| The real secret to cheap family vacations is to be | | | | freighters. We burned them in the campfire. We |
| opportunistic. When a friend offers you their cabin | | | | found balloons with messages attached, sea shells, |
| on the lake, say yes. Can you have as much fun | | | | fossil rocks, odd-shaped driftwood, pieces of |
| at the cheaper, closer amusement park? Then | | | | styrofoam big enough to use as rafts, and - you |
| that's where you need to be. Do the kids like the | | | | get the point. |
| idea of cooking dinner over a campfire? Drive | | | | Camping Vacations |
| right on by that reastaurant. Find out what | | | | If your family is willing to live in tents for a few |
| everyone really enjoys. It's sad to spend MORE | | | | days, or if you already own an RV, camping is |
| on a trip for LESS enjoyment. | | | | the cheapest of cheap family vacations. We |
| Examples Of Cheap Family Vacations | | | | recently stayed at Williams Landing in Florida for |
| In Michigan, and many other places, you can find | | | | eight days. We stalked alligators, watched |
| reasonable motels on the beach. Cheaper, and | | | | armadillos walk through camp, saw a dozen other |
| usually more scenic, are the numerous | | | | forms of wildlife, and sat around the fire trading |
| campgrounds on the beaches of Lakes Michigan, | | | | stories with new friends from England and Texas |
| Superior, and Huron. You can find these in | | | | every night. The cost, including the hot showers: |
| Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and in Ontario, | | | | zero. Woodall's catalog, available at any big RV |
| Canada. Below are a couple beach-based vacation | | | | dealer has listings of free campgrounds. |
| ideas. | | | | Other Cheap Family Vacations |
| Treasure Hunting Vacations | | | | How about a Montana testicle festival? Festival |
| Two metal detectors will cost less than a few | | | | vacations can keep the whole family happy. You'll |
| nights with the family in a hotel. Why not camp | | | | usually find carnival rides, music, events, contests, |
| near a ghost town or beach, and spend your | | | | and more. By the way, Montana's testicle festivals |
| days hiking, exploring, and hunting buried treasure? | | | | are billed as family events, but good luck trying to |
| We always find interesting things when we take | | | | get the kids to eat the "Rocky Mountain Oysters." |
| our metal detector to the beach. The kids will | | | | Boondocking is all about parking your recreational |
| love the adventure, and when they get bored | | | | vehicle where you don't have to pay. If you aren't |
| with digging up quarters, they have swimming | | | | sure that kids will enjoy being in the middle of |
| nearby. | | | | nowhere, find a ghost town or other treasure |
| Beachcombing Vacations | | | | hunting locale. In Arizona, an old Mayan Indian |
| This is cheap, and the whole family can enjoy it. | | | | showed us where to look for arrowheads, |
| You can find all sorts of things washed up on the | | | | semi-precious stones, and ancient pottery. The |
| beaches of the Great Lakes and the Oceans. In | | | | desert is a great place to escape to in the winter, |
| Michigan, we used to find bouys, parts of houses, | | | | and treasure hunting is cheap vacation as well. |
| and light bulbs. The light bulbs actually worked, a | | | | There are many more cheap family vacations, |
| mystery solved years later when a sailor told me | | | | and many ways to keep any vacation cheaper. |
| they throw them overboard for target practice. | | | | Stock the cooler with 25 cent pop instead of |
| We were finding the ones that escaped the | | | | paying pop-machine prices. Keep the kids full on |
| bullets. | | | | healthy snacks to avoid restaurants. Be an |
| We also found chunks of coal that had fallen off | | | | opportunistic vacationer. |