How to: Save Money on Travel With Orbitz Promotion Codes and Others

The average American family takes 4.5 trips annually, but with the most recent Travel Price Index showing a 3.6-percent rise year-over-year, many families find themselves making sacrifices in terms of type and length of vacations. To help lessen the severity of those sacrifices, I put together the following how-to article on setting a budget and saving money through Orbitz promotion codes and other offers. Start by setting an annual budget for your vacations. Include the cost of airfare and/or gas, accommodations, meals and activities. In terms of airfare and gas prices, take the highest from the previous year or search online for the average price for the previous year. Using the higher price works better than using the lowest, as you’d rather have extra money to spend than not enough to leave home. Divide the annual cost of travel by 12 and set aside that amount each month. Put the money in a separate savings account to avoid unnecessarily dipping into it during the year. If you have children, consider creating a chart that tracks how much you have saved toward your vacations. That way, when they ask for an overly pricey present, you can give them the choice: take the cost from the travel account and possibly spend one less day away, or do without the item they want. This helps teach children the value of money and saving up for special occasions and items. Use coupon codes to save money. I recently booked my family’s summer vacation to California using two Orbitz promotion codes I found on the Go Promo Codes website: Orbitz: $100 off a Disney Hotel — To use this code, we had to be staying four nights or more at a Disney hotel. We were and being able to shave $100 off the total cost was very much appreciated. Orbitz: 5% off Fox Car Rentals — A rental car proves a must for a family vacation in California, and we saved used the savings this promotion code offered to afford a larger care that would more comfortably fit us all. I used the Go Promo Codes website to find savings opportunities for other trips we have planned this year, as well. These Orbitz promotion codes also helped with travel costs: Orbitz: $100 off Mexico, Hawaii or Caribbean — My husband and I were able to stay an extra night on our upcoming romantic getaway to Hawaii thanks to this deal. Orbitz: 10% off Hotels — Since we spend a night in Los Angeles before and after we travel to Hawaii, this deal allowed us to find savings on that part of the trip, as well, which helps ease the sting of paying for a room we won’t be in for long. $20 off Weekend Car Rentals — We have a trip to Iowa for a wedding planned for the fall, and this Go Promo Codes offer allowed us to not share a car with other family members, which will prove priceless in terms of sanity savings that weekend. In addition to Orbitz promotion codes, the website had hundreds of other codes available through other travel websites, airlines, car rental companies and hotels. Marriott, BedAndBreakfast.com, Thrifty Car Rental, Hotels.com, Lonely Planet, Best Western and Budget were among the websites and business offering promotion codes through the website. It also has promotion codes for a number of other non-travel categories, including Auto, Baby & Kids, Beauty, Books, Cell Phones, Computers, Education, Electronics, Entertainment, Flowers & Gifts, Food, Health, Home & Garden, Jewelry & Watches, Music, Office & Business, Pets, Photo & Art, Software and Sports. Don’t overspend on vacation. I typically pad my travel budget by ten percent to allow for any unanticipated costs or opportunities to splurge. That being said, I do not spend the money if I don’t have to and I avoid overspending in general while away. Having to pay off travel expenses will keep you from hitting your savings goals for the following year. My family and I have followed the above guidelines for the past five years. During that time, we have traveled several times throughout each year and to a variety of destinations, not just to your typical theme park cities. Doing so also has taught my children not only the value of money, but also the value of time off with loved ones. When they grow up and have children of their own, I hope they will use what we have taught them to teach their children how to be financially responsible while exploring the world.