit may be perfectly acceptable. If you were a tight-knit family when you were living with them, chances are they’ll have no qualms in letting you stay in their homes as long as you ask ahead of time. Popping in without notice could be an issue, though.

More distant relatives may or may not like the idea of hosting you and your family. If they’re ones you’ve talked to on a regular basis for years, asking to stay might be okay. If not, it could come off as too presumptuous.

With friends, asking to stay is a bit of a judgment call. Only you know how close your friendship is. But even with close friends, it can be hard to predict how they might react to you asking to spend a few nights under their roof.

One possible solution when you’re unsure how a friend or family member will react is to ask indirectly. Instead of calling and saying “Hey, can I stay with you?”, try giving them a call and casually mentioning that you’re considering vacationing in their neck of the woods and asking if they know any good, inexpensive hotels. They might just offer to let you stay without having to ask! If they do not, it’s probably safe to assume that they are not agreeable to the idea.

Etiquette When Staying With Friends or Relatives on Vacation

If you are lucky enough to find a friend or relative to stay with, it’s important to be gracious. By being a good houseguest, you leave the door open for visits in the future.

It’s important to spend some time with your friend or relative once you arrive. If you don’t, he may feel hurt and used. So spend some time hanging out at the house together. Invite your host to dinner or a club, and pay his way. You could even ask if he would like to visit local attractions with you. People who live near vacation spots often do not take the time to enjoy them like those who live elsewhere, so he might just take you up on it.

Don’t forget to offer to reciprocate. Let your host know that if he wants to visit your area, he can stay with you. He might want to come and visit friends and family back home sometime, and you can return the favor.

Staying with friends and relatives in exotic places is a great way to save on vacation expenses. As long as you are gracious and don’t overstay your welcome, it can be fun for all involved.

Brought To You By:
Woody Alpern
CPA/PFS
www.yourwealth.com
woody@yourwealth.com

There was a time when road trips were among the best vacation options for those on a budget. But with rising gas prices, they have become much more expensive. Even so, many vacationers still enjoy hitting the road and seeing the sights along the way.
When planning a road trip, it’s crucial to estimate gas costs as accurately as possible. If you just guess, you could find yourself halfway to your destination and out of money! Here’s how to determine approximately how much you will have to spend on gas.

1. For at least a couple of weeks, keep track of your gas mileage. The easiest way to do this is to fill up and reset your trip odometer. The next time you get gas, fill up again and write down how much gas it took to fill up and how many miles you drove.

2. Divide the miles driven by the amount of gas used. For example, if you drove 200 miles and it took 10 gallons to fill up, you would divide 200 by 10 to get 20 miles per gallon.

3. Remember to fill up each time you get gas and figure your gas mileage. Once you’ve done this a few times, add up the results and divide the total by the number of times you filled up to get your average gas mileage.

4. Figure out how many miles you will be driving during your vacation. This is easy to do with online tools such as Google Maps. Just put in your starting point, add your destinations in order, and you’ll see a map with the best route and the total mileage.

5. Divide the total number of miles you will travel by the miles per gallon figure you came up with. Multiply that number by the price of gas per gallon, and you’ll have a good idea of how much you can expect to spend on gas.

Keep in mind that gas prices fluctuate. By the time you take your road trip, gas prices could have gone up or down. They will also vary from city to city. So it’s smart to budget a little bit extra, just to be sure.

Saving Money on Gas

There are some things you can do to keep your fuel costs as low as possible. Here are a few:

* Seek out the cheapest gas prices along the way. Check prices in the towns and cities you’ll be passing through on a site such as GasBuddy.com, and try to fill up at the least expensive stations.

* Use cruise control when practical. This will keep you at a constant speed, which can seriously improve your gas mileage.

* Avoid speeding. Not only can this get you an expensive ticket, it’s also bad for gas mileage. The optimal speed for fuel efficiency is 55 mph, and when you go faster than that you’re using more gas than you should.

* Avoid abrupt stops and starts as much as possible. Try to coast to red lights so that they will have time to turn green before you reach them. When you have to stop, accelerate slowly and steadily when the light turns green.

* Get a tune-up before you leave. Things like replacing air and fuel filters and making sure your tires are inflated properly can help boost your gas mileage.

Creating a gas budget for your road trip can help avoid unpleasant surprises along the way. And if you drive with fuel efficiency in mind, you might even use less gas than you had planned.

Brought To You By:
Woody Alpern
CPA/PFS
www.yourwealth.com
woody@yourwealth.com

Taking a vacation is supposed to help alleviate stress, not add to it. But for those of us who do not have unlimited funds to work with, it can do just that. Planning fun for the whole family and providing for transportation, meals and accommodations can be tricky, and paying for it all can be even trickier.

