Wow! It’s been a month since I’ve posted! What kind of blogger am I? A busy one! The last month has been super busy at work and at home and has included a wonderful week’s vacation in Key West, Florida.
It’s hard to have a budget-friendly vacation in Key West, but I think we were able to hold costs down by saving money on the big-ticket expenses – airfare, hotel, car rental, and eating. The savings gave us room in the budget for my husband George to splurge on a tandem sky-dive, something he’s always wanted to do. The skydive (plus a DVD video of the dive and still photos) was the single biggest expense of the trip at $385, including a $20 tip for the pilot.
I think our trip is a great example of how we manage to live well without being extravagant. Being frugal or watching your budget doesn’t have to mean you are cheap and never get to enjoy any of the “extras” in life. It means getting value out of the dollars that you spend, and being wise about what you spend on. We conserve money, not waste it. Fortunately, we are both simple people who enjoy simple pleasures. Our type of vacation isn’t for everyone, but perhaps you can employ some of our techniques.
The first purchase was airline tickets. I started “shopping” for a good airfare in October for our February trip. Our last few flights to Florida have been on Allegiant, who has direct flights to several Florida cities from an airport about 50 miles from our house. This year we decided to try Spirit Airlines, who flies out of the airport about 3 minutes from our house. I had a coupon code for $35 off a ticket. Both Spirit and Allegiant have direct flights from here to Fort Lauderdale. At the time I booked in late October, Spirit was significantly less after application of the $35 credit per ticket. (I booked in 2 separate orders just to make sure I got the credit per ticket.) When I check Allegiant’s fares, I have to factor in the cost of driving to and from the more distant airport, and parking there for a week. I got 2 round trip tickets from West Virginia to Fort Lauderdale for $192. I was pleased with that.
Spirit is a no frills airline. You pay extra for luggage, even carry-ons (a “personal item” that fits under the seat is free), seat assignments, etc. We took one suitcase (40 pounds is their max, less than most airlines) and no carry-ons other than 2 bags that qualified as personal items. I paid close attention to the size of suitcase and personal items they would permit so I didn’t get hit with any unexpected charges at check-in. The $192 included $56 for the suitcase to travel round trip also, and no other extras.
Once my airline tickets were secured, hotel reservations were next. When in Key West, we stay at Sheraton Suites Key West. Why? Three reasons:
- We love the spacious (almost 600 square feet), well appointed rooms, free on-site parking, nice pool area, and lush courtyard.
- We love the location on the south side of the island, away from the rowdy Duval Street stores and bars, and directly across the street from the public Smathers Beach. Just cross the 2 lane street and you are right on the beach. All along the beach runs a long, very wide sidewalk that’s ideal for walking, running, biking, and skating. Perfect spot to be at sunrise, and also at sunset in February.
- Main reason we stay here: We stay free on Starwood Preferred Guest points we earn on our SPG American Express card! We charge everything all year long (paying our bill in full each month) and earn a point per dollar. We’re a little unique in that we let trusted family-members and friends charge on our card also, but they have to pay us in full immediately. Using the card has other benefits, and I’ll cover those in another post.
A week at the Sheraton Suites this time of year is about $200 per night, so staying on points scores us HUGE savings. I would probably never vacation anywhere that I had to spend over $1000 for a week’s lodging.
The kitchenette in our room, with mini-fridge, bar sink, microwave, and dining table and chairs permitted us to have a couple simple meals per day in our room. Neither of us has a sophisticated palette nor are we into “fine dining.” It’s hard for me to sink money into something that is gone as soon as I buy it. Eating just isn’t enough of an “experience” for us (unlike the skydiving.) We were able to stock our little kitchen with bread, cheese, deli ham, yogurt, bananas, apples, grapes, muffins, mustard, chips, prewashed organic baby salad greens, salad dressing and bagged veggies. Most days we had a simple breakfast of a muffin, yogurt and fruit. Lunch was a salad with some sliced ham and cheese on top, or sandwiches, fruit and chips. It was just so convenient. We also purchased a $4 styrofoam cooler as soon as we hit town, so we had plenty of ice and cold water.
These simple meals are not everyone’s idea of being on vacation, but it worked for us, and we did not overeat. I know for many people, dining out is part of the vacation experience, but it’s just not that meaningful for us. Even when we went out for dinner, it was somewhere like a local family-style restaurant where we had hot spaghetti and fresh baked bread knots. I’d say our food costs were half what many couples spend in a week in Key West, and neither of us gained a pound.
Last place to save – car rental. As I said, we fly into Fort Lauderdale, then enjoy the drive south through the Keys. I use Dollar rental cars. I always use the online car rental comparison sites, but it seems like Dollar is always the best rate for I want. We’re a member of their “Express” club, which you join for free on their website. Before I book, I go to Ebates.com and click through to Dollar’s site, earning myself a 3.5% rebate. I rented a Ford Focus – compact and good on gas. I booked a couple months in advance, but returned to their website every few weeks to check the rates for my time period. One day, there was a major rate reduction. I called their customer service line, and they rebooked me at the new, $150 lower rate. A week’s rental with unlimited mileage and a tank of gas was $231. That includes about $80 for pass-through charges, taxes and fees from the state of FL and the Fort Lauderdale airport. As member of the Dollar Express club, we bypass the lines, go straight to the parking garage and to our car.
By the way, another way I save on car rentals is by rejecting the damage waiver charges, which are outrageous at $15 per day and more, and instead get insurance for $25 via my American Express card. I’ll give you more details about that later.
That sums up the major techniques I employed for getting more value from my vacation dollars. Stay tuned for more about our trip.
Please share YOUR tips for saving money on vacation, or getting more value for your dollars spent. Where do you splurge and where do you save? Please let a comment!
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