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Realizing that many of you may not have taken a vacation this year, I write this series to encourage you while your savings increase. Our family saved for two years for our extended vacation this year, so I understand your situation.

In 2011, our family forewent a family vacation because we did not have the cash on hand. Without making it a big deal, Paul and I planned fun family outings locally, and our children knew no different. I’m not even sure they asked when we were going on vacation – one of the many benefits to having younger children. 😉

In this 5-part series, I will share my tips and tricks to stretching our dollars to keep our 2+ week vacation under $1,000. Today in Part 1, I share our vacation savings in the cost breakdown. In the next 4 weeks, I’ll explain the different entertainment options we used to maximize our vacation.

Part 1: Cost Breakdown

Transportation

Gas

With our extended stay, we needed a vehicle for our family. Without finding a great deal on a vehicle rental and airfare, we chose to drive from South Carolina to Florida. The cost of gas fared less expensive than the vehicle rental and airfare for our entire family. The amount spent in gas from the day we left to the day we returned totaled $313.86.

Flight

With Paul needing to return sooner than the rest of the family, we searched and watched for sales. When Allegiant Air offered a week-long sale of select flights for $39, I selected an available flight.

By reading through the fine print, I discovered that Allegiant Air added a convenience fee and a booking fee if scheduling a flight online, but these fees get waived if purchased at the airport. With a limited flight schedule, I checked Allegiant’s departing flights and arrived at the airport 2 hours prior to departure.

When the attendant came to check-in passengers, I made my request to book a future flight. He booked the flight for Paul, and my cost came to $40.80 including tax. By purchasing at the airport, I saved $25 by not incurring the $15 convenience fee or the $10 carrier usage fee. I paid with our Visa credit card which carries flight insurance and refused all additional charges for baggage, seat assignment, and insurance.

The total cost of transportation came to $354.66.

Lodging

Mom’s House

Knowing how blessed I am to have family and lodging during our stay, we invaded my parents’ home with their consent. Though my kids pushed every limit, we appreciated the free lodging during our stay.

Hotel

On our trip down, we left in the middle of the afternoon and traveled to a hotel. We found through Priceline.com a one-night stay in a hotel with an indoor pool and spa. Though there were other less expensive deals, we made our choice and paid $54.63. The pool and spa offered a great activity after being cooped up in the car.

The total cost of lodging came to $54.63.

Food

My Mom had stocked her kitchen in preparation for our visit, so we saved a bundle on our grocery bill. With two family dinners and supplementing the existing supplies, we spent $196.96 on food throughout our vacation. This cost included our meals while traveling. The main reason for this low cost was the food already at my Mom’s house.

The total cost of food came to $196.96.

Entertainment

Our entertainment costs became the second most expensive category of our vacation. Choosing to invest in 3 annual memberships, we paid a total of $283.00.

Our thought process is that we can return early next summer before these memberships expire. By using these annual memberships for free admission, we can eliminate almost $300 from our budget, but still enjoy the same fun throughout a second vacation.

The total cost of entertainment came to $283.00.

In adding our cost for transportation, lodging, food, and entertainment, our total cost for our 2012 family vacation came to $889.25. Keeping our vacation expenses below our budgeted amount, we returned with $110 to start our 2013 family vacation fund. 🙂

The total cost of our 2012 family vacation came to $889.25.

In using time wisely to research and plan, we enjoyed our family vacation while stretching our dollars. In the coming weeks, I will share the details of stretching your dollars in the entertainment category.

Though I have posted lots of ideas, I will bring the savings strategies together while focusing on vacation planning. If you are traveling at Christmas, then this series should give you more tips and tricks to save you money, energy, and time. Happy savings!

Questions: How much do you plan to spend on your family vacation?