How do people get their vacations SO cheap?

[Pamela H in Texas]

Okay, I have NO business thinking about a vacation right now when I'm hoping we just won't be homeless in 2 weeks. HOWEVER, I need some hope in my life. (by hope, you understand I mean short term, things are going to work out....obviously, I'm aware of the eternal).

 

I work for a travel insurance company (did y'all know that?). Anyway, I am absolutely AMAZED at what people pay for a vacation, even LONG ones. This goes both ways. I'm more than surprised when I see it was $40,000, but what REALLY gets me are the $1400 for two people to go on a two week trip including airfare and a cruise to Greece!

 

So, once my hubby gets one of these jobs he's trying to get (because SOMETHING has to come through before my health gives up completely and we end up homeless because we can't live on my income anyway)...so once he gets one of these jobs, how can *I* find out about these great trips?

 

BTW, part of what I want is also that when I graduate, I would like to go to Salt Lake City for the graduation. So that will be a mini vacation I have to somehow come up with the money for, but somehow, when *I* look, even THAT is going to cost $1400 (and that is if I don't take my kids which I can't really imagine).

[hsbaby]

Dh and I just returned from Sandals in Jamaica. We got an awesome deal by keeping our eye out for a last minute deal. We booked it just 3 weeks in advance.

[Jennifer in MI]

We've gotten some great deals! Not as good as the $1400 Greek cruise, but decent. There are six of us.

 

We spent $4000 on a 7 night caribbean cruise. That included everything. I was pretty happy with that. We booked that cruise VERY early and through a travel agent. Then the agent would contact us when the price went down and we'd get the credit. We put a payment on that cruise every month when I paid the bills so it was paid off well before we left. That definitely helped us have fun. We knew it was all paid for!

 

I also get deals by doing a lot of the work myself. We just spent a week driving through Canada and VT. We brought all our own food. We got coupons from these coupon books on the NY Throughway for hotels. These were GREAT deals!!! (Marriott properties for $49 - $99/night.) We went to Niagara Falls and rode Maid of the Mist and their Sky Wheel. We hiked a LOT! We went to Killington and rode their summer things - alpine slide, trampolines with bungs, etc. The kids LOVED that! We visited the Cabot Cheese factory. Anyway, you get the idea! We spent about $1000 for the week. But, it certainly wasn't a relaxing trip! It was go-go-go.

 

Another example of doing leg work and waiting for the good deals: We're going to Disney next year to run the marathon. I got a condo off property for $468 for the week. We'll do most of our own cooking there. That week will be very cheap. We just booked for the next three days staying on property with free dining. For our family of 5 (we put one of our kids in a room with my sister), it's costing $571 - that's free dining and our accommodations (Port Orleans). I thought that was VERY reasonable!

 

Anyway, you get the idea. Sometimes for us, it's luck of the draw. Going off season. Or doing the leg work ourselves. We definitely prefer the cruise because it's so much less work. But, it's so nice to be able to go on a cheap trip just to get out of town! We've never been able to do last minute things because we just can't go on a whim like that!

 

Good luck finding your dream vacation - CHEAP!!!! (Let me know if I can help - I think I was a travel agent in a former life!! LOL)

[unsinkable]

We've gotten some great deals! Not as good as the $1400 Greek cruise, but decent. There are six of us.

 

We spent $4000 on a 7 night caribbean cruise. That included everything. I was pretty happy with that. We booked that cruise VERY early and through a travel agent. Then the agent would contact us when the price went down and we'd get the credit. We put a payment on that cruise every month when I paid the bills so it was paid off well before we left. That definitely helped us have fun. We knew it was all paid for!

 

I also get deals by doing a lot of the work myself. We just spent a week driving through Canada and VT. We brought all our own food. We got coupons from these coupon books on the NY Throughway for hotels. These were GREAT deals!!! (Marriott properties for $49 - $99/night.) We went to Niagara Falls and rode Maid of the Mist and their Sky Wheel. We hiked a LOT! We went to Killington and rode their summer things - alpine slide, trampolines with bungs, etc. The kids LOVED that! We visited the Cabot Cheese factory. Anyway, you get the idea! We spent about $1000 for the week. But, it certainly wasn't a relaxing trip! It was go-go-go.

