Less expensive ways to use your vacation days
With Memorial Day just around the corner, our thoughts often turn to taking a few days off work for a well-deserved vacation. If you are lucky enough to enjoy the benefit of paid vacation days from your employer, you should definitely consider them as part of your total compensation package and take them every year. You should pay special attention to whether they expire at the end of the year, and if they do, you absolutely must take them before they expire. Letting them expire is the same as leaving free money on the table.
That said, using vacation days can be a double-edged sword. Most vacations end up costing a lot of extra money that could otherwise go a long way toward reaching our long-term goals.
I’ve compiled a list of suggestions for using your vacation days in less expensive, but still very enjoyable ways.
1.Stay home
At first glance, this might seem like a lame suggestion, but it might actually be the best on the list! Tell everyone (friends, family, and co-workers) that you will be out of town
and unattainable (perhaps you are camping in the mountains or something?). Go on a big shopping spree, go home, close the door and spend a nice week having fun in your own home! Turn off your cell phone and disconnect your landline. Sleeping late… taking long baths… having movie marathons and game nights with your spouse/family… eating junk food and staying up late. Just relax, you deserve it!
2. Give back
If you have a charitable bent, there may be many exciting opportunities for you to spend your vacation days helping those who are in greater need than you. You won’t be spending your time relaxing, but you will have an enriching and rewarding experience and you may have the opportunity to change someone’s life for the better simply by volunteering during your vacation days.
If there is a cause that is important to you (for example, Katrina survivors, AIDS in Africa, poverty in India), start researching organizations that provide help to people affected by the problem. Many organizations will be able to tell you the best way to volunteer your time. Often, by volunteering, you will be able to get free or very low-cost accommodations during your stay. Additionally, your church or community organization may be willing to sponsor a portion of your trip to the region. Sometimes churches and school groups organize entire “mission” trips that focus on addressing some of these causes.
A less dramatic version of this idea is to contact a local soup kitchen, hospital, animal shelter, or boys and girls club and volunteer your services for the week.
3. Vacation in Boston (or the city where you live)
Obviously this is only a good deal if you live in the Boston area and can stay in your own home! We are very lucky to live in a place that people from all over the world want to visit, but it is very easy to take all that for granted. Have you visited all the great attractions and sites this city has to offer? I’ve personally lived here my whole life and can think of several places I haven’t been (the Isabella Stewart Gardener Museum, the new ICA, and the Museum of African American History, for example). With a little research, it’s easy to find ways to visit local attractions for free or for very little cost.
For example, visit the Institute of Contemporary Arts on Thursday nights for Target’s free Thursday nights from 5:00 to 9:00 pm (icaboston.org). The Museum of African American History has a suggested donation of only $5.00 (afroammuseum.org). The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum welcomes all those called “Isabella” for free anytime! (Otherwise admission is $12 for adults – gardnermuseum.org). I highly recommend visiting your local public library to inquire about free passes you could borrow to local museums and other attractions for the day. Look online – you’ll be surprised how affordable it can be to experience the local attractions you’ve always wanted to visit.
4. Work on a goal/project for life
If you have a week off but little money to spend, think about those goals and projects you’ve always hoped to accomplish. Have you always wanted to be in better shape? Spend the week establishing a really good exercise routine. Could your living room use a bolder color? Spend the week painting and rearranging your furniture. Do you have a favorite author or a topic you would like to learn more about? Head to the library and borrow a couple of books you’ve been wanting to read, head to the beach or local park with a blanket and a picnic lunch, and curl up with your book in the sun.
5. Go camping
The best budget vacations are camping. Be careful though, as even camping can get expensive if you don’t plan well. Your least expensive option will be to avoid private campgrounds and plan to stay in a National Park. You can usually drive your car to the campsite, which will be clean and level, set up a tent, and enjoy everything from a campfire to hiking the local area trails.
To really save some money, try buying new camping gear for your trip. If you don’t already have a tent, ask around and see if you can borrow one from a friend or family member. However, if necessary, I have noticed that the tents at Target, for example, are as low as $30.00. Also, check Craigslist.org to see if anyone is getting rid of any camping gear they might have for free or very little cost.
