So you’ve decided you want a budget break. Let me tell you how to save even more money so you can make your pennies last longer. Now I’m not saying that your whole holiday should be based around spending as little as possible but let's face it, we can’t all spend 100’s of pounds every day keeping the ankle biters happy.
Below are various tips that have been tried and tested by a specialist panel of...well...me!
Groupon App
Groupon is a great site to get cheap deals on entertainment whilst you are on your budget break. I have managed to get numerous cheap activities off Groupon from boat rides to entry to local attractions. Make sure you do a search in the area and, for the ultra savvy, make sure you search for an extra discount code before you checkout. Similar to Groupon is the company Wowcher which also has some amazing deals. We recently got annual membership to the Ironbridge museums for a ridiculously budget busting price for the whole family. Again, look for extra discounts by typing in ‘Wowcher discount codes’. Using this tip I have managed to get up to an extra 50% off on top of what was already discounted.
The National Trust
The National Trust is a UK based trust who care for, restore and maintain some of the countries historic houses. The National Trust has recently made it more budget friendly to obtain National Trust membership. For a family of 4 it is approximately £10.00 a month, which means you can have a budget day out both home and away. Not only do the National Trust have amazing houses, museums and other interesting places to visit dotted up and down the country, they also own numerous car parks in Cornwall and the Lake District and if you are a NT member you can park in them for free, saving you a fortune if you are holidaying in the area. The National Trust regularly has events taking place over the school holidays providing a great day out for all the family.
English Heritage
English Heritage is another UK based charity who managed over 400 historic sites across the UK. These include monuments, forts and castles from bygone days. Similar to the National Trust, English Heritage is also an affordable amount a month for the budget conscious. They also have properties up and down the country and can make great cheap days out with the family. English Heritage sites are more commonly ruins of old castles and manor houses but can still be great fun for culture vultures. Unlike the National Trust they don’t own as many car parks around the country so your membership might not be as rewarding. They also hold activities over the school holidays, often ranging from reenactments to dress up days. English Heritage tops sites include Stonehenge and Tintagel Castle to name a few. Family membership to English Heritage sites costs a mere £8.75 a month for two adults and up to 12 children: that should cover the Von Trapp family then!
Local Council Websites
I always check the local council website to find out what's going on in the area. The council may have events such as county shows, annual festivals or even great local swimming pools which are often a lot cheaper than going to waterparks. In my local area there is a great swimming pool, with a wave pool, two water slides, a toddler/baby pool and an activity pool, all for a very reasonable price of £16.50 for a family ticket. There are great little gems like this all over the country: you just have to be canny in finding them. Councils often have some great country parks and can be well taken care of and have some great activities available. Our local park over the summer months has a free outdoor paddling pool, two great playgrounds, a skateboard park, a little shopping centre and cafe, mini golf and acres of land for the kids to have a picnic and burn energy. You might have the same kind of park in your own area but going somewhere different will still be exciting for the little ones.
Local Tourist Information
Local tourist information websites also list lots of great events that are worth visiting. Some are often free and are perfect for a cheap day out. For example currently on the Devon Tourist website there is a free event advertised where you can handle some exotic animals. It's an hour long session with the opportunity to take photos for absolutely nothing. They also have advertised on their website The Donkey Sanctuary, this is again another free great day out, with lots of opportunities to chat to staff and see the rescued donkeys having a well earned rest. They also have woodland trails, play areas and exhibitions about the centre.
I find out about some of my more unusual outings through Facebook events. I found the following events through facebook https://belowthebudget.wixsite.com/website/post/a-solstice-s and https://belowthebudget.wixsite.com/website/post/festival-of-fun There are lots of events on Facebook and so it does take some searching through to find something you fancy attending but from my experience that searching is well worth it. I am a member of the county’s ‘Events and Fun Activities’ page and ‘Things To Do In An Around…….’ page. There are sometimes great ideas on these pages, not always free, but certainly worth a look. Even if you become a member for a few months, whilst you are in the planning stages you might find something cheap and cheerful to visit or do. Just leave the group when you’re finished.
Geocaching
Geocaching is a world wide, real time treasure hunt, using GPS systems . There are millions of hidden caches all over the places waiting to be found. This is great fun and a free activity to have a go at with family and friends, although from experience, they will either get it or they won’t (it's a bit like Marmite). All you need to do is sign up to the website (https://www.geocaching.com/play), grab yourself a GPS system or use the geocaching app to navigate your way to the cache and then sign the log book. The challenge of finding a cache can be quite addictive, you could also hide your own cache or buy a trackable cache and send it on an adventure. Finding caches could be added into a walk to make it more interesting or become part of a bike riding adventure to keep the kids entertained.
Clubcard points and vouchers
Supermarkets often reward their customers with some kind of loyalty scheme, usually in the UK by way of points which can be traded. Tesco clubcard points used to be amazing, however nowadays they don’t give you as many points for the amount you spend. If you’re a regular shopper at Tesco though, you could still tally up a fair amount of points to trade in for vouchers for days out. Before the clubcard system changed, in one week we managed to get into Cheddar Gorge (family ticket), Wookey Hole (family ticket) and had a family ticket to the local waterpark. That was two and half days out taken care of just by shopping at Tesco. You could also collect Nectar points at Sainsburys which works the same way.
collect points = vouchers representing money = great days out.
Treasure Trails
This is a fun way to explore cities and towns near to where you might be stopping. The trails normally have a theme such as spy mission, detective or a treasure hunt. The trails can also be completed by walking, cycling or driving. This particular treasure trail provider has up to 1200 trails up and down the country, so one for (I would imagine) every major city. They cost £9.99 + P&P, however I think these are an ideal way to explore a local city whilst on holiday in the area. You could take a picnic and combine it with a visit to a local park or include a pub lunch into your budget along the route. We have purchased these a few times now. One particular year the company did quite well out of us at Christmas as just about everyone had one in their stocking!
Visit https://www.treasuretrails.co.uk/ to start your trial search. There are other websites
that do similar trails however I have only ever used this website.
Notebook
This one is simple, if somebody tells you about something write it down so you don’t forget. Recommendations are always great if they are from similar minded people on your budget friendly wavelength.
So there you have it my top ten tips on how to save money and keep everybody happy without blowing the budget.
You don’t need money to lead a rich life. Good friends and a loving family are worth their weight in gold.
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