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.

A Money-Saving Guide to Theme Parks

From New Jersey to Florida, I have been to a lot of theme parks: Here's my guide for having lots of fun while saving money:


Bring your own rain coats or ponchos. Of course, when it rains, theme park gift shops have ample supplies of rain gear, about $6 per poncho. That’s convenient, but for a family of four that’s $24, plus tax. That bill represents money that could be saved or spent on other vacation treats. In contrast, you can buy ponchos for a buck a piece at Walgreens and dollar store chains.

Pack Sweatshirts or extra clothing. When the sun goes down—especially in the winter and spring -- temperatures sometimes dip sharply in the parks. We’ve been in Orlando during the December holiday season when the thermometer has dipped into the low 30s. Brrr. I’ve watched in sympathy as tourists in shorts, halter tops and bathing suits have purchased warmer clothing at gifts shops, with prices that start at $25 for a sweatshirt. (Been there, done that). We bring our own jackets and we check the forecast before leaving our home or hotel room.

Carry your own snacks. As special treats, we occasionally buy the park-branded snacks (ice cream, soda or candy). But most of our snacks are from the DIY (Do-It-Yourself) label. Likewise, bring your own water bottles. It’s best to freeze the bottles the night before (in your hotel room) and sip the defrosting water in the hot park.

Enjoy spray-and-soak rides in the middle of the day, when you’ll dry off faster in the hot sun. Otherwise, you’ll be tempted to buy new gear at one of the conveniently located clothing stores in the park. Or bring extra clothes and store them in a park locker.

Get a room with perks: A great hotel—with lots of free activities and services—will save you hundreds of dollars during a vacation. That’s because the more perks your hotel offers, the fewer days your children will want to spend in the park, which translates into fewer admission tickets, meals and treats.

For instance, with my extended family, we have frequently stayed at a kid-centric resort in the Orlando area that offered free entertainment, crafts, games, miniature golf and sporting events for families. What’s more, the main pool—with water sprays, fountains and other fun surprises—was like a water park. Once, we even had to bribe our kids to get out of the pool in order to use the theme park tickets that we had already spent a fortune on. We didn’t make that mistake twice.

Check out free or low-cost attractions: Orlando has more to offer than Disney or Universal Studios. There are many frugal entertainment options that cost a fraction of theme park admission tickets. This logic applies to other areas of the country. Lesser known –and cheaper—local attractions often try to ride the coattails of nationally known parks. There are also municipal parks, zoos, museums and other affordable attractions.

Shop outside the park: Many of the dollars stores and gift shops on the nearby highways carry affordable souvenirs and trinkets.

Give each child a trip budget: We provide our children with a trip allowance to spend as they choose. Of course, we cover the basics, but for buy-me, buy-me trinkets, the kids are on their own and when their fun money runs out, that’s it.

Don’t overstay. Kids nine and under have about a six-hour window in the park. My husband and I have timed our kids and we have watched the temper tantrum cycles of other children. Trust me. Don’t stay in the park with irritable, tired grumpy children. You will feel as if you have wasted a ton of money.

Leave the park, get your hands marked with a re-entry stamp. Go back to your hotel for naps and consider returning to the park for evening parades, fireworks or other festivities. Mothers with younger children can also go to the nursing station in some Disney parks. This facility—with rocking chairs, microwave ovens, televisions and play areas—is an ideal “chill zone” when you, or your toddler/baby need a time-out.

Find the playgrounds. Inside amusement parks and municipal parks are real playgrounds where the kids can just play and get exercise. A constant diet of theme parks represents too much passive entertainment. Sometimes, kids and adults just need to play and run around. _____________


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