RAOD TRIP!! Do those 2 little words fill your heart with joy and excitement? They do for me!! Lets be honest, a road trip is less about the final destination, and all about the journey! Thats where the fun happens!. When you’re on your road trip you may find that it can be expensive to travel. There is gas to buy, food, snacks, and drinks to cover, and a hotel room at the end of the day. Over time these costs can erode your budget. You don’t want to run out of money before you’ve even started having fun.
Here are 10 tips and tricks for sticking to your road trip budget.
Create a budget for each day.
Instead of making one budget, separate your budget into individual days. I prefer to have a larger budget for the weekends or days where I know we’ll be stopping somewhere more expensive, like a theme park. Road trip pro tip: Use stick to cash as much as possible and seperate each day’s budget into different envelopes. When the cash is gone, you’re done spending!
Plan your mileage and motels in advance.
Create a driving plan and stick with it. This way you can choose your motels in advance, and know exactly how much each one costs. Plus there are so many hotel perks and discount sites available these days, it just makes sense to book in advance and save where you can!
Bring a large cooler.
What is a raod trip without awesome snacks? A large cooler will enable you to carry cold drinks, and keep food chilled. Almost all motels offer free ice, so you can fill up your cooler when you’re ready to get back on the road the following day.
Choose motels that have a microwave and fridge.
Do your hotel reasearch baby! You’d be surprised at how many hotels don’t offer this perk. Don’t be surprised on your trip. A fridge and microwave will allow you to prepare some inexpensive, but fast meals, without having to buy take out food every night of the week.
Bring entertainment.
Bring some books and magazines to read, and some DVDs, and music. Many hotels have DVD players in-room or ones that you can borrow. Bringing your own entertainment won’t leave you with the feeling that you have nothing to do, which can lead to expensive nights out!
Bring toys and games.
If you’re traveling with kids bring at least one of their favorite toys, and some games and fun activities as well. This will avoid having to buy them expensive stuffies and other toys along the route.
Give your children an allowance.
Let your kids know they have a say in the road trip. A small allowance will allow them to purchase a small souvenir, or an ice cream along the way. They can have their own daily cash envelopes and be able to choose where they want to spend it!
Communicate with your travel mates. Don’t assume that your travel mates want to stop three times a day for meals. They may be happy eating something out of the cooler. If you see a show or concert you might like to attend, ask them first, before purchasing tickets. They can always sit it out at the motel pool.
Get your car tuned up prior to the trip.
Be sure to head to your dealership before hitting the road! This will prevent most automobile emergencies, and you won’t be stuck forking over cash to an automotive shop that you aren’t familiar with.
Set a sightseeing budget.
You may wish to factor in attraction entrance fees, but you can do without the expensive photo opportunities. Bring your own camera or camera phone and take pictures that will last long after the road trip glow fades away!
What are your favorite tips for sticking to your roadtrip budget?
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