Even if gas prices are at an all-time high, you can travel cheaply if you keep the mileage to a minimum. Think about attractions within 100 miles of your home. Consider driving to those places for the day to enjoy the sights and local activities. At the end of the day, return home and save money on hotel fees.
Get together with friends or family members and rent a cabin in the woods or a house on the beach for a week. The more people you involve, the cheaper your cost will be. For instance, if you find a five-bedroom mountain cabin rental for $1100 per week, and you invite three other couples, you could split the charges four ways, which would be $275 for each couple. A destination within reasonable driving range will likely be cheapest, especially if you carpool and split the fuel costs.
All-inclusive vacations take the guesswork out of vacation costs by providing you with a vacation for a flat fee. Accommodations, meals and activities are included in the price, and sometimes you can find deals that include airfare. However, different providers offer different deals, so shop around for the best vacation for your needs.
You can save money on accommodations by participating in a home swap, where you and another individual or family trade homes for an agreed period of time. Verge Magazine.com recommends visiting homeexchange.com or homebase-hols.com for information on how to exchange your digs for someone else's for awhile. Independent Traveler's home exchange guide recommends that before making the swap, you should ask for the person's previous home swap references, so you can gain some peace of mind about leaving your home in a stranger's hands. Another recommendation is to draft an informal written agreement regarding what's permissible and what's not while he stays in your home. Both parties should go over it and sign it.
If you are interested in volunteering for World-Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms (WWOOF), you can trade room and board for work on an organic farm somewhere in the world, according to Verge Magazine.com. Visit anyworkanywhere.com to find different job opportunities, such as a hotel worker, au pair (performs childcare and light housekeeping for a host family), or fruit picker in countries all over the world. Often these jobs will include accommodations, plus you will be making money.
