Cheap, thrifty, economical and prudent are all accurate descriptions of my mom’s spending habits. However, she prefers the word frugal. She clips coupons and shops the “manager’s special” section at the grocery store. She builds her wardrobe by going to 50% off Saturdays at Goodwill and takes advantage of free days at local attractions in Indianapolis.
When mom announced we were going to NYC for spring break 2018, I thought she hit the lottery! Everyone knows that spending a whole week in New York city can be super expensive. Fortunately, my mom’s frugal habits work just as good on the east coast as they do in the Midwest.
A representative from Enterprise Rental Car picked us up early Monday morning. He mentioned that we got a great deal on the SUV. “Coupons are awesome” mom responded.
We hit the road with our cooler full of homemade goodies and anxiously anticipated seeing the sign that said “Welcome to New York.” But New York is not where we ended up. We pulled up to The Villas at Treetops in the Pocono Mountains. Mom said she got a great deal. Her friend had an RCA account with points that were expiring soon so she gifted the points to us. What she paid for 1 week there was the equivalent of what she would have paid for one night at the hotel in NYC. Mom was excited because we were only 75 min from anywhere we wanted to go.
The villa was beautiful! We had a great view of the mountains from the balcony. It was so spacious and felt more like a home than hotel. Mom even went grocery shopping and cooked breakfast and dinner every day. We ate out for lunch tasting something new daily!
Day 2 we caught the Staten Island Ferry to Battery Park. We saw the Statue of Liberty, visited Castle Clinton, Smithsonian’s Museum of the American Indian, and Ground Zero. We also got pictures with the Raging Bull and the Immigrant’s Sculpture. This was all free and within walking distance. We learned a lot and had so much fun!
Day 3 we ventured to the Bronx and visited the Art Museum there (free admission). The Bronx Zoo was free too but we slept in and got there too late. Then we came back to the villa and watched movies.
Day 4 took us to Philadelphia! We visited the US Mint, Liberty Bell Center, Franklin Square, the President’s House and Carpenter Hall. More learning and more free fun!
On day 5 we visited the New York Aquarium, Luna Park and Coney Island. We did spend money to ride the attractions at Luna Park but enjoying the boardwalk and playing on the beach was absolutely free along with our visit to the aquarium.
On day 6 we went to the Big Apple. We went across the Brooklyn Bridge, visited the M&M store and the Hershey Store. This was the day we actually spent money on souvenirs and really expensive food.
We drove home on day 7. We talked about all the places we went and how much fun we had. Mom was excited because she spent less than $1,000 for the whole vacation (hotel, rental car, gas, food and tolls). She showed us it is totally possible to be frugal in NYC.
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Great information. I love travelling and the winter holidays are best to go out with family and friends. there are many places in India for the best winter holiday. here is the list 5 Best Winter Holiday Destinations In India
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Hi, thanks for the huge list of good ideas! I reconnected with an old childhood memory of travelling on house boats.
Wow, that’s a great list. The Free Tours By Foot sounds amazing and such a great way to explore a city. Have you guys ever tried indoor skydiving? It’s not cheap, but it’s a great activity for the whole family. Some of the centers even offer a Virtual Reality experience. With more and more tunnels popping up it’s become quite easy to find a spot nearby. For those interested check out dropzone.com/indoor/ . They’ve got a nifty tunnel finder.
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Hi There,
Thank you for putting together a list for Fall vacation. It is so informative and exciting. We love the nature! We should be planning a trip to Aspen Mountain, Colorado soon. The infographic on emergency is so well done and very handy for travelers.
visiting california is always enjoyable. thanks for sharing your feelings about california. Have traveled any other countries? I’ve been travelling for last 2 years and I would like to share some of my great experinces with you. do you accept guest post?
Everything in this blog is nice. Fabolous infographic and presentation also. I also want to go there for these types of rides which are shown in this blog.
First of all, you need to find out what type of vacation each member of your family prefers. At lunch, dinner, or watching your favorite TV show in the evening, try discussing your upcoming vacation together. Listen to suggestions from everyone, remember where you have already visited and, taking into account the interests of the child, try to choose the right direction. It should be borne in mind all the details: the possibility of excess spending, the size of the vacation budget, the presence of health problems, interests, hobbies and hobbies. If you are organizing a trip with your child, you will have a wonderful joint vacation!
NYC is a great place to celebrate Halloween, and good opportunities for celebrity sightings too!
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Hey thanks for such a nice article, there is nothing better than getting away with the fam or group of mates into the wilderness and just relaxing while staring into those embers. I go camping regularly and I know you stated unplugged but if you dont play an instrument I highly recommend bringing along a nice loud Bluetooth speaker to jam away with all of you friends into the late night. That and beer ofcourse.
Thanks again and keep up the good work
Hershey is such a fun town to visit with so many family-friendly activities. We loved driving up to spend the weekend when we lived in Maryland.
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Doing so saves money on your shipping costs. Most travelers are charged for gas as they are free. Tourists save money on car rentals and pay for their travels.