Frugal Vacations!

This weekend is our first anniversary- I can't believe it! Is it me or does time feel like it is literally flying?!?! This has been one of the best years of my life- paying off debt, living frugally, and all!!

For our first anniversary, I would have loved to have gone to a beach resort somewhere warm- sat on the beach, read a book, stuck my toes in the sand, and been waited on hand and foot. However, the budget told us that wasn't possible this year, so, we came up with an alternative. CAMPING!!

Again, the start up costs for camping can be a little pricey, but once you have the materials to go camping, it is a very cheap vacation. I have been collecting camping items for a while because I absolutely love being outdoors. Here is a breakdown of the approximate cost of the items needed to go camping:
Tent- $60-$100 for a 4-6 person tent depending on the quality
Sleeping bags- $25-$50 depending on the quality
Camp chairs- $15-$30 depending on the quality
Dishes (plates, bowls, cups, silverware, pots and pans, tea pot, dish rack)- $60-$80
Lamps/Flashlights- $10-$25
Air Mattress (queen)- $30-$50
Camping stove- $75-$100

Plus, all the other necessities needed and/or wanted. These price breakdowns are just an estimate. But, I don't like to spend lots of money, so here are ways to save money on these items:
-Shop yardsales for dishes, flashlights, even tents!
-Shop Goodwill or Salvation Army for all of the above items!
-When changing out old dishes for new or old pots and pans for new, save the old ones for camping!
-Shop stores going out of business (bought our air mattress and camping sheets for 25% off when Kmart went out of business in our area!)

Once you have your camping items, buy some plastic bins and store all of your camping items in the bins. Makes it easy to transport to the campsite, easy to maintain at the campsite, and efficient to store when you are home!

So, yes, the initial cost is going to be anywhere from $400 to $500 dollars. But once you have these items, you will always have these items. You can easily pack up for a long weekend and all you would need to pay for is food and the campsite cost (which is usually $20-$30 a night). Another bonus? You can camp at places you have always wanted to visit without paying the huge lodging fees. List the places you have always wanted to go, find a campsite near by, and save!!

 

 

We had most of the items before our camping trip, but with the few items we did have to buy, campground fees, and food, our anniversary weekend only cost $120! That's what I call vacationing like a frugal millionaire!