Short on time or money, do a staycation instead!

You want to do something fun with your kids, but money or time are limited? Look into doing a staycation somewhere near your hometown. You can have just as much fun and not have the expense of traveling very far. Plus, your kids might even be happier if they do not have to be trapped on an airplane or in a car for hours. So how do you save the most money while also having a great time?

1. If it is available, go for a night or few nights during the week. Do your kids have a random Friday off school, look into checking into the hotel for that Thursday night and enjoying the day on Friday. You can even ask the hotel for a late check out and if they can't accommodate that, ask them to hold your bags and you can still stay and enjoy the amenities of the hotel. Normally, most hotels are cheapest Sunday night through Thursday night so if that is available to you, travel then.

2. If weekdays aren't available to you, look at different weekends of the month and see which is cheapest if you are flexible. Sometimes hotels will be drastically cheaper one random weekends because they do not have any events going on during those times and they are looking to fill rooms, so snag that deal.

3. Look for hotels that have free amenities. Last weekend, we did a hotel night with my sister and her kids. We now do this every year versus doing Christmas presents for our kids. It gives them something to look forward to after the holidays. But we chose to stay again at a local hotel, Fairfield Inn & Suites Fair Oaks Farms, (linked below because if you are local, check it out). We chose this hotel because it has a great pool with a splash pad area and water slides as well as an indoor/outdoor hot tub. It also has a nature trail that you can hike. The kids were entertained for hours with activities that were all free!

4. Look for nearby activities that may be off peak season. For example, when we did our staycation last week, they had an outdoor ice skating rink. Since it was not the peak time around Christmas when most people want to go ice skating, they ran a deal that was buy one ticket, get one free. That included the ice skate rental and the ice skate aid, so the four of us who went ice skating, only cost $13. So it was a perfect activity that did not break the bank.

5. Also, look for hotels that have nearby activities that you do not have to drive to. Whether these are free activities put on by a local organization or paid activities. They can either be at the hotel property or in walking distance. You could be in the city and have lots of activities nearby or specifically book a hotel near a lot of activities. The Fair Oaks Hotel we were at is not near any city, but it has so many activities, that if you had the time, you could have made a whole weekend out it. But staying within walking distance, helps you can avoid paying parking fees which can get very expensive, especially in the city.

6. Speaking of parking, look for hotels with free parking or at least reasonable parking. A lot of times, hotels will seem a reasonable price, but then you have to pay $50+ a day for parking, so your great deal doesn't turn out to be such a great deal.

7. Lastly, look for hotels that offer free breakfast. It may not seem like a huge savings, but with as expensive as food is getting, getting any meal for free adds up. Say you are traveling as a party of 4 and just say the average sit down breakfast is $10 a person, that will save you $40 that could be applied to another meal or activity. Plus, the nice thing about hotel breakfast, is typically they are buffets, so it can be your chance to let your kids eat anything they want to at no added cost for you, which makes them and you happy!

Staying in a hotel or a "new home" as my kids call it, is one of their favorite parts of any trip we go on. They love exploring the new room, hotel property, and even just using the keycard to open the room. They could care less if the hotel is a 30 minute drive or an 8 hour plane ride away, if you make it special and fun, then they will think it's special and fun and you will all make unforgettable memories (without breaking the bank)!