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My husband and I are so wanting to get away for our Anniversay,in August but we are wanting to have loads of fun,,,on a minimal price!Think its possible?
We live in Ohio,plan on going to the Smokey mountains..It looks like a 1 night trip,,but I am looking for ways to make it a 2 night trip without blowing a budget.We have a Yaris,so gas mileage wont be bad,most likely can do it on one tank.Next we plan on staying in a hotel,not a cabin,,just to save a little there also.We have stayed in a cabin before,,loved it but we dont plan on being in the room alot,,so I think the money on a cabin would be wasted,so a hotel is fine.Ive done google searches on things,but thought Id ask on here if theres other tricks and ways of finding great deals and saving money on the trip.Thanks for your help!!
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We do something similar when we want to get away. A day's trip from Dallas there's a lake in Oklahoma that's a nice overnight stay. We usually choose the cabin. Like you noted, it's more expensive, say $120/night versus $60 or so for a hotel. But, the cabin comes with a full kitchen and enough entertainment nearby that it seems to offset most of the cost difference.
Since you are already set for gas costs ( the Yaris has amazing MPG, right?), and your hotel is at a reasonable cost, there doesn't seem like much other than food and entertainment to offset. Maybe you could check for discounts and coupons for whatever you are planning in that area? Or pack for a picnic?
I suppose you could make sure that you've turned off all the electric appliances, adjusted the A/C, etc, before you leave, but now we're scraping the bottom of the savings barrel :) Sometimes it's worth it to splurge a little and reward yourself for frugal living.