How to plan family adventure and save money

[Butch1979]

We are realizing that "less is more". Some of our best adventures happen when we don't try to cram to many activities into a weekend.

For us, the biggest money saver is taking food with us and not eating out that often. It's hard to do, but worth the extra effort in my opinion.

 

[SnoViking]

My 2 boys have really gotten in the Jr Ranger badge programs at the national parks. 21 and counting over the past 2 years. We can check them off the map and plan more trips at the same time. .

We also do the Junior ranger program and highly recommend it. When in doubt, hit up a national park/monument/historic site. Most times they're free (or cheap enough for a family). We've have really (really) good experiences with extremely knowledgeable park staff who are eager to share and talk once they realized people are actually interested. We've gotten "private" tours of forts, access to "closed" fire towers, and great tips on where to see wildlife just from talking to the park staff and genuinely being interested.

Don't worry about gear. Like everyone said above; don't eat out, don't waste money on gear you "think" you need, and keep the wife (and husband) happy. And don't forget to pack a 6-pack or bottle of wine for yourself.

 

[richmondbob]

Not much has changed now that I'm a single-father. We still pack all our meals, keep supplies/equipment/sports gear ready to go and talk about what we'll experience - not what we'll buy (ie souvenirs, etc).

IMHO I'd encourage your family to do as ours: treat every trip, of any duration, as an 'adventure'.

It's made each of our outings memorable.

That and snacks.

Lots of snacks.