Frugal Thrill Rides for Last Days of Summer: Low-Cost Vacations

Between seasonal discounts and neighborhood promotions, my kids are staying busy this summer -- and we're saving money. Here's how:

• Theme parks: Seasonal promotions are available to Florida residents at Busch Gardens, Disney World, Universal Studios, Sea World and others. At Busch Gardens, we purchased two-day passes for the price of a single day -- and tapped into additional savings by taking advantage of an online-purchase offer from AAA. Our cost worked out to $30 per person per day compared with the full price of $70 a day for adults and older children. Other parks have comparable deals.

• Local passes: Through Sept. 30, Miami Metrozoo, Miami Seaquarium and Wannado City offer a combined Summer Savings Pass that offers unlimited admission to all three for $20 per person with the purchase of a general admission ticket at any one.

• Summer reading: With school just weeks away, a visit to the library is a frugal way to get going on required reading for school-age children. In my house, we're counting pages and creating a reading log to avoid a last-minute literary crunch.

• Indoor malls: Through August, Dolphin Mall is hosting a Summer Fun Celebration with a changing calendar of activities for families. Summer events at Aventura Mall include storytelling, character days and an indoor playground. Check for similar activities at the shopping center nearest you.

• Public parks and recreation centers: From free movie nights to low-cost eco-tours, local parks and recreation centers offer no-cost or low-cost family entertainment. Our youth center, for example, has ice skating, swimming and bowling at budget-friendly rates.

• Friends and family: During a recent five-day trip to Tampa, we saved $500-$1,000 in lodging and meal expenses by staying with friends. We're lucky to have accommodating family in the Orlando area, too. We give our hosts gifts, consideration and reciprocity. In fact, our Tampa friends plan to stay with us when they visit South Florida.
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Fun on a Budget: Surprise Savings in the Amusement Park

Even at a theme park, you can spend less and still have lots of fun. We found some great deals at Busch Gardens in Tampa. Some of the savings are no-brainers, but other thrifty deals took us by surprise. Here's are our frugal finds:

• Cheap ice cream: Don't assume that prices are the same at every stand in the park. Here's what happened to us: Near the main entrance we found a stand with a two-for-one ice cream special. The sales person told us that the price drops toward the end of the day. In the summer, when the park closes at 9 p.m., the price of ice cream drops by 4 p.m. Not all stands cut prices, but it was standard procedure at the stand just outside of the main gate. As such, we purchased four ice cream pops for $1.50 per item.
  
  
• Affordable lockers: Shop around for lockers when you are in amusement parks. We carry a small backpack stuffed with food, snacks, water bottles, sunscreen and other creature comforts. It's a money-saving option. Rather than toting the bag around, we rent a small locker for safekeeping. At Busch Gardens, we found different prices for lockers. Outside of the park - near the ticket gate - lockers cost $6 to rent, with unlimited visits. But inside the park, we found smaller lockers for 50 cents. Of course, each visit to the smaller locker required another 50-cent toll, but even three visits cost $1.50 versus the $6 rental for the other lockers. Plus, the smaller lockers were more conveniently located.



• Water fountain: We were surprised to find that the water fountains at the park were cold and tasty. This was a budget-friendly option when our water bottles ran out. (We had purchased bottled water before going to the park.) Before recycling our water bottles, we used the water fountains for several cool, quick-and-easy refills. This strategy saved us at least $30 during the course of an eight-hour trip to the park.

Here are related articles:

A Money-Saving Guide to Theme Parks

The Penny Pincher Guide to Theme Parks

The Best (Inexpensive) Souvenirs
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Sharon is the author of the Frugal Duchess: How to Live Well and Save Money -- a coming of age memoir about money -- and a contributing writer in Wise Bread's 10,0001 Ways to Live Large on a Small Budget.