6. Spend the week at a local beach
People travel from far and wide to enjoy New England’s beaches during the summer. We are very fortunate to live just a short drive from these fabulous beaches. It would be so much fun to spend the week at your nearest beach, enjoying the sun, water, and food from the sandwich shop. If you choose a beach that is close to home, you can sleep in your own bed and then drive to the beach every day. If you prefer to take public transportation every morning, there are some wonderful options. You can take the Red Line to JFK/UMass and visit Carson Beach. Revere Beach on the Blue Line has seen many improvements in recent years and is a beautiful option with a boardwalk feel. If you want to travel a little further, you can take the Amtrak Downeaster to Old Orchard Beach in Maine from Boston. It appears to be $23.00 each way, but it could be a nice and fairly inexpensive day trip during your vacation!
7. Make a plan before you go
If you’ve read the tips above, but still want a more conventional vacation, there are plenty of ways to do it for less than you’d normally pay. The best idea is to do some planning before you set out on your trip. It’s too easy to just book your flight and hotel and plan to choose your activities when you arrive at your destination. The problem is that usually by the time you arrive at your destination, you’re already in “vacation mode” and are more likely to spend money less carefully. How easy is it to say “we’re on vacation, we deserve it”?
If you take the time before you leave to think about the things you’d like to do, you can do some research online and find ways to do the things you want to do less expensively. I recommend doing everything from making dinner reservations, booking tours and activities, to planning certain days to kick back and do nothing. The more time you leave unplanned before you leave, the more money you are likely to spend. A great suggestion is to start with a cheap and comprehensive travel guide like Lonely Planet’s USA & Canada on a Shoestring. Plus, if you plan and research before you travel, you don’t have to worry or think about anything while you’re away and can just enjoy your vacation – you deserve it!
8. Compare the best deals
Before you even book your trip, you can save significantly by searching for the best vacation deals. These days, we’re all familiar with the major discount travel sites like expedia.com, orbitz.com, and travelocity.com. Those sites are wonderful places to start. Sometimes if you’re looking for a package, like buying your airfare and hotel together, you can save quite a bit (but be sure to quote those separately as well, in case they’re cheaper on their own).
There is another service that not many people know about. A website called Travelzoo.com publishes “Travel Zoo Top 20” every Wednesday at approximately 11:15 am. If you visit the website, you can sign up to receive the Travel Zoo Top 20 by email. Every week, the company finds the best travel deals and includes them in its list. Deals range from vacation packages to cruises to car rentals, and they’re often hard to beat. If you see something you like, you have to be willing to move quickly, as most deals sell out soon after the listing goes live. It’s a great email to sign up for if you’re somewhat flexible with your travel plans and are simply looking for a great deal on a vacation.
9. Consider staying in a hostel
Especially if you are a young person, living in a hostel can be a wonderful, affordable and enriching way to see the world. Hostel culture seems to be most active in Europe, but there are hostels all over the world, including right here in Massachusetts! A hostel is a less expensive alternative to a hotel. The most common situation will be where you stay in a room with other people you don’t know (however, most of the time it’s possible to get a private room for an additional fee). Hostel rates are reduced based on the number of people in the room, so you could stay in a room with other people and pay very little money for your stay. You’ll usually have access to lockers to store valuables, and you should call ahead to see if you’ll need to bring your own sheets. Hostelling can be a great opportunity to save some money, but also to meet new friends from all over the world! It is possible to find family-oriented hostels, but hostels are usually geared towards single people, couples or groups of friends. Visit hostelworld.com to learn all about hostel culture and find one that suits your needs.
10. Take your vacations out of season
If there’s a place you’ve always wanted to visit, consider doing it a little before or after the “season” starts. There are so many benefits to doing so. You’ll avoid all the crazy crowds and can often negotiate a rate significantly lower than what you’d normally be charged. Some examples would be trying southern Maine or Alaska in early May or late in the season or Florida during the summer. The same idea would apply to places of stay during the “off-peak” time of the week. If a certain location is more popular during the weekends, try to stay Monday through Thursday. Your best bet is to look for independently owned bed and breakfasts, inns, and hotels, as they will generally be more willing to negotiate rates with you than larger hotel chains. This is also a great suggestion if you are planning a last minute weekend getaway. A small hotel or inn that isn’t full might be willing to make a deal if you call them on a Friday morning and they aren’t full yet for that weekend, especially if you’re calling during a slow season of the year. The downside is that some of the regular attractions may be closed and the weather may be less than perfect for that area, but it’s a great option to see an area for a lot less money.
Please reply and let me know your own tips for using your vacation days less expensively. I would love to hear them!