View Full Version : Where would you go...international vacation on a budget?
Hello,
DH & DS are going on a 2-week camping excursion in June. The girls and I would love to go somewhere as well. DDs are both asking to go abroad. We went to London, Scotland and Ireland last summer and they LOVED it. I am uncertain if it is financially feasible to plan such a large 7-10 day vacation, though. We are trying to set a $5000 budget for 3 people...that would include flights, lodging, additional reservable transportation, and entertainment. Food, Uber's, etc aren't a concern within this budget. Any suggestions/thoughts?? Any favorite websites for deals on flights this far out? Thank you so much for any input!!
georgiegirl
11-19-2018, 02:59 PM
Iceland? We are going to Iceland this summer. Tickets are really cheap. But food, car, and gas are supposed go be very expensive. We are staying at airbandb places, and those prices seem decent.
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Iceland? We are going to Iceland this summer. Tickets are really cheap. But food, car, and gas are supposed go be very expensive. We are staying at airbandb places, and those prices seem decent.
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YAY! That is actually on my short list. Researching it as we "speak". I have friends that vacationed there last summer and they LOVED it! Also on my "to research" list - Buenos Aires; Croatia (GGma is from Makarska); Jamaica; Montreal; Curacao (-ish...friends went there and didn't love); St Maarten/Martin; Paris.
marinkitty
11-19-2018, 03:48 PM
Not sure if it is your speed, but I did Iceland on a budget with my two boys summer of 2016 partially in a camper van and it was so, so much fun, gave us the ultimate freedom and kept costs in check (Iceland is v. expensive once you are on the ground there).
Other places that would help keep costs reasonable - Greece or Portugal/Spain if you avoid long stays in the cities. Both make a great road trip or, in the case of Greece - island hopping via ferry.
ahisma
11-19-2018, 03:51 PM
I'd subscribe to the premium version of Scott's Cheap Flights, watch for airfare deals, and go from there.
A friend just came back from Cuba. The trip sounded amazing, and was relatively inexpensive.
jenmcadams
11-19-2018, 06:08 PM
We did Croatia, Slovenia, Bosnia for 15 days for about $6-7K a few years ago. We flew into Dubrovnik and stayed there a few days before renting a car and making our way up the coast and into Slovenia. Flew out of northern Croatia (Zagreb). We got super reasonable tix and rental car and almost all of our lodging was between $80-110 per night (with the exception of a major splurge on lodging in Slovenia). Loved the trip!!
Not sure if it is your speed, but I did Iceland on a budget with my two boys summer of 2016 partially in a camper van and it was so, so much fun, gave us the ultimate freedom and kept costs in check (Iceland is v. expensive once you are on the ground there).
Other places that would help keep costs reasonable - Greece or Portugal/Spain if you avoid long stays in the cities. Both make a great road trip or, in the case of Greece - island hopping via ferry.GREAT IDEAS!!
I think I remember reading about your camper van adventure! Care to share any more details? Feel free to message me!
I'd subscribe to the premium version of Scott's Cheap Flights, watch for airfare deals, and go from there.
AWESOME!! Will do! TY!
smiles33
11-19-2018, 09:56 PM
Where are you flying from? East Coast? Midwest? South? I know from the West Coast, Europe is pricey for us in the busy season (min $900/person flights versus cheaper flights when school is in session).
We went to Montreal last year and loved it. It's a reasonably priced flight, they speak French and English (so we didn't feel like we were in the US but we could still get by without speaking French), and we had so many fun activities. Our priority was eating a lot of French food (my girls now love truffle butter, but think foie gras is a bit too weird), but we also had fun taking a baking lesson (maple cream cookies!), trying an escape room, going to the Voiles en Voiles aerial ropes course on two separate days, taking a Star Wars type light saber class, and wandering the charming Plateau neighborhood where we had an AirBnB.
hillview
11-19-2018, 10:30 PM
Belize is very inexpensive. Most $$ things are the activities (zip lining).
ahisma
11-19-2018, 10:56 PM
We went to Montreal last year and loved it. It's a reasonably priced flight, they speak French and English (so we didn't feel like we were in the US but we could still get by without speaking French), and we had so many fun activities. Our priority was eating a lot of French food (my girls now love truffle butter, but think foie gras is a bit too weird), but we also had fun taking a baking lesson (maple cream cookies!), trying an escape room, going to the Voiles en