We all know how important it is to have a household budget. But we tend to forget about budgeting when it comes to vacations. If we can create a vacation budget and follow it closely, it can help us enjoy our getaway without worrying about money.

How Much Can You Afford to Spend?

In order for a vacation budget to work, we must first determine how much we can afford to spend. If you have money set aside in a vacation fund, this might be the easy part. But if you’re working with money from general savings or a tax refund, it will require some thought.

Spending every penny you have that isn’t required for bills on a vacation is not a good idea. Having an emergency fund is important for any family. If you already have plenty of money put away for emergencies and the bills are paid, using your tax refund for a trip isn’t such a bad thing. Otherwise, take care of the more important stuff before you allocate funds for vacationing.

If you just have a savings account but haven’t decided how you will use the money, resist the urge to spend it all on a vacation. Setting some money aside for a rainy day will do you a lot more good than hitting all of the hottest spots on your trip. The general rule is to have at least enough money put back to pay all of your expenses for at least three months. If you’re nowhere near that point, try to keep enough to at least have a good start toward that.

What to Include in Your Budget

Vacation expenses have a way of sneaking up on us. And that’s exactly why a budget is so important. It forces us to consider all possible expenses and account for them so that there are no surprises. Here are the basic expenses you’ll need to account for:

* Transportation – This could be airfare, bus, or train fare, or gas for a road trip. If you’re not taking your own vehicle, you’ll probably also need to rent a car when you reach your destination. And then there’s the gas you’ll use while you’re there.

* Accommodations – Unless you’re doing an at-home vacation or staying with a friend or relative, you’ll have to pay for a place to stay.

* Food – You have to eat while you’re on vacation. Some packages include a meal plan, but if yours doesn’t, you’ll need to budget for your meals. You can save money by taking your own food to prepare if you rent a place with a kitchen.

* Entertainment – This is a biggie. You have to pay to get in to the beach, amusement park, or whatever other attraction you’re visiting. But there may be times when you or other family members want to do something else, so be sure to account for that as well.

* Shopping – When most people go on vacation, they come home with souvenirs. So it’s important to set aside some money for them.

Money should not be a constant worry when you’re on vacation. If you set a budget and stick to it, it doesn’t have to be.

Brought To You By:
Woody Alpern
CPA/PFS
www.yourwealth.com
woody@yourwealth.com

Going on vacation can be fun, relaxing and rejuvenating. But one thing it usually isn’t is cheap. Just paying for a place to stay and admission to attractions can add up to hundreds of dollars. And by the time you factor in travel, dining and shopping, your vacation could cost a small fortune.

The good news is that if you know where to look, you can find coupons and discounts that will significantly reduce your costs. It’s entirely possible to go on a trip and not pay full price for anything. Here are some places to look for vacation deals.

* Visit Free-Attractions.com. This website lists lots of things you can do for free all over the United States. There are zoos, museums, parks, festivals and more, and they’re all organized by city and state.

* If you’re interested in visiting a specific place, visit the area’s official tourism website. Many such sites offer coupons for local attractions. Some make printable coupons available online, while others will send you a coupon book for free or for the cost of shipping and handling. If you pay for coupons, however, it’s important to be certain that you will use enough of them to make up for the cost.

* Get your hands on a newspaper or guidebook from the area you plan to visit. These are great sources of coupons.

* Check the official websites of attractions you plan to visit. They may offer coupons or have details of promotions that are going on. Some offer reduced admission or two-for-one deals on certain dates.

* Consider a season pass. Amusement parks often sell them for the price of two to three days’ admission. If you’re planning to visit for a week and go to the park each day, a season pass might be the cheapest way to go. And if there’s an attraction in your area that you might visit several times in a year, a season pass is definitely the way to go.

* Look for package deals. These are often available from travel agencies, and include airfare, accommodations, admission to attractions, and often dining and shopping gift certificates. It’s important to add everything up to make sure you’re getting a good deal, but such packages can save you big bucks.

* Are you a member of an organization such as AAA or AARP? They offer discounts to their members for lots of things, including vacation expenses. Even some credit card and insurance companies offer special discounts to their customers.

There are numerous ways to save money on a vacation. If you plan well in advance, you may be able to knock hundreds of dollars off of your expenses. That’s money that you can use to pay off debt, put into savings, or put away to go toward next year’s vacation.

Brought To You By:
Woody Alpern
CPA/PFS
www.yourwealth.com
woody@yourwealth.com