A Super Budget (Like Beyond Cheap) PTR/TR

[rnorwo1]

We did Southwest to FLL too, our fares were something like $120 each RT. The Tripadvisor Key West forum was very helpful with the happy hours. You might want want to check there. There's a huge thread devoted to happy hour. Both Boathouse and Alonzo's are attached to fairly $$$ restaurants so the food was very tasty and a good value. If you like beer the Waterfront Brewery had a good selection and the fried pretzel bread with beer cheese dip was very nice.

Fried pretzel bread?!

 

[halfpintpeggy]

Following. You're amazing & I love your attitude & writing style! BTW big 'ole budget traveler here too! Resort pics please & thank you.

 

[halfpintpeggy]

Oh! We have the same cooler, those things are the best!!!

 

[jsmla]

Fried pretzel bread?!

 

[MamaKate]

Following your frugal journey.

 

[neatokimmo]

I am following too I love Ruby Tuesday salad bar. They have coupons on your phone that makes it a great priced quick meal on a road trip.

 

[rnorwo1]

That looks incredible, I love pretzel bread!

 

[hsmamato2]

Drive Days


Thursday 9/15
I spent Thursday night at my parents' house. My mother passed away last fall and my dad is currently splitting his time between the house and a nearby assisted living facility. My brother and I are slowly going through the house emptying it of all of the little extras that made it a home. I find going through all of my mother's special memories extremely sad. Like me, Mom was a bit of a sentimental hoarder and there are boxes and boxes of pictures, letters and old report cards. A break from that will be nice.

Anyway, Dad needs help,with his medications and errands so I drove over to take care of that. While there I swiped a 2 liter bottle of Diet Coke for my trip. Stealing from my 81 year old father-cheap knows no morality.

 

[ryansstitch]

I want to "like" each individual little loaf!

 

[jsmla]

Thanks for following! Just checking in. I'm sorry about the lack of updates but now that the trip has begun in earnest I'm finding it a little hard to keep up. Most evenings I'm just too tired to do much more than eat, shower and stumble to bed. Evening expenditures have been, one night at Universal excepted, very low!

I'm trying to keep notes and save my receipts so that I can pick it back up when things slow down.

 

[KKB]

So sorry to hear of the devastation to you & your family & everyone in your area.

Following along. I am a person who tries to squeeze every penny out of every $ we make so we can travel as much as possible, too.

We haven't been to WDW in 5 years (we went 2x in 3 years) & the children (16,18 & 21) have been BEGGING to go. DS21 graduates from college this year so we decided that this might be the last year we can more easily coordinate everyone. So I booked a VRBO for the last week of May (already a conflict; niece graduates the last weekend we are there/driving home--but I'd rather spend the $ on WDW than a quick weekend for HS graduation...really, it would be a comparable cost since we would have to fly there & we have decided to drive to save the $3K+)

We haven't told the kids yet (Xmas gift)--and last night we were watching Blackish & they were at WDW & DS16 was going ON & ON about wanting to go back to WDW & how we haven't had a family vaca in 2 years (it was last March) but DH & I travel several times/year. (yep--we work, 2 is cheaper than 5 & easier to schedule!), etc., etc. DH & I were rolling after he went to bed.

We did resorts the first 2 trips but double beds don't work with the size of our teens! And moderate is too much. $699/nts 2 exits away at a Windsor Hills was a steal. It is a 20 hour drive but we have 6 drivers. (Mom is going too), and that eliminates the cost of car rental too.

So I will be curiously following your report. Have a WONDERFUL WONDERFUL time!

 

[ronandannette]

Thanks for following! Just checking in. I'm sorry about the lack of updates but now that the trip has begun in earnest I'm finding it a little hard to keep up. Most evenings I'm just too tired to do much more than eat, shower and stumble to bed. Evening expenditures have been, one night at Universal excepted, very low!

I'm trying to keep notes and save my receipts so that I can pick it back up when things slow down.

Hi OP . I'm wondering how everything ended up. It's not exactly my style of travel but I was really enjoy following your report. I hope you're well and will come back and fill us all in!

 

[loves to dive]

While not a budget traveler any more I was a single mom years ago so can appreciate your experiences. I find Ice Cream and coke for breakfast perfect, of course for me it would have to be diet coke since I don't like the sweetness of regular coke.

 

[lilpixiebabe101]

Joining in. Same parish as you from the big ole city of central... and I 100% know what you are going through. We lost almost everything plus both cars and had just moved into a new rental June 5th. I had a trip planned for 01/17 just a ladies trip and had decided to cancel till my husband put his foot down. Said with everything going on I needed something good to look forward to or I would go crazy. And he's right, with all these steps backwards it has been a shining point to focus on.

 

[jsmla]

Hi everyone!

Well, I'm finally back in good old (and dry!) Louisiana! Won't be home until Sunday though because I'm stopping off to help my father with a few things. I've never been gone so long before and am very ready to be home.

I think I managed to take enough notes and save enough receipts to write about my Great Cheapo Adventure even with my iffy memory!

I don't have my total spends yet but I only used the credit card once (major blister emergency!) and managed to come home with money in my wallet!

 

[jsmla]

Joining in. Same parish as you from the big ole city of central... and I 100% know what you are going through. We lost almost everything plus both cars and had just moved into a new rental June 5th. I had a trip planned for 01/17 just a ladies trip and had decided to cancel till my husband put his foot down. Said with everything going on I needed something good to look forward to or I would go crazy. And he's right, with all these steps backwards it has been a shining point to focus on.

