Visit a friend—stay for free! Cut out hotel costs completely. Take a trip to visit your Great Aunt in Florida to check out Disney World, or your high school classmate in Oregon to head to the parks, and you’ll get to visit someone you love and explore a new city.

Go camping. Drive to a nearby campsite or park and set up camp. Your kids will enjoy nights out under the stars and scary stories by the bonfire. Bring along a cooler with food to BBQ on the grill and plenty of snacks instead of costly eating out—don’t forget the s’mores!

Hit the shore. Head to a nearby beach. Stay at a motel a few blocks from the seaside to save big on costs—the walk to the beach each day will give you a chance to sightsee and window shop along the way.

Take a bus trip. Go online and you’ll find lots of bus deals that take you to different cities, and you won’t pay a cent for gas. Take a ride into New York City; Houston, Texas; or Seattle, Washington.
Try http://www.greyhound.com/home/ for bus itineraries and to find discounted fares..