Budget Friendly Vacation?

[winnieofpooh]

Tahoe? You mentioned you went to CA so not sure if you hit up Tahoe. But it's absolutely gorgeous! Lots of hiking for your mountain loving husband, and a beautiful lake with beaches or water activities for you.

 

[Monykalyn]

If she is able to go with us, we will get 50% off of our hotel stay and she will get into the parks for free

A word of caution here-there are NO guarantees that your DCP will be able to get a discounted room-they come and go based on availability and not every resort is available for a discount (so if you are thinking guaranteed 50% of Grand Floridian-nope). Also the DCP will have to stay with you to get the higher discount and that will put 3 adults in a room-meaning the extra charge for adult that comes with it often negating the extra discount, plus those that sleep 5 are limited to mostly deluxe resorts which are more expensive anyway. What is most available is 30-40% off at places like Caribbean beach& Coronado Springs, Pop century. I am not saying that great discounts can't be had at premier resorts but they come and go very quickly. That said-Dd got a great rate for us at AKL studio (DVC) this past August! Probably the only time I'll be able to afford to stay there

Congrats to your daughter! Mine is applying for her 3rd program summer 2019! I used "disney math" to go quite often (got an AP, cheap flights, and when she could snag a good discount on room)

 

[KMarston]

We stayed in Hoboken at the Sheraton Lincoln harbor when we took the kids to NYC. Very reasonable and such a beautiful view of the NYC skyline! We had an awesome budget trip.

NYC is definitely a contender!

 

[Mrs. Ciz]

I third a Sedona & Grand Canyon trip. My two college kids are still talking about our trip there in 2014.

We also loved our trip to Lake Tahoe.

 

[_19disnA]

Vegas isn't really a location that works for families with children. While they can walk THROUGH the casino with parents on the way to the pool or restaurant, they cannot remain in any of the gaming areas. Several years ago they tried to market Vegas as more of a 'family' vacation destination and it really is not. If the adults are into gambling, it is best to go to a casino without the children. Depending on where you live, there might also now be casinos closer to your location. It used to be that only Vegas/Reno or Atlantic City had casinos, but now there are casinos all over the US.

 

[Dakota731]

I didn’t care for Las Vegas either but I did love the Sedona/Grand Canyon vacation! It’s onky a two hour drive from Phoenix where many inexpensive flights can be had.

 

[Hootenany]

A word of caution here-there are NO guarantees that your DCP will be able to get a discounted room-they come and go based on availability and not every resort is available for a discount (so if you are thinking guaranteed 50% of Grand Floridian-nope). Also the DCP will have to stay with you to get the higher discount and that will put 3 adults in a room-meaning the extra charge for adult that comes with it often negating the extra discount, plus those that sleep 5 are limited to mostly deluxe resorts which are more expensive anyway. What is most available is 30-40% off at places like Caribbean beach& Coronado Springs, Pop century. I am not saying that great discounts can't be had at premier resorts but they come and go very quickly. That said-Dd got a great rate for us at AKL studio (DVC) this past August! Probably the only time I'll be able to afford to stay there

Congrats to your daughter! Mine is applying for her 3rd program summer 2019! I used "disney math" to go quite often (got an AP, cheap flights, and when she could snag a good discount on room)

This is all so good to know- thank you for this!

 

[Hootenany]

I third a Sedona & Grand Canyon trip. My two college kids are still talking about our trip there in 2014.

We also loved our trip to Lake Tahoe.

I didn’t care for Las Vegas either but I did love the Sedona/Grand Canyon vacation! It’s onky a two hour drive from Phoenix where many inexpensive flights can be had.

I love this idea and my husband does as well! The only thing is that our son has some disabilities and cannot walk for great distances. This might be a trip for just my husband and me.

 

[Hootenany]

Vegas isn't really a location that works for families with children. While they can walk THROUGH the casino with parents on the way to the pool or restaurant, they cannot remain in any of the gaming areas. Several years ago they tried to market Vegas as more of a 'family' vacation destination and it really is not. If the adults are into gambling, it is best to go to a casino without the children. Depending on where you live, there might also now be casinos closer to your location. It used to be that only Vegas/Reno or Atlantic City had casinos, but now there are casinos all over the US.

Good points about Vegas! This might be better without our kids.

 

[Dakota731]

I love this idea and my husband does as well! The only thing is that our son has some disabilities and cannot walk for great distances. This might be a trip for just my husband and me.

There are many drive up areas to see the Canyon so you can do as little or as much walking as you want. There are Jeep tours, helicopter tours etc so your son would probably enjoy it as well. We had young children when we went so we didn’t hike or anything.

 

[mmbrad02]

We stayed in Hoboken at the Sheraton Lincoln harbor when we took the kids to NYC. Very reasonable and such a beautiful view of the NYC skyline! We had an awesome budget trip.

Sorry to thread jack but how easy/hard was it to commute to NYC and back to your hotel? DH and I would love to go to NYC someday together (I've been once on a Red Eye Bus trip which does not interest him at all) but the price of lodging has often been the reason we never end up planning this trip. Thanks!

 

[minniemousememories]

My daughter has been accepted into the college program. If she is able to go with us, we will get 50% off of our hotel stay and she will get into the parks for free. With that "savings" (my husband always laughs at that) and the additional savings of $1000 off of our flight, it almost seems silly to me not to go. We did just go to Disneyland last summer for my son's Make A Wish trip and fell in love with it. We have all said that we would love to go back.

What college program offers the 50% discount! Sounds great!

 

[dakotix]

Yellowstone is an amazing trip. Everyone should see it at least once in their life.

 

[CalDisneyMomof2]

D.C. Stay outside the city for a cheap rate but close to public transportation and use the public transportation. There are several Marriott brands that we like that offer rooms for 5 and free breakfast.

So many attractions are free or very cheap. Your hotel and food would be your biggest expense but the rooms we usually stay in have at least a refrigerator - at the least we can store drinks and snacks. We order Amazon Prime every trip now. Sometimes is cheaper than a trip to the store!

 

[Ngwira]

Canada. If you are on West Coast-Vancouver or Calgary (gorgeous mountain scenery), or East Coast (Toronto/Niagara Falls, Montreal). The US dollar is worth around $1.30 Canadian. Your money will stretch.

 

[pens4821]

Sorry to thread jack but how easy/hard was it to commute to NYC and back to your hotel? DH and I would love to go to NYC someday together (I've been once on a Red Eye Bus trip which does not interest him at all) but the price of lodging has often been the reason we never end up planning this trip. Thanks!

It’s been a while since I’ve been there, but when I went (it’s probably been 15 years) we stayed in jersey city. There was a subway that took you into New York. It was called PATH, and it was very easy to go into NY and transfer to wherever you wanted to go from there. There was one line that went down by the trade center, then another that went and made maybe 5 stops in NY (if I remember correctly the last stop was by Madison square gardens). It was so easy and really didn’t take that much time (of course it was longer than if we would’ve just stayed in NYC). It was worth the savings to us, and I’d stay in NJ where I could easily subway into NY again.

 

[Debbie Torres]

San Diego. Rent a house on VRBO or Airbnb. We bought a city pass and had a ball. We were there for a week and got the 5 day pass, which we thought was perfect.

City pass in San Diego was wonderful . We loved the zoo and LEGO land

 

[DLgal]

Go to Vegas. See some shows, eat some fabulous meals, gamble a little. A little money goes a LONG way in Vegas, especially if you visit during the week (cheap hotels).

DH and I just had a Vegas weekend last month, stayed in a gorgeous suite at the Palazzo for $130/night, ate some great meals, saw a show, and won gambling. The whole weekend cost us around $600, considering we won all our gambling budget back plus some in the end. We drove there so didn't have airfare, but spent about $75-100 in gas and tolls plus food on the drive there and back.

We had so much fun. Vegas is a real adults playground. And everything is so accessible if you stay center strip. You can walk or easily uber anywhere.

 

[clori]

For NYC budget hotel for 5 - 1 bedroom suite at La Quinta Inn and Suites in Seacaucus NJ -T right across the street from the 1st stop (getting a seat is easy) to the bus to/from Port Authority. If it isn't rush hour it is an easy commute. It would give you two queen beds and a sofa bed, decent breakfast buffet, and an indoor pool. The 320 bus runs frequently.

 

[OrangeBirdGirl]

If your family is into hiking and nature hit up a national park. We love the outdoors and by far our national park trips are usually are cheapest. Even with the expensive rate of lodging inside a park, once you get there everything is free (well expect park admission) and food. It's not like going to a touristy area where you are spending $60 for your family of 4 to mini golf for an hour of you day then another $80 to hit an aquarium and be done in 2 hours. Grated we like the touristy destinations as well. But for budget, national parks! You could even save a ton by staying outside the park and driving in each morning.