That's awful, did you have insurance? I know so many didn't. Our lodger's home was condemned-she had water for a month! The city is in the process of tearing it down. She lived there for over 40 years and lost 90% of her things-pictures, momentous, etc. I can't imagine it.

I felt exactly the way you do now before I left (I literally thought about turning around while driving through Mississippi.) and definitely go if you can manage it. I feel so much more ready to deal with all of the problems going on at home now. In a weird sort of way I'm looking forward a little bit to the challenge of it all.

My main responsibility at the store will be dealing with the paperwork and keeping an eagle eye on our expenses. Our building is mostly gutted (by DH while I was busy riding Soarin' and having a few beers at F&W-guilt, guilt, guilt) so now we can begin on the remodel. I'm much better with painting, cleaning and things like that than demolition

 

[lilpixiebabe101]

That's awful, did you have insurance? I know so many didn't. Our lodger's home was condemned-she had water for a month! The city is in the process of tearing it down. She lived there for over 40 years and lost 90% of her things-pictures, momentous, etc. I can't imagine it.

I felt exactly the way you do now before I left (I literally thought about turning around while driving through Mississippi.) and definitely go if you can manage it. I feel so much more ready to deal with all of the problems going on at home now. In a weird sort of way I'm looking forward a little bit to the challenge of it all.

My main responsibility at the store will be dealing with the paperwork and keeping an eagle eye on our expenses. Our building is mostly gutted (by DH while I was busy riding Soarin' and having a few beers at F&W-guilt, guilt, guilt) so now we can begin on the remodel. I'm much better with painting, cleaning and things like that than demolition

Cars yes. But one car we had bought 6 weeks before and just put payment on (thankfully had gap) and one was paid off. So now it's back to two car notes and it was not a fun experience to purchase cars with the other still car at full financed still.

We had renters insurance and spent all day the first day feeling sad but okay cause we had car insurance and renter's... come to find out like over half the area that renter'a doesn't cover flood. Our trailer park is trashing our trailer, and after the 6th day I was throwing more away than saving so we lost our deposit by telling them to just trash what was left inside too when they pull it to the dump. It was honestly worth it to save the heartache of continuing to throw things away. We had saved a whole trailer loaded of things and 3 miles away from where it was going it went from Blue skies to so much rain the dresser drawers we're half way filled with water. Not much was saved. I think that was more heartbreaking than throwing already ruined things away... to think it was saved then be ruined still.

But we are all safe and that's what matters. We've been living with my husbands grandma and in mind in the areas she's in and travels through all is back to normal and well. So she's given us till the 16th of this month...two months after it happened to find a place... we have finally found a place that is more than we can afford really, but it is what it is. We are only signing a 6 months lease so I guess that's why you always have emergency savings.

 

[MrsHull]

Following along. We are semi-budget travelers. We save in some areas to splurge in others. I can't wait to hear how your trip went!

 

[Trixie15]

Great report so far. Can't wait to read more. I'm so sorry for the hardships going on in your area right now.

 

[jsmla]

I'm back

We had an extremely busy few weeks with a houseful of out of town guests and trip reporting was the first casualty-my big plans to economize the second.

Anywho-waaaay back in mid-September:

Saturday September 17, 2016

I didn't really need an early start but I got one. When I returned from my out of budget dinner I noticed that group of teens were checking in-a large group of teens. I was a bit worried that they'd keep me up (The Holiday Inn Lake City is one of those atrium type places.) but the night was strangely quiet. I reared our two through their noisy adolescences and that's just not normal. Now I assume the peaceful night was in preparation for the next day. The young 'uns were up early, like 4:45 early, and full of the usual teen bag of tricks-thuds, thumps, shouts and the slamming of doors. I lay there for a bit hoping to wait it out but ended up crawling out of bed at 5:30. I poked around the room and left about 7:30(ish).

Breakfast was on the road-Diet Coke, an apple and a peanut butter sandwich, the first of many-$0

It was an easy ride down to Orlando and I enjoyed our nifty new bought BF (Before Flood)-Sun Pass transponder. I don't do well with toll booths. I always to seem to be that person who takes forever. First I pull up like it's my first time ever, then I have to hunt for change, then (unless I'm very lucky) I'll drop some of it and it will roll under the car. Men in cars behind me have grown Duck Dynasty type beards while waiting for me to make it through the toll booths in Florida. I loved zipping through the left lanes, even if I did worry a bit about it working!

My first condo was Kingstown Reef at the southern end of International Drive. I figured from here it would be either a short bus trip or an easy drive to both SeaWorld and Universal. Check in was easy peasey. My room wasn't ready yet so I headed out for a bit of grocery shopping.

I spent $44.41 (cash) on enough beer, dairy and produce at Publix to see me through the two weeks. It took a while, a little too long, IMHO. I'm far too used to just throwing things that catch my fancy into the cart and moving on. This time I was careful and shopped with an eye to sales and coupons. No organic honey crisp apples or designer beer for me! Must admit I pouted about the Miller Lite a bit. While I was shopping I received a text that my condo was ready-yippee!

The condo was smallish compared with some but definitely fine for one or two people. I spent a couple of hours unpacking and doing a few small chores. I always cook a pot of pasta to have on a cheapo trip. I'm a pasta addict and it makes for easy dinners and lunches later on. I also made a batch of iced tea to fill up my now empty 2 liter Diet Coke bottle. After cooking and a quick sandwich I loaded up the dishwasher (because who knows where those dishes have been!) turned it on and took off for SeaWorld.




My plan was to have a celebratory adult beverage (or two) so I planned to take the IRide Trolley. This was a bit of a splurge since I do have free parking at SeaWorld but I have a thing about drinking and driving, even a little bit. We'll see how that went!