 

Another example of doing leg work and waiting for the good deals: We're going to Disney next year to run the marathon. I got a condo off property for $468 for the week. We'll do most of our own cooking there. That week will be very cheap. We just booked for the next three days staying on property with free dining. For our family of 5 (we put one of our kids in a room with my sister), it's costing $571 - that's free dining and our accommodations (Port Orleans). I thought that was VERY reasonable!

 

Anyway, you get the idea. Sometimes for us, it's luck of the draw. Going off season. Or doing the leg work ourselves. We definitely prefer the cruise because it's so much less work. But, it's so nice to be able to go on a cheap trip just to get out of town! We've never been able to do last minute things because we just can't go on a whim like that!

 

Good luck finding your dream vacation - CHEAP!!!! (Let me know if I can help - I think I was a travel agent in a former life!! LOL)

 

would I look like a crazy internet stalker if I sad I would have loved to meet up when you were in Niagara Falls?!?!

[NicksMama-Zack's Mama Too]

His flight was $25 (from Baltimore to LAX to Hawaii). I didn't believe him until he showed me the invoice. He signed up for a credit card that gave him air miles. I'm not big on getting new credit cards, but I was happy for him.

 

He swears by slickdeals.net.

 

My dh and I went on slickdeals and found a link (Bestfares.com))to a Vegas trip (airfare/5-star hotel/$100 food voucher) and got a spectacular deal for a 3night/4day trip.

 

I then when to Restaurants.com and typed in Las Vegas' zip code and bought coupons for $10 & $25 off restaurants on the strip. Coupons go for 80% off (<$3) quite frequently.

 

When in Vegas, we usually agree to listen to some timeshare presentation one morning for free breakfast & show tickets. It's kind of a pain, but we get out by noon and have plenty of time to enjoy the day.

 

hth

K

(who is now looking for that cruise.....)

[MaMa2005]

We just combine lots of things and then think outside the box.

 

For example, we are going to Seattle, Portland and San Francisco in September for eight days. Airline tickets are free as DH gave up his seat three times in one day last December and got a free round trip ticket each time he gave up his seat. Hotels are free as we have been banking hotel points for a long time.

 

We fly from Atlanta to Seattle. We are taking the train from Seattle to Portland. It was much less expensive than renting a car and DS will get to ride on a train. We are picking up a rental car for the drive to San Francisco. We saved over $900 on the rental car because we are picking the car up at a site other than the airport. We fly home from San Francisco.

 

With everything, including all transportation, sightseeing (we are doing a lot of things), and food, we will not spend more than $600 for the eight days. Super cheap considering what all we are doing and where we are going.

 

It can take a good amount of time to find the right deals, but boy, is it worth it!

[Miss Marple]

We wait until just a few days before leaving, check on the various "last minute deals" and usually find something we love. For example, $650 per person for 5 nights 6 days in London including airfare from the US! We also just did a 5 day Florida vacation (not as good of a deal as London, but close). We make sure to have our passports ready and we try to be flexible. If we need to schedule a vacation rather than winging it, we use Priceline or Hotwire to get good hotel and airfare deals.

[Scarlett]

Ds and I are going to NYC for 5 nights and 6 days for about $1000 each. Includes airfare, hotel, breakfast everymorning, 2 sack lunches, a bus tour into Manhattan, a bus trip up to Wallkill and Patterson....I think it is a good deal...and that is through an agency.

[unsinkable]

We wait until just a few days before leaving, check on the various "last minute deals" and usually find something we love. For example, $650 per person for 5 nights 6 days in London including airfare from the US! We also just did a 5 day Florida vacation (not as good of a deal as London, but close). We make sure to have our passports ready and we try to be flexible. If we need to schedule a vacation rather than winging it, we use Priceline or Hotwire to get good hotel and airfare deals.

 

Where or with whom do you find the last minute deals?

 

Is it a website?

 

Thanks!

[Miss Marple]

I usually check Travelocity first, but our last deal was through Orbitz.com. Orbitz, Travelocity, Priceline, Hotwire, Kayak, are all places I check. I've had success with all of them except Kayak.

[Dinsfamily]

We just took our family of 5 to Hawaii for 2 weeks. We saved up miles so that we all flew free and then stayed in an older timeshare (we're not owners, but they always have rooms to rent) right on the beach for cheap! It isn't fancy, but they keep it clean. We also rented our minivan with miles. We shopped at Costco, didn't eat out at all, and packed lunches for the beach. We do prioritize vacations in our budget, but still have to be very cost conscience.

