Your Next Road Trip is Gonna Cost a lot Less

 

Although plane travel is huge these days, it’s also become quite expensive to hop on a flight and head for your destination. Because of this, I enjoy planning a road trip instead. Finding the cheapest gas prices and an affordable place to stay are just a couple of the ways you can make traveling much less expensive. 

 

Your children might not be fans of traveling on a budget, but if you do a few things right, the experience can be exactly the same and it won’t break your piggy bank in the progress. For you I’ve gathered eight of my favorite ways to save money while traveling.

 

8 ways to make your road trip less expensive without ruining the travel experience. 

 

Packing a lunch and other food items is probably the best way you can save while travelling.

 

Consider that it now cost twenty dollars or more for a small family to eat just once at a fast food restaurant and you easily come to the same conclusion I have.

 

While that McDonald’s off the highway will cost you twenty each time, packing some groceries from the local supermarket can cut out $50-100 of the food bill and you won’t be forced to eat the slop being served at fast food chains around the world.

 

Some items to pick up: Bread, sandwich meat, chips, water bottles, a cooler with ice, and maybe even a dessert. Get creative, just not too costly.

 

Start using a gas loyalty reward program to save while filling the tank.

 

In recent years there has been a rise in the number of fuel stations offering what they call rewards or loyalty programs. The participating stations offer various ways to get gas at a cheaper price, but there are some that offer customers a much better value for our dollar.

 

In Northern NY, my favorite is the APlus Rewards Card.

 

Sunoco’s convenience store chain “Aplus” offers in my opinion the easiest way to get cheaper gas prices. All you do is swipe the rewards card at the register when buying snacks, soda, food and more. If the item youre buying appears on the monthly flier your card is credited with “cents off per gallon” on up to 20 gallons of gas. Several cheap snack items are worth 10 cents each month and a bunch offer 5-7 cents.

 

 

The downside: APlus is not everywhere in the world.

The upside: Many gas stations are following suit with similar programs aiming to earn higher margins on snacks while ensuring that you fill up at their station.