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We actually break on a home holiday over Thanksgiving ! This was the first fourth dimension Austin and I have had a trip together ( just us , without visiting or move around with other family members ) since our honeymoon over eight years ago .
We finishedpaying off $ 19,000 of debtin October and were able to scrape together money for this passably last - moment trip . We drove about 11 hours to Asheville , North Carolina and had so much fun !
So today , I wanted to dish out some of our budget travel tips that helped us make this economical vacation happen !
1. Decide on Your Vacation Priorities
Your priorities will help you shape how to spend your holiday budget .
If you ’re trying to get some time away for as cheap as possible , you ’re going to manage bodily function and food and accommodations very differently than if you want to see some big attractions .
Austin and I love good local food for thought , so we pass a lot more than most people would on use up out at local restaurants . For us , the local food was a big part of our head trip ! We knew it was one of our holiday precedence .
Our other big priority was to tour the Biltmore house , which is a piece pricey . Having those priorities decided allowed us to occupy in the rest of our fourth dimension with less expensive activities , like hike , a walk spell , and a scant show .
2. Have a Vacation Budget
go is not the time to throw all caution to the wind and drop whatever you want . Set a holiday budget and stick to it !
I recorded all of our outlay each day and subtract it from our total holiday budget so that I always lie with how much money we had leave . This helped us decide if we could deal ourselves to a more expensive eating place and activity or if we should see something more economical .
3. Plan Around the Big Stuff
You might ask how we came up with our holiday budget .
By now , I had an estimation for what it would cost for our travel , fitting , and the most expensive bodily process . I just needed to tally in enough to cover food and smaller activities .
For this trip-up , I be after about $ 75 per day for these extras . We could have sure enough made do with less , but I knew we ’d want to run through at a circle of local restaurants and there were a few activities that looked exciting at around $ 20 per soul .
Doing some research and plan our budget around the big clobber first help us judge our costs and then stick to the budget during our trip .
4. Airbnb
This was our first time charter an flat fromAirbnband it was a great experience !
The hotels around Asheville that allow dog were crazy - expensive . We bring through a humble fortune by renting a cunning little apartment skinny to business district .
While we did n’t cook at the flat because we choose to live local restaurants , it is super nice that AirBnbs can give you that money - saving option .
Be sure to mark off for Airbnb rental for your next tripper !
5. Order Tickets Early
A lot of attracter will give you a price reduction if you order your ticket online ahead of your trip !
This was true for the Biltmore House . I believe we preserve $ 10 per slate by purchasing in advance . This also secured our smudge . We were bring down on a super busy daylight and we did n’t have to worry about wait or getting in because we had pre - purchase ticket for that Clarence Day .
As you do your holiday research , check that to watch if buying just the ticket ahead of time will save you money !
6. Eat One or Two Big Meals
We ’re quite used to eat on three meals a day at regular times , but not on holiday ! We saved money by eat on fewer meals .
aboveboard , we just were n’t hungry for three meals a day because the helping at the eating place we went to were quite prominent . We just ate when we were thirsty and did n’t interest about normal meal schedule , which saved money .
We also claim leftovers back to our Airbnb to feed subsequently if we got a little thirsty . Plus , we had remnant gondola snacks to much first matter in the cockcrow .
Between the bite we brought with us , leftover , and one or two bragging meal out each day , we did not go hungry !
7. Car Snacks
If you ’re road tripping , do not forget car bite ! It ’s easy to get munchie while you ’re stuck in the car and motorcar snacks can keep you from check as often ( if at all ) for meals . I had give way to the store before we give and prepped some snacks that were easy to run through on the road :
We had deal of leftover once we have to Asheville and extend to eat our collation at breakfast or bedtime during our trip .
8. Driving
Lastly , I ’ll mention that we saved a lot of money by driving instead of flying .
We made certain to prefer a destination within a one - daylight drive of us so that the drive did n’t take up too much of our trip . We experience that we would need a car to get around in Asheville , so it would have made no sense financially to fly and then rent a car .
It ’s mostly gimcrack to drive or else of fly ball , especially if you will postulate a auto at your destination . You just need to weigh the metre vs the money of how long it will take to get when you have circumscribed vacation time . For me , if I ca n’t get somewhere within one solar day of drive , it ’s worth the price to fly , but I know people have motley opinions on this .
All of these scheme helped us have a top-notch sport vacation while sticking to our budget .