[Miss Marple]

We just took our family of 5 to Hawaii for 2 weeks. We saved up miles so that we all flew free and then stayed in an older timeshare (we're not owners, but they always have rooms to rent) right on the beach for cheap! It isn't fancy, but they keep it clean. We also rented our minivan with miles. We shopped at Costco, didn't eat out at all, and packed lunches for the beach. We do prioritize vacations in our budget, but still have to be very cost conscience.

 

We do the same! Vacation Rentals by Owner (VRBO.com) is a wonderful resource to find housing for a larger crew. We simply cannot afford a long vacation and eating at restaurants 3 meals per day (these boys can pack the food away!). So we save a lot of $$$ by getting housing with a kitchen. And everyone pitches in to cook and clean so it's not like I don't get a bit of a reprieve :D

[MariannNOVA]

I usually check Travelocity first, but our last deal was through Orbitz.com. Orbitz, Travelocity, Priceline, Hotwire, Kayak, are all places I check. I've had success with all of them except Kayak.

 

Everything that CynthiaOK wrote, and I check all the other places that have been written about.

 

I ALWAYS wait till the last minute to book -- and I use vrbo.com.....alot.

[MBM]

His flight was $25 (from Baltimore to LAX to Hawaii). I didn't believe him until he showed me the invoice. He signed up for a credit card that gave him air miles. I'm not big on getting new credit cards' date=' but I was happy for him.[/quote']

 

We've bought nine tickets (three round-trip flights for three of us) for $30 to $100 each from Chicago to Hawaii using frequent flier miles! The bulk of the miles were given to us for signing up for credit cards. We don't ever carry a balance on those or any of our credit cards for that matter. On two occasions we flew during Christmas and once over our Spring Break. To use FF miles at that time, we always make reservations well in advance.

 

In a nutshell, frequent flier miles, airline, hotel and car rental memberships, VRBO, staying outside of an expensive city can all cut costs. Some bus lines can be very inexpensive, too. Takes longer to get there, but they're usually comfy.

 

Also, from what I understand, car rental agencies raise and lower their prices throughout the day, so it pays to check prices often. We also check hotels after we've made reservations.

 

I've learned most of my money-saving tips from the Fodors website and forums. Some people are absolute gurus when it comes to traveling for less.

 

HTH!

[MBM]

Another tip is to collect articles and deals you see of the places you want to visit. For example, we'd like to visit London this spring, so I've been collecting articles about hotel deals, places to see, good advice, etc. It can be a hassle to pull it all together for a big city at the last minute.

 

Another thing I do is make a copy of the city we're visiting, and then mark on that the places we want to visit. I did this for NYC, and it made it easy for us to find places.

[K-FL]

Also sign up at Travelzoo.com for the alerts for your area. If you are flexible, they have last minute deals also. I'm a believer in VRBO also. We've booked 3bd condos on the beach w/pool & tennis courts for much less than we could ever get hotel rooms.

[DawnM]

Well......the way we travel many wouldn't want to travel.

 

We do off-season first of all. I hat the crowds.

 

We go to Disney every year. We stay off property in a condo for under $250 per week, including taxes through SkyAuction.com. They are older condos that they can't get RCI members to use.

 

We take a backpack cooler into the parks and pack our own lunch. We do counter service meals on occasion. We have done the expensive Disney eating and don't enjoy it after we see the bill!

 

We get homeschool tickets, 5 day hoppers and 4 vouchers to the water parks and Disney Quest for $750 for all 5 of us. We have gotten APs before and gone back several times over the year, but that isn't every year.

 

Typically a week at Disney looks like this for us:

 

$750- tickets

$250- gas

$250- two bedroom condo

$100- dog sitter

$200- food

 

$1500- total

 

BTW: We also used a SkyAuction condo when we went to Williamsburg. We had a lovely 2 bedroom place for $199/wk. The kids are asking to go back.

 

Dawn

[Brilliant]

His flight was $25 (from Baltimore to LAX to Hawaii). I didn't believe him until he showed me the invoice. He signed up for a credit card that gave him air miles. I'm not big on getting new credit cards' date=' but I was happy for him.

