It's easy to plan an inexpensive vacation with your best gal pals. You just need flexibility and a little creativity.
Leave the husbands, boyfriends and significant others at home. Planning a weekend getaway with the girls is a lot of fun…and doesn’t have to be expensive.
How to Save Money on a Girlfriend Getaway:
- Plan a trip close to home. Don’t try to arrange an extravagant vacation involving people and planes. Stick to the car, and make it a jaunt no farther than four hours from home. All you need is a lake or the mountains… and a condo or cabin you can settle into for a few days. Be sure to get a layout of the unit and some pictures ahead of time. Don’t wait until you get there to figure out who gets what room and which bed. If everyone knows what to expect ahead of time, there will be fewer disputes once you get there.
- Book off-season. Many resorts offer discount prices in the fall and early winter when reservations are slow.
- Decide ahead of time who brings what. If everyone is on a tight budget and you don’t want to eat out every night, make sure you book a place that has a fully equipped kitchen and divvy up the grocery shopping so everyone knows what they are supposed to bring. Then plan to eat out only every other night. The rest of the time, you can make pot luck dinners and sit around the campfire.
- Ask for a group discount. If you are booking more than three rooms in a resort, make sure you speak with the manager about a price reduction. Also ask if there are any special packages for girls’ getaways. This is a fast-growing trend in travel and hotels are trying to cash in.
- Try a different mode of transportation. If you’re sick of driving in carpools, driving to the grocery store and just plain driving…period, look into taking a train. Even if the ride is a little longer, if you have a lot of women going, the party can start before you even arrive at your destination!
- Scout out the malls ahead of time. No girls’ weekend is complete without some shopping. But if one person in your group is an antiques buff and the rest are bargain hunters, allot time for flea markets and outlet malls. And map them out so you know how far you’ll have to travel once you get there.
- Make sure your house is well-stocked before you leave. Leaving your husband and kids at home without any preparation may lead to disaster when you return. Stock the fridge before you leave and post some simple instructions on the door so they won’t completely starve! But don’t prepare too much. You want them to appreciate how much you do for them everyday!
The copyright of the article Save Money on Girlfriend Getaways in Consumer Education is owned by L. Marie Dubuque. Permission to republish Save Money on Girlfriend Getaways in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
