Vacation Budget Planning

Family vacations are so much fun to plan. Where will you go, what hotel to stay at, what sites to see, etc...But for many families, the biggest concern is the question of how will this vacation be paid for. Our family has a specific "vacation fund" and every month, money is put into that account that will be used towards the family trip. For some families, especially in this economy, vacations seem out of reach. However, with careful planning and saving tips, you can have a great family vacation, making memories for years to come.

There are many resources available to help you budget a fun vacation. One such resource is Consolidated Credit services and they have a website with lots of great tips for saving and family vacation budgeting. They offer loads of tips for saving money, such as planning off-season travel and utilizing services that offer discounts, such as AAA, Costco Travel Club and Sam’s Travel Club. These clubs can often save you money on hotel stays, car rentals and complete vacations. They also talk about different lodging options to save money that aren't often thought of, such as home exchange vacationing, or staying at a National Park or hostel.

I was amazed at all the different ways to save money, enabling families with any size budget to have a great vacation. Besides budget tips, they also offer other services, such as debt consolidation, credit card debt help and credit counseling.

Please share any budget tips you have used when planning your family vacations!

Beaches Family Resorts Special Offer

The holidays are over, spring is a few months away and it's bitterly cold (at least where I live it is). It is the time of year when many families are looking for a winter getaway to a warm, family friendly vacation hot spot.

Beaches all-inclusive family resorts make a perfect choice for such a getaway and they are running an awesome special right now-you can save up to 60% and get 2 nights free. You need to act fast, though, you can only get this special for 2 more days.

What's so great about Beaches? Here is a description from their website:

Beaches all-inclusive resorts includes all the fun, adventure, and luxury that families want most, elevating the family vacation to world-class standards on the Caribbean's best beaches. Beaches provides the best family beach vacations at resorts in Jamaica and Turks & Caicos. And now kids can share their vacation with Elmo and friends with Beaches' exclusive Caribbean Adventures with Sesame Street.

You can check out their promotions here and even if you don't book a trip, it's fun just to look at the gorgeous pictures of the resorts. What are your favorite family-friendly winter getaways?