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It’s been 24 hours since we got home from our 16 day road trip! If we are friends on social media you got to follow along with me while we were road tripping. During this time I got so many messages of questions. So on our 3 day drive home I decided to make this a blog series! I have taken the most asked questions and created  a fun series. If you have questions about our road trip, please ask!

 

The most popular question I got was how, financially were we able to pay for a cross country road trip. Since this was the most popular question I thought I would address this one first and foremost.

We knew about a year in advance we wanted to take this trip. Planning is a major part and I will address this in another post. Because we had planned this we gave the kids this trip as their big Christmas present from us. We took the money we would of spent on stuff and put it in a savings account nicknamed travel and did not touch it. This money would go towards the trip. When we had money left over during the month we put this in the account. We don’t touch this account for anything else but travel.

Stay in top rated hotels for nothing!

The biggest financial issue while traveling is hotel rooms. Everyone is afraid this will take the biggest chunk of money. But I’m hear to tell you it doesn’t have to be. I am a planner, I like to have everything laid out and planned. But I have learned on road trips to let that go!

We like to drive and see where it takes us. We have a destination and time frame and that’s it. So because of this we don’t make hotel reservations ahead of time and because of this we have been able to save hundreds! Every morning we get up and start driving. About lunch time we look and see where we will be later that night. I then jump on Rakuten (formally known as Ebates) and head over to booking.com.

I know there are a ton of travel sites out there, but I have always preferred booking.com. We have found some of the best hotel rooms ever on there for some of the most amazing prices! Our last night on the road this trip we found a clean, big hotel room in Tennessee for under $60! No lie! We only stay in top rated hotels and have never paid over $150/night! For a family of 5 this is awesome because most of our rooms are suites in order to get the 5th bed. We also only choose hotels with free breakfast and wifi (we have teens!). Why do I go through Rakuten first you ask. Because I get money back on my cheap hotel rooms! And sometimes you luck out and get double cash back! Take that check and put it in your travel savings account for your next trip!!

Tips to saving money on food and meals

OK, so I just saved you tons of money on your hotel rooms. Now let’s talk food, the other most expensive item on our trip. A couple of weeks before the trip I make a list of snacks, foods and drinks we will need on our trip. Every shopping trip I grab a few of those items and set them aside. This way I am not dropping a ton of money at once on snacks, food and drinks for the trip.

While we are traveling we do not stop for lunch. We have breakfast at the hotels each money, we snack throughout the day in the car and then we stop for dinner in the evening. We love to eat out at local places, restaurants and diners we don’t have a home. This trip we ate at a spot highlighted on Guy Fieri’s Triple D show, we ate at a historical Rt. 66 diner and found a delicious brewery. By doing it this way we save tons while learning about the locals where we are.

Kids always want souvenirs. No matter what you find yourself in a gift shop and all you hear is “I want this, can I have that?”. Before we even begin to travel we tell the kids ahead of time how much they have to spend. They only get that amount from us and if they plan to buy more then they have to use their own money. Doing this saves money for us and limits the amount of stuff. They think about what they really want to spend their money on and end up buying stuff they will want to keep. We don’t spend tons on money on items. We like to take tons of photos and then turn them into picture/memory books for the kids (Christmas present for the following year). This way they keep the memories for years to come and saved mommy and daddy lots of money!

Fill your life with adventures, not things. Have stories to tell not stuff to show.

Before we left for our cross country trip we had to make sure our car was ready for this trip. We got an oil change before we left (with a coupon or Groupon, don’t remember which but we never pay full price for these! And Groupon is also available through Rakuten, so cash back too!). While traveling we try to always get the lowest price we can find on gas. My husband very rarely will let the tank drop below half a tank so we don’t have to settle for what is there. We use Waze as our GPS program and there is a setting on there to alert you to the lowest gas prices on your route. If you don’t use Waze or prefer an app there are a number of them out there, Gas Buddy or Gas Guru is just a few of them.

Shop and earn cash back

If you have read any of my past posts you know I love cashback! Rakuten is my favorite of course and I make hundreds every year using them (I have a plugin on my browser and the app on my phone). Since I love cashback so much, when we travel we use one of our credit cards with the highest cash back on gas and food. We don’t use credit cards ever, so we only use it so we don’t have to carry a ton of cash. In addition, we take all the points we earn and either get a check or help pay it off. Then we pay the entire thing off the next statement (remember that savings account we had!).

I hope this helps you in your planning your next road trip. I hear from so many moms and dads who are nervous about how they are going to pay for a vacation. It’s possible with planning and strategic web pages. I am a strong believer that kids should have experiences, memories last a lifetime while items are thrown away. My kids have had some of the best experiences during their short lifetime, and no, we are not rich! Don’t be afraid or anxious to plan a long, crazy trip.

In this series I will talk about some of the other areas many parents are anxious when it comes to large over the top vacations: simplified packing, simplified planning, returning to regular life (travel depression) and of course everyone getting along. Make sure you check back or sign up for email notices so you don’t miss a post! Let’s start getting your super awesome vacation planned for your family!

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