[/quote']

 

But there's opportunity cost. If he was using a cc to earn the miles, his $25 flight didn't just cost $25. It takes 35000 ff miles to fly to Hawaii on American. If he used only miles earned on a cc, he would have to spend $35,000. I use other reward credit cards, and on $35,000 spending I would have earned approximately $1000 in cash rewards. So he really paid $1025 for his ticket by not using a different rewards card. That would have paid for at least 2 tickets to Hawaii from my city, so we don't use ff cc unless there is a sign-up bonus. But the cc companies have gotten stricter on that lately - they won't give a bonus if you've already received one. So now our miles-earning potential is strictly based on hubby's travel.

[MBM]

But there's opportunity cost. If he was using a cc to earn the miles, his $25 flight didn't just cost $25. It takes 35000 ff miles to fly to Hawaii on American. If he used only miles earned on a cc, he would have to spend $35,000. I use other reward credit cards, and on $35,000 spending I would have earned approximately $1000 in cash rewards. So he really paid $1025 for his ticket by not using a different rewards card. That would have paid for at least 2 tickets to Hawaii from my city, so we don't use ff cc unless there is a sign-up bonus. But the cc companies have gotten stricter on that lately - they won't give a bonus if you've already received one. So now our miles-earning potential is strictly based on hubby's travel.

 

Yes this is true. You have to figure out the actual cost. All of our Hawaii flights included sign-up miles. We only used those cards for non-flights to carry over the miles to the next year. I haven't noticed those offers in the mail lately or at our bank, so I think they must be stopping them, too.

 

On another note, we've noticed that this year it is much cheaper to fly out of Milwaukee, stopping over at O'Hare in Chicago (where we live) than it is to fly straight out of Chicago. The leg from Chicago to Hawaii is the same flight for both, so if possible, check prices for nearby alternate airports. You might save quite a bit.

[ourjourneys]

Last minute can get some good deals, but you can not always find flights and arrangements for a family of 6 :(

We always go in off season. One way to travel in the US is to stop at rest areas and pick up the coupon books for hotels. We usually pay no more than $40 for a hotel (double room- kids sleep free). So if you go when gas prices are low and take a cooler of food and drinks, you can travel for minimum that way.

 

We have traveled to Morocco a few times and we could pay $20,000 for our trip. BUT unfortunately we hardly make that in a year :) so we have to go off peak season. It is actually very cold when we go in late february but by the time we come home in late april it is wonderful weather. Peak season begins in late april. The cheapest we bought tickets was $450 each and the most was $600. For a family of 6 this adds up to be between 3 and 4 K. We do stay with family for most of our trip, but also travel inside Morocco.

On our last journey we took a camel trek into the desert. The advertised rate was $60 per person (which would have been $360) but my husband talked him down to $60 for all!! Camel trek on 3 camels, 6 people, overnight in the desert with tagine dinner and breakfast, local african music and tea, and all the fun you can imagine tumbling down the sand dunes. This was because it was not peak season! But the weather was still nice...

 

Don't think that you can not travel because you do not have the money. Buy a good back pack for everyone and drive somewhere. Even here in the US we have many, many different places to see and experience in state parks!

You could go to alaska on the cruise route for cheap! Take the passenger ferry from Bellingham WA and a sleeping bag - camp out on the upper deck with your family - the best experience! When whales are spotted to the side of your boat you are the first to see them!

[Jennifer in MI]

would I look like a crazy internet stalker if I sad I would have loved to meet up when you were in Niagara Falls?!?!

 

Oh man! That would've been SO much fun!!! Definitely not a crazy internet stalker!

[TravelingChris]

We just did a 18 day vacation to the Northern Rockies for four people for about 3000. THis included round trip air flights for all four of us, staying in not cheap hotels, and renting a full size car. How did we do this? Well we only paid for 3 tickets for the airline since one of us flew for free due to frequent mileage miles. Then we did a three part flight to take advantage of much lower prices. We also spent two nights of our vacation for free including breakfast in Calgary because of enough hotel points. We booked the car rental almost six months in advance and got 50% or more off on that. We kept to a full size car instead of going up (or down) and thereby saved money since that is not a popular car choice there but was big enough that we only had to do laundry twice (saving money). My dh is a member of the airlines premiere service since he travels so much for work and they give that to very frequent travelers. This saved us 50 dollars each way on checked luggage costs. (We had to pack things like winter jackets and sweaters due to where we were going).

