Summer Vacation Tips: U.S. NPS Jr. Ranger Program (FREE)

U.S. National Parks Jr. Ranger Program

I first mentioned the National Parks Service Jr. Ranger Program in my "Things I've learned over Spring Break" post.  We went to the Grand Canyon, Mesa Verde, Canyonlands and Arches National Park and my boys became Jr. Rangers at each park.

Jr. Ranger is a FREE program offered at most National Parks.  Head to the visitor's center and ask the front desk about the program.  They will hand you a kids work book that your child must complete in order to become a Jr. Ranger.  

The booklets have activities like

• BINGO cards where you kids have to find and mark off in their book things like; animal life, plant life, petroglyphs ....items they will see in the park.
• Fill in the blanks about when a site was founded and other information they can learn while in the park
• dot to dots
• word searches
• "draw your own".....pages

Books are categorized by age so young and older children can all participate.  This program is a LIFESAVER while you are driving from one site to the next.  It gives the kids something to entertain themselves.

After your children finish their books you take the completed books back to the visitor's center and a Ranger will check your book.  They sign and stamp your book and have your kids take a "Jr. Ranger pledge".  This pledge is different at every location but it basically says "I promise to stay on trails, respect nature, tell everyone how much fun I had at _________ and I will visit back often" or something that that effect.

After the "ceremony" you child will get a plastic "Jr. Ranger badge" (free).  These badges are all unique to the park you visit.  My boys got 4 different badges because we went to 4 different parks (I found the Canyonlands one after I took the picture).  They are the type that you pin on your shirt.

Each location also has nice sew on patches that you can purchase like the ones above from the Grand Canyon.  They were $1.50 a piece.  If you can't see them in the gift store, ask the front desk.  At the Grand Canyon they keep them behind the desk, but the other parks we went to they were on display with the other patches.

You can click HERE to see a list of parks that have Jr. Ranger programs.  We are going to 4 more parks this year and all 4 have Jr. Ranger programs!  I'm working on a display so my boys can show off all their Jr. Ranger items. :)

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Plan ahead Vacation Deals

Before we left for Florida, I decided to check Groupon for deals in the area of Florida where we would be visiting.  To my suprise I found a Snorkel/Eco tour for 4 for $75 total out of Key Largo.  Normally $40 each.  So I purchased the deal via my cell phone on the way to the airport, then printed off the voucher at the hotel.  We were able to get a great experience for more then half off.

It pays to check deal sites for your vacation destination.  There were tons of deals on spas in Florida, but with it being a family trip, and no babysitters that didn't interest us.

Another idea is to check you local classified listings or Craig's List.  In UT we have KSL Classifieds online where I was just able to score a rental house for $195 a night.  All the other places I found through rental agency were asking double that price.  You do take the risk of going with someone personally vs. a company when you use the classifieds.  I have had great experience with renting from a personal ad when we rented 2 Jet Skis last year.

I broke one of my own rules......

We are packing for our trip to Florida and I broke one of my own rules.  My #1 rule for traveling is DON'T CHECK LUGGAGE.  We almost never check luggage.  My husband and I went backpacking through Europe for 2 weeks with only carryon luggage.   We have 5 people going which means a minimum of 5 carry on bags.  We should be fine right?  Why would I need to check a bag?  I'll tell you why I broke my own rule:

We like to snorkel....a lot.  So much so that we have our own equipment for 5 of us, and an inflatable raft with a window for my 5 year old.

I know what you are thinking,  "Can't you just rent that stuff there and save money on the checked luggage?"  The answer is yes....and no.  We could rent them there, for lets say $10 a set for the week. (I would guess it's more like $20, but lets say I find a good deal)  So right there we would pay $50 for equipment for the 4 of us and my youngest would not have his raft. (which was the best purchase EVER, BTW)  The cost of checking a bag is $25, so we end up saving 50% by bringing our own equipment and we get to bring the raft and the 3 life jackets too. Plus we don't have to worry about returning and/or losing the rentals.

So I am breaking my own rule, but rules are meant to be broken right? ha ha  Especially if you can save some money in the process! :)  I'm just praying I don't have to follow this post up with a "Ya, they lost our checked bag" post and eat my words for breaking my own rule.  Wish us luck! :)

Eating out while on vacation......

We were at a family reunion at a lake this weekend. (Bear Lake for all you locals) We had to find lunch while we were up there and the closest "burger joint" had hamburgers for $5 each. With my family of 5, that meant a minimum of $25 for burgers alone! Here's what we did instead....

We headed to the gas station across the street. There we found the following:

• Loaf of Wonder Bread $3.50
• Oscar Meyer Turkey lunch meat $5.50
• 4 String Cheese packages $2.00
• 1 bag of ice for the cooler $2.00
  
• Cheese & Peanut butter crackers $0.50
  

Total Cost: $13.50

We took the bread back to the camp site and had sandwiches with chips and soda that we brought with us. We stopped later that night at a shake shoppe and got "Famous Raspberry Shakes" with the money we saved from lunch.

It pays to think "outside the box" when you are eating on vacation.

Rental Car Deals

As you may know, we are planning a vacation to Florida soon.  YAY!! I've never been to Florida.  After looking up admission to all the theme parks, we have decided this will be a "beach, Keys and Everglade" vacation. (That's the Thrifty side of me shining through) ☺

Because we plan to do so much driving, we are in need of a rental car for the week.  I've stated before that I always start my searches with Kayak.  After looking at Kayak's rental car page and then searching some of the sites by themselves I thought I had the best rates I was going to be able to find.....then I thought outside the box.

