BedKnobbery2
<font color=blue>Saucy Pants!<br><font color=red>W
- Joined
- Mar 3, 2002
The very first time I took my kids (3 years ago), it was all on credit card, I have to admit. When my kids were little-little, I decided we would take our first family trip when my youngest was 5 years old. Well, dad and I got divorced when he was 4 years old, and I was still finding my financial feet when DS2 turned 5. It had at that point been 8 years since I'd been to WDW, it had been a rough year with the divorce, and I really wanted to do this. We did it very cheaply--stayed offsite in a place with cooking facilities--and it was a marvelous trip.
One of the wonderful things is during that couple years of financial hardship, I learned a lot about how to save money. As someone else here mentioned, The Tightwad Gazette is an amazingly helpful guide to saving money. Here are just a few things I do (or don't do) to save for our vacations:
*Like others, I set aside a percentage of my income for vacations. I also divide any unexpected income between savings and vacation fund.
*We rarely eat out (except when on vaca).
*We find cheap entertainment at home.
*I drive an older model car (1994) and found a cheaper mechanic than the dealer.
*I shop sales, and stock up on regularly used items when they are a great deal.
*I buy meats in bulk, and freeze them in family sized portions.
This is just a handful of things we do to make our vacations affordable. Another thing we have done is alternation 'BIG' trips with 'BUDGET' trips. Last year, we stayed at our timeshare (not DVC), and used the 2 days and 2 Plus options left on our hopper passes from the year before. We ate many meals in our condo, and alternated 'disney' days with 'hotel pool' days. This trip is going to be bigger (and more expensive); and next year, we'll plan another 'budget' trip.
One of the wonderful things is during that couple years of financial hardship, I learned a lot about how to save money. As someone else here mentioned, The Tightwad Gazette is an amazingly helpful guide to saving money. Here are just a few things I do (or don't do) to save for our vacations:
*Like others, I set aside a percentage of my income for vacations. I also divide any unexpected income between savings and vacation fund.
*We rarely eat out (except when on vaca).
*We find cheap entertainment at home.
*I drive an older model car (1994) and found a cheaper mechanic than the dealer.
*I shop sales, and stock up on regularly used items when they are a great deal.
*I buy meats in bulk, and freeze them in family sized portions.
This is just a handful of things we do to make our vacations affordable. Another thing we have done is alternation 'BIG' trips with 'BUDGET' trips. Last year, we stayed at our timeshare (not DVC), and used the 2 days and 2 Plus options left on our hopper passes from the year before. We ate many meals in our condo, and alternated 'disney' days with 'hotel pool' days. This trip is going to be bigger (and more expensive); and next year, we'll plan another 'budget' trip.
so it's probably a little easier for us. I still think that the DVC is the biggest way we save money, because you don't have to come up with that big "chunk of change" for the hotel room every time you go. We usually get airfare for around $200(live in CT about an hour from NYC).We do breakfast in the room(since it's a DVC,you have at least a kitchenette),I put away money from DH's paycheck every other week(mine pays our bills). I clip coupons for groceries,we live in a fairly normal house, we drive normal cars that are not brand new,I don't buy very expensive clothing...we are pretty normal middle class people. Vacation is a priority for us, so we find creative ways to save for it.
). Other than that, our expenses are minimal -- we are not movie people, I don't spend a lot on babysitters (and now that daycare is no longer an expense we will have more money in the budget for other things), use the library, attend free concerts, pay for memberships at the zoo, aquarium and other things for the savings benefits. 
this week we both had to buy some new clothes, so i doubt it will be that much, but i was really surprised at how much the "little things" add up!
