NEW YORK — With four kids between the ages of 1 and 12, Loralee Leavitt is a cost-savings ninja when she hits the road.
Leavitt, who hails from Kirkland, Washington, estimates that she has gone on more than 30 road trips with her growing family, logging over 60,000 miles, to places like Utah, Colorado, Arizona and California.
From packing their own food, to staying in state parks, to scouring for last-minute hotel deals, the family has made an art of saving money. Their piece de resistance: A trip to Montana’s Glacier National Park that did not cost more than $400 total.
“It is easy to spend more than you expect,” says Leavitt, author of “Road Tripping.” “But if you prepare it right, it can be a lot of fun, and very cheap.”
More Americans are planning road trips around the United States. In fact, 65 per cent of those polled report they are more likely to take a road trip this summer than they were last summer, according to a recent survey by booking site Travelocity. And when you single out parents, a whopping 81 per cent said they were more likely to hit the road with the kids this year.
Be careful, though. While a domestic road trip might appear like an affordable alternative to traveling abroad, costs can easily spiral out of control.
A recent study by travel site Expedia found that Americans expect to pay an average of $898 per person for a weeklong trip within their own country, hardly chump change.
To keep a lid on summer road-trip costs, we canvassed financial planners for their best tips, culled from personal experience. Here’s what they had to say.
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