I think that not only are the answers to this question skewed by this being savingadvice.com, but only a narrow slice of forum participants have answered here. I know oodles of people who do not spend $7 K on vacations, not $2 K, not even a measly $500. I know many people who work on their homes through their "vacation,' who at most do something like go fishing a couple days in a row, who maybe once every two or three years take the kids to a local amusement park and come home to sleep in their own beds at night. Many, people's only travel is to go stay with the children's grandparents, driving all day and night to get there without the expense of a motel night for the family. A popular 1-day vacation for families around here is to go to the state park where there is a fantastic river feature to play on, then drive back home the two hours that it took to get there. A picnic lunch can be taken, and dinner may be had at Burger King on the way home. Those who can afford the weekend may camp in the state park to play again in the river the next day and to visit the 2nd very nearby state park.
Scanner, your Jeb Bush Disney points plan was funny. Made me laugh. My family has no desire ever to visit a Disney park. I'd like to sell Disneysteve my bailout points--- at a very good price, of course.
Really, our family vacations were mostly very cheap, though luxuriously long and relaxing. But in my mind, were were able to afford them at all because we lived otherwise well below our means in nearly every way we knew to do so. Really, I wouldn't say that we jeopardized our child's college possibilities. In fact, somehow I let it slip my mind when I was writing earlier that our child always had the possibility to attend the school where his father teaches. As a work benefit to his father, family can attend tuition free. You were looking into teaching, too, right Scanner?
Anyway, I think a lot of people do what they can to provide for their children in the present while looking forward to helping them through school. And lots of people don't spend much for vacations.
Snowgirl, as soon as I saw you could get a 4-year degree for $13,000, I looked to see where you were from. I think you need to triple that number in US dollars to get the cost of the cheapest public college degree in the US. Probably even quadruple it for a cheap school. For a moderately priced school?--maybe someone else knows the numbers.
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