Let’s face it. Money doesn’t grow on trees. And planning to take a family overseas can be daunting. But although you will have to spend money to achieve those holiday dreams, there are ways to keep the costs down. So, today we’ll look at budget family travel for beginners.
Jacqui and I have taken our family overseas on several occasions now. not small holidays either, these were six to seven weeks long travelling through Europe and America.
Each time we went we were very conscious of how we spent our money, but we still wanted to have a memorable holiday. Over the years we have found several ways to make our holiday dollars go further.
So, let’s have a look at how you can have a holiday of your dreams, on a budget you can afford.
What budget?
Firstly, you need to decide how much you’re willing to spend. This may sound obvious, but until you know the budget, you really have nothing to work with. It’s all too easy to just add components to the holiday and then end up with a fright when you see the bill at the end.
For a big holiday, I tend to look at the cost in quarters. the first quarter is the airfare. The second is the accommodation, and the third is spending money. The last part of the pie, I save for incidentals. This means car hire, travel insurance, passports, trains and ferries.
Airfares
Airfares tend to be an immoveable chunk of the budget. if the destination is the same, then it doesn’t matter whether you’re going for one week, or six months, the price of the airfare doesn’t change too much.
Keep your eyes open for airlines that advertise family packages. Generally speaking, these are for two adults and two children. These are generally aimed at specific locations such as Disneyland.
There are also some cruise companies that offer family deals. If you search the Internet looking for ‘family package Disneyland’ or ‘family package cruise’ then there are bargains to be had.
Airlines themselves fall into 2 broad categories. There are full-service airlines and low-cost airlines.
Personally, I prefer full-service airlines as I get a better baggage allowance and free meals on the plane. if you’re happy to travel light and pack your own food then the low-cost airlines may provide a better option for you.
It’s also worth thinking about how many options there are to get to your destination. By this I mean, which airports are within a practical distance. you say there can be a large variance in the local fees charged by each airport.
For example, if you are planning to tour Europe, then most people would start at London. Certainly, there are a lot of flights heading there, and it would seem to be the easiest option.
However, if you were to fly into Frankfurt in Germany, there is generally a good cost saving. As a bonus, you’re already well inside Europe. This will further save on travel costs, if you weren’t planning to include England in this trip.
Accommodation
Hostels
Hostels can be a great option for families on a budget. Unfortunately, too many people view them as just somewhere for the 18 to 25’s to stay.
Although some hostels do have an age limit. most now open their doors to welcome all comers.
The days of hostels with filthy carpets and dodgy beds or a thing of the past for modern hostels. The trick of course is that you need to be willing to stay in a dormitory.
In order to cater for the needs of families. Most hostels now also have family rooms, or smaller dormitories that hold four to six people, these are an excellent option.
If you’ve got a family of five and you book into a six-room dormitory, generally the hostel will avoid putting another person in that room. This gives you an excellent place to put luggage.
Bed and Breakfast
B&B’s Used to be the mainstay of the smaller towns. But these days they can be found almost anywhere. They are generally family run establishments, which may involve a standalone building, or may simply be a couple of spare bedrooms in the main family home.
As I don’t normally have all the facilities that you would get in a hotel such as gymnasium, bar and laundry, they tend to be much cheaper than a hotel.
B&B’s also allow you to get to know the locals, and better immerse yourself in the local culture.
Hotels
Hotels and motels can be a great option provided you choose wisely. Quite often you can pick up a room for the same price, whether it is two people or four people.
We’ve even stayed at a couple of hotels, where the rooms had two double beds and the staff are happy enough to add in a small trundle bed, so that the five of us could stay in one room. The room was still charged at the rate for two adults.
It’s also worth checking to see what inclusions the hotel offers that will further lower your other costs. check out the inclusions below, to see how you can further save money at the hotel.
Breakfast
Having breakfast included with your hotel stay is a huge saving. When we travel as a family of five, having to buy five breakfasts every morning soon adds up.
As spending money is one the hardest parts of the budget to get right. It makes it even more difficult, when a decent chunk of the money must be spent first thing each morning.
Kitchen Facilities
If I can’t get accommodation that serves breakfast. Then my next step is to look for somewhere that has kitchen facilities. in many ways this can be even more valuable than just having breakfast.
By buying some groceries at the local supermarket, you can ensure that you have a healthy breakfast. you can also pack some snacks for throughout the day and can make a dinner here and there through the week.
These things can certainly help to keep the cost down. although we have done this on several holidays, we definitely don’t cook every night of the week. we go on holiday to get away from that.
Laundry
Having laundry facilities at your accommodation generally works out slightly cheaper. However, it will probably only be a dollar here or there. The real saving though is in time.
You can wait until the kids are in bed, and then one parent can slip out to get the laundry done. If the facilities weren’t available at your hotel, then it would probably be the whole family sitting there watching the clothes spin in the dryer.
It will also be cheaper to buy a laundry powder at the local supermarket, rather than buying it at the laundry.
To Car, Or Not To Car
There are many large cities in the world where a car is an absolute necessity. And again, for others, you will find it nothing but a hindrance.
Los Angeles for example, is a definite car city. although there may be some public transport there, it is hardly designed with mass transit in mind.
It does, however, have an excellent system of highways and ample parking in most locations.
London on the other hand, has a brilliant public transport system, that will take you anywhere in the city at very little cost. By contrast, driving a car in London can be a nightmare for the uninitiated. And don’t even get me started on parking.
Do your research before you go to figure out what kind of cities you’re heading to. if they have a solid public transport system it will be advertised and much talked about.
Covering Distance
This is another area where you need to decide if the car is the best option. Whether you’re traveling throughout Europe, North America or Australia, some of the distances can be vast.
Traveling by car maybe the cheapest option, by virtue of having four or five people on board sharing the costs. whereas planes and trains charge each person individually.
However, there is a lot to be said for covering large distances quickly by plane, and therefore making better use of your holiday.
More and more high-speed trains are coming into the picture. and in many cases can almost rival plane travel. Especially when considering security checks, and airport check in procedures.
Only you can decide whether the cost is worth the time. And how long you’re willing to endure a car full of kids.
Student Cards
if anyone in your family is a student and has a valid student card. Then they definitely need to bring that card with them.
Most tourist attractions, buses and trains, offer significant student discounts. it can be very frustrating if you’re entitled to the discount, but you’ve forgotten your card.
Travel Insurance
Not all travel insurance is equal. This is true both from the quality of the insurance, and the level of inclusions.
There’s no point getting travel insurance that gives you excellent cover for your rental vehicle, if you’re not planning to rent a car. the same applies to extra insurance for sporting equipment and pre-existing conditions.
Get onto a decent insurance comparison site, that lets you add in what you need, and delete what you don’t need. This way you won’t end up paying a premium price for inclusions that you will never use.
Personally, I always use comparethemarket.com.au. They have access to a huge range of insurance policies, and I can always find a suitable policy for our family.
If your family is made up of all adults. then you can consider breaking the group into sections. that way if only one person is going to be driving, then they are the only ones who need the rental vehicle insurance. all the others can be covered on a standard policy.
Just click here, if you’d like to check out Comparethemarket.
Final Thoughts
As a family it’s the memories that you cherish. Quite often the memories that stick with us the longest, and make us laugh the hardest, are when things didn’t quite go right.
We’ve been in some hotel rooms where the windows leaked. And some where the floors leaned so badly, that we were glad our bags weren’t on wheels. It’s fair to say that the occasions that everything went smoothly, are not the ones that spring to mind first.
The most important thing is to get out there with your family and explore the world. Build some memories together.
Check out these holiday tips and tricks.
Cheers and happy travels.