Vacationing on a Dime

We are a family of 5.  Vacationing can be very expensive!  Last year, we decided to forgo our vacation in favor of staying home, so that we could save for this years' vacation.

Some hints for saving money on vacation from our family:

1) We booked airfare months in advance, when the rates were low.

2) We use public transportation, and our feet, for the majority of the time.  We used the light rail to get from the airport to the hotel, and we used buses, light rail, and walked a lot in Seattle.  There's nothing quite like hauling luggage through the subway system in a strange city...

3) We always book a hotel with a mini-fridge.  That way, we can keep our milk, lunch meat and other goodies cold.  

4) Keeping the above statement in mind, we pack our lunch every day.  Sandwiches, reusable water bottles, carrot sticks, etc. are all things you will find in our family backpack for lunch.

5) if our room happens to have a microwave, we will find something at the grocery store that we can heat up for dinner.  Since we are in the Pacific Northwest, we brought my favorite big bowl, small cutting board and small knife with me.  (Checked through in my luggage). We've been stopping at Farmer's Markets and picking up salad makings for dinner each night.  I've been known to take my crock pot with me in hotels with a small kitchenette, and then we have dinner waiting for us when we get back for the night.

6) We did end up renting a car to get up into the mountains.  However, we're only paying for the rental on the days we are actually traveling.  We will be returning our car one day before we fly out.  The hotel where we are staying will shuttle us to the airport free of charge.

Those are some of our tricks for saving money on vacation.  What do you do to save money on the road?