Money saving lessons learned on the road

<p>This summer, we hit the road. Our family ventured together to Cincinnati to take in a baseball game at Great American Ballpark. We packed our bags and drove to Chicago for a couple of days. And my husband and I wandered the East Coast making stops in Scranton, Pennsylvania, New Haven, Connecticut, and even a day in New York City.</p><p>I love to travel — especially to big cities. But as you can imagine, I hate wasting money.</p><p>So, with each visit, I honed my frugal travel skills, learning more and more about ways to save while on the go. From hotels to parking, from foods to famous sites, you can still explore even while on a budget. These simple strategies helped us to make the most of our summer adventures without killing our savings goals.</p><p>Set a budget</p><p>I cannot stress this enough. You’ll overspend every time if you don’t establish a boundary around your travel budget. Months before we left on each of these excursions, we established how much we wanted to spend. Knowing this dollar amount shaped every choice we made along the way, from where we stayed to what we’d be able to afford to do while there. Think through all of your potential expenses, set a target dollar amount and then work with that money.</p><p>Book out of the box</p><p>I used a variety of booking methods for where we stayed this summer. For the Chicago trip, I used Hotwire to nab a luxury hotel at a fraction of the price. I booked directly through a hotel website using my rewards account for the Cincinnati trip. For our East Coast adventure, we stayed at an Airbnb, one block from the ocean.</p><p>With all of the bookings, I paid close attention to reviews. Reading and rereading reviews helps guarantee your stay will be a pleasant one.</p><p>Using hotel reward points, booking in advance and exploring rental options from places like Airbnb and VRBO also make good sense as you begin planning your stay. You can stretch your dollars further by asking for additional discounts, checking a cashback site like Rakuten, searching for coupon codes and cashing in any reward points you may already have.</p><p>Depending on where you go, staying a little further out from the area you plan on exploring may help you stretch your dollars further, too. It may be smarter to stay in an outlying suburb and either drive or take the train downtown.</p><p>Become a Spot Hero</p><p>On our trip to Chicago, I discovered and fell in love with Spot Hero, a money saving parking app. Spot Hero helps you locate a parking spot in busy metropolitan areas, locks in your price and holds your spot even if the rest of the garage fills up. Before downloading the app, I looked online for a coupon, too, and was easily able to find one.</p><p>In the end, I paid $14 to park for the entire day in a quality garage in downtown Chicago. I scanned the QR code on my phone upon arrival and found my held spot with ease. The posted rates for a similar time frame exceeded $50. Parking can add up quickly without a strategy. Using this app helped us afford other fun experiences during our visit. And I avoided the headache of wandering around looking for a spot.</p><p>Visit the library</p><p>As a part of our journeys, we’ve been to no less than five public libraries. Each one featured local history and amazing architecture. And located at each library was our own personal tour guide and historian. Reference librarians usually have a good handle on not only what’s available at their local branch, but also what you shouldn’t miss in the community.</p><p>Check out area colleges</p><p>Our oldest daughter will be a senior this fall. Over the last year, we’ve visited a number of colleges and universities as she determines her next steps. Doing so has helped me realize that when you book travel — especially stops along the way to your final destination — it’s a great idea to stay in small college towns.</p><p>During the summer, these places are a little quieter but still full of amazing amenities like hiking spaces, free concerts and quaint coffee shops. And usually there are a number of affordable hotels and B&amp;amp;Bs built to provide visiting parents a place to stay.</p><p>While in New Haven, we spent time touring historic Yale University. We were able to see a copy of the Gutenberg Bible, see priceless artwork and gaze at amazing architecture without spending a penny. Check the universities’ websites for potential tours, concerts, athletic events, lectures and more.</p><p>Crowdsource your trip</p><p>When you visit a large city, choosing where to go and what to eat can be overwhelming. A simple internet search yields hundreds and even thousands of choices. Use your social media networks for good. Ask friends and acquaintances about their favorite stops and ways to save money.</p><p>We found an amazing diner, took a stroll through an iconic park and discovered quaint places to visit thanks to a simple status inquiry.</p><p>Traveling is a gift. And you can’t put a price tag on learning more about the world around you. But traveling when you overspend (or spend money you don’t even have) creates more than a temporary headache. Without a plan, both your vacation and your finances suffer. Begin utilizing these approaches to save with each trip you plan. You’ll create memories without creating personal finance havoc.</p>