 

We love going on vacations but we don't spend all that much money ever. I think 4000 for four is about the most we have ever spent. You do have to understand that we only afford these kind of vacations after my dh has worked 23 years in the same company. When we were younger, we still went on great vacations but tended to mix hotel stays with camping or stayed in cheaper surroundings. We can afford somewhat better now so we do that.

[BeckyFL]

Well......the way we travel many wouldn't want to travel.

 

We do off-season first of all. I hat the crowds.

 

We go to Disney every year. We stay off property in a condo for under $250 per week, including taxes through SkyAuction.com. They are older condos that they can't get RCI members to use.

 

We take a backpack cooler into the parks and pack our own lunch. We do counter service meals on occasion. We have done the expensive Disney eating and don't enjoy it after we see the bill!

 

We get homeschool tickets, 5 day hoppers and 4 vouchers to the water parks and Disney Quest for $750 for all 5 of us. We have gotten APs before and gone back several times over the year, but that isn't every year.

 

Typically a week at Disney looks like this for us:

 

$750- tickets

$250- gas

$250- two bedroom condo

$100- dog sitter

$200- food

 

$1500- total

 

BTW: We also used a SkyAuction condo when we went to Williamsburg. We had a lovely 2 bedroom place for $199/wk. The kids are asking to go back.

 

Dawn

 

I had never seen this site, but when I'm looking it looks like a lot of taxes and surcharges?

Westgate Vacation Villas in Orlanda starts at $179 but says there is a #295 surcharge? How do you end up with something for $250?

[i.love.lucy]

I had never seen this site, but when I'm looking it looks like a lot of taxes and surcharges?

Westgate Vacation Villas in Orlanda starts at $179 but says there is a #295 surcharge? How do you end up with something for $250?

Bump.

 

I'd like to know this too. It does tie in with the thread because there are tons of "cheapo" sites, but how do you know what you are getting? You say older condos, how old? Are they clean and decent?

[Pamela H in Texas]

Thanks y'all. I'm so stressed it's not funny.

 

Hubby has gotten a few nibbles this week. Most will include a pay cut from what we had (though anything is better than the nothing he's getting now). But once we get past the whole no place to live, barely surviving phase, we'd like to dream even if he's not making much money. Even better would be realizing a dream.

[DawnM]

You have to wait until they offer their blowout weeks. Then I buy a few for $200-$250 and then I can book them later.

 

The auctions USED to be $195 taxes and fees and start at $1. Now the regular auctions have a $295 surcharge but will still start at $1 during off season many times. I don't even bother with the regular auctions anymore though and buy blowout weeks. YOu will need to sign up to be on their mailing list to receive notice of them.

 

Dawn

 

I had never seen this site, but when I'm looking it looks like a lot of taxes and surcharges?

Westgate Vacation Villas in Orlanda starts at $179 but says there is a #295 surcharge? How do you end up with something for $250?

[Jennifer in MI]

Bump.

 

I'd like to know this too. It does tie in with the thread because there are tons of "cheapo" sites, but how do you know what you are getting? You say older condos, how old? Are they clean and decent?

 

We've been staying at Windsor Hills resort. They have condos and houses in all sizes. It's a new gated complex with an awesome pool, clubhouse, movie theater, bike rentals, and playgrounds. We go with my sister's family and we rent a 3 bedroom condo in January for $468/week. So, split, we each pay $234. Not bad! It's literally 2 minutes from the entrance to Disney. Check them out. I can give you the name of the guy we've rented from if you want!

 

Thanks y'all. I'm so stressed it's not funny.

 

Hubby has gotten a few nibbles this week. Most will include a pay cut from what we had (though anything is better than the nothing he's getting now). But once we get past the whole no place to live, barely surviving phase, we'd like to dream even if he's not making much money. Even better would be realizing a dream.

 

I'm happy to hear you've gotten some nibbles!!!

 

As far as vacation goes - can you camp? I grew up without much money. My parents always took us camping. We went on state grounds that were free (at that time). We bathed in a creek! Mom cooked all of our own food. We did fun stuff during the day and came back to the campsite at night. Some days we stayed around the site and rode bikes or hiked. I have great memories of those vacations and I know they were VERY cheap!!

[unsinkable]

Oh man! That would've been SO much fun!!! Definitely not a crazy internet stalker!

 

Aww, thanks!

 

:grouphug: