Many families pass up a yearly family vacation because of the cost.
But taking a vacation doesn’t have to break the bank. Just about everyone is offering deals on vacation packages, from cruises to resorts. Younger kids can cruise free or at a reduced price. There are all sorts of hotels that offer deals where kids eat free if they are under a certain age (with approved stay).
Of course, you still need to have the cash to pay for it all. Here’s how to find the money for your next vacation:
Hold a yard sale. Most of us have a few extras in our garage or closets that we can stand to let go of. You never know: one man’s stuff gathering dust is another man’s treasure. You could be sitting on a gold mine. If you are a traveling with other family members or friends, hold a joint yard sale at your church or larger venue so that the proceeds benefit everyone.
Count your change. If you really looked, you’d probably find several dollars’ worth of coins around your house. Use piggy banks and empty jars to fill with the change from your pockets each day. Make it a scavenger hunt for the kids. Whoever can find the change gets to keep it in their jar. Each month, cash in the change and place the money in an account just for your vacation.
Create a budget. Budgeting helps us find extra money not just for a vacation but to put towards savings for the future. Cutting out unnecessary expenses can help you squeeze some money out of your monthly paycheck. To make it a win-win situation, divide the money you find between a household savings account and a vacation one.
Save on insurance. This may be the perfect time to re-examine your insurance policies. For vehicles that are paid off, you can change the policy and drop collision to save money there. Homeowner’s insurance policies can be tweaked to meet your changing needs and to save a little green. There are no shortage of ads and commercials offering incentives to switch insurance companies. If you don’t want to switch companies, you can use another company’s rates as leverage in negotiating a lower price. We’ve raised our deductibles on most of our policies, and that has put about $50 a month extra in our pockets each month.
Use the Internet. This is a great place for making money. You can sell items on eBay at auction, begin a blog and include ads to make passive income, or get paid for participating in surveys. All of these ideas can bring in extra money towards your vacation fund.
Save those credit card rewards. My family uses a rewards credit card to pay many of our monthly bills and to put gas in our vehicles. Each month, we pay the balance in full. You can do the same thing and use the rewards to help offset your travel expenses.
Save birthday money. Don’t let that money burn a hole in your pocket. Add it to your piggy bank for a future vacation. For kids, it can be the money they use to buy souvenirs.
What are some ways you raise some extra cash for vacations?
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My husband used to work at a place with comp time. One of his coworkers saved up enough time over the span of a few years to take an entire year off of work while still getting paid. Sweet deal huh? Anyway, he took his family (wife and 2 kids) on a trip around the world. They home-schooled their kids and lived on the road. They kept track of their finances and found out that a year of vacationing had about the same expenses as a year of living in Hibbing, MN. Something to consider for people who think taking a vacation is too expensive. It just depends how you approach it.
Instead of using credit cards to earn miles for free tickets (with endless restrictions) we use our Discover card to pay for everything we can. It adds up fast and we transfer the money right to our travel savings account. We always pay the balance so it is completely free money! We also drive everywhere we go– don't knock it until you try it! Kids get along well in the car when you are on vacation. We drove to Florida with 4 kids- the youngest being 5 months old. No problem. Then again when he was 2. No problem.
Recycle cans, and plastic bottles if your city does (mine doesn't). Carry a bag along on walks with your kids.
Get your kids involved in cutting costs creatively. Suppose your family always goes out for lunch after church; why not cut that back to every other Sunday, and put the money you would have spent in the vacation fund?
Let it be known that you're looking for an occasional babysitting job. I make at least $10 an hour doing this.
If you're thinking about *next* year's vacation, start working now toward free gift cards from MyPoints et al. That could be gasoline cards if you're driving, or restaurant or drugstore cards to help defray costs once you're there. I wrote an MSN Money article about this; hope it's all right to post the URL:
http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/SavingandDebt/FindDealsOnline/free-gift-cards-yes-really.aspx
Another article that might help is "An emergency fund out of thin air" — these people were REALLY dedicated and creative about finding money in their tight budgets:
http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/SavingandDebt/SaveMoney/an-emergency-fund-out-of-thin-air.aspx
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