Costco offers discounts on car rentals if you are a member.  I did not know this.  We actually found that this was the cheapest way to go for the location and dates we needed.

Another "hidden" place I found deals was at my auto insurance agency (Allstate).  Check the back of your statements for discounts.  I'm sure if you called and asked them they could tell you what deals they have with whom.

Here's another "heads up" for you.  Last year we went to Hawaii and our rental car was broken into.  Of course they charged an arm and a leg to repair it and after we got home and talked with the rental company about payment he informed us that the American Express credit card account that we used to pay for the rental will cover "Damages due by the renter in the event of theft" which I think was $250 worth of damages to the rental company even though we did not pay for the insurance at the rental agency! 

Travelzoo Local Deals

Travelzoo has a huge list of local deals on their website HERE.

If you are looking for discount activities in your area or traveling this summer, you might want to check the list for deals.  A few that stuck out to me are

• $15 Whale Watching Tours out of Newport Beach, CA
• 50% off Mary Poppins tickets in Portland
• $7 Ferry to Harbor Island, MASS
• $99 Hot Stone Massage, Facial and Pedicure in Manhattan, NY

5 Tips to Booking a Hotel

I am suppose to be at Yellowstone National Park this weekend.  We checked the weather before we left and the high was suppose to be 52 with thunderstorms/snow all weekend. Here's the forecast for this weekend at Yellowstone:

 BRRRR!!!! And not so much fun to hike in. :(

Since most of what we would be doing at Yellowstone was going to be outdoors, we decided to postpone our trip.  I'm really bummed about it.  I've never been to Yellowstone and was looking forward to it.  I'll get there someday....

This experience made me think of a Summer Vacation Tip that I could share with everyone. 

1. When planning a vacation that is dependent on the weather AND you can easily cancel the trip....be sure to check the hotels cancellation policy prior to booking the room.  We were driving to Yellowstone so it was easy to cancel our trip because there was no airfare involved.  The hotels I booked (Best Western and Motel 6) had cancellation policy's of 4:00 pm the day prior to arrival.  I booked these hotels because of the price and the cancellation policy.
2. Be aware that "Web Only Pricing" rates are NOT refundable or changeable.  I learned this the hard way when I tried to cancel a room over Spring Break.  Again the weather called for snow and we were suppose to be hiking Bryce Canyon in Utah. (oh the joys of living in Utah...stupid snow!) ;)
3. If you do need to change a non-refundable rate, ask to speak to the hotel manager.  I did this for our reservation and he said although he could not refund me the money, he could change the date to any other day before the end of the year.  So we booked the same hotel at the same rate for October.  It never hurts to ask.  And snow or no snow we will be there in October!
4. Be sure to check Trip Adviser to find ratings on hotels where you are going.  I always check Trip Adviser before booking any hotels.  Often you will find hotels with much better ratings for the same price.  They also tell you about things like what the free breakfast includes, how quite the rooms are and if the hotel charges for parking.  The reviews are done by travelers, not by anyone paid to review the hotel.  I've left a few reviews myself. :)
5. If you use a travel deal site to search for a hotel, be sure to check the hotels direct site for rates.  Sometimes the deal sites will charge you a fee for helping you find your hotel.  The direct website for the hotel will not charge you any fees to find available rooms.

Summer Vacation Tips

I've decided to start a new series "Thrifty 101 Summer Vacation Tips". (I even created a cute new button below or you can click HERE if you would like to grab one)

I've been working on some great tips, tricks and ideas to post on things like:

• Water Safety
• Road Trips
• National Parks
• Vacation planning
• Backyard fun
• Thrifty family fun
• Easy crafts
• I'm going to host a "Summer boredom" link party so we can all get some great ideas on how to entertain our kids for the next few months.

Next week is our last week of school! 
LET SUMMER BEGIN!

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Rent before you buy, Recreation Vehicles

 Myself towing my son on a kneeboard last summer.  We rented the Jet Ski and borrowed the board and rope from friends.

What are your plans this summer?  Are you day dreaming about owning some type of recreational vehicle?  Say a trailer, motorhome, 4 wheeler, Jet Ski's or a boat?

I've stated before that I grew up with a boat and motor home.  I always thought I would own one (or both) when I had my own family.  Taking into account the purchase price, depreciation, registration, maintenance, actual usage, insurance and gas it is just not feasible for us.  Then we would have to store any "toys" we had on our .25 acre lot or pay for it to be stored at a storage facility.  Sad news for me. But I found a light at the end of this tunnel.....rentals.


Let someone else purchase, license, register, store and maintain the recreation vehicles.  Then you pull up, give them some money, fill out a few papers and drive off to go have some fun!

Craig's List (or KSL here in UT) are great places to check.  Last year I rented 2 Jet Ski's from a local guy for $150 total for both for a 1 1/2 days with everything including life jackets.  Everything worked out great and it was a wonderful rental experience. Pop-up trailers rent for $35-$65 a day and a boat with all accessories for $150 a day.  I've also rented 4 wheelers in the past and had no problems.

*One tip for renting is to rent near your destination.  That means you have less distance to tow your vehicle there and back. (If you are renting a camper, this might not work as you would have to stock it before you left.)

I am very grateful we rented the Jet Ski's instead of just purchasing some.  They were really fun, and we are planning on doing it again this year. But I realized if we ever did purchase any type of watercraft, I would want a boat.  (for numerous reasons.  Email me if you want to know what they are)

This year I think a pop-up trailer would be fun, easy to store and fairly inexpensive for our family.  But having learned my lesson with the Jet Ski's I would like to take a "test run" with a rental before I think about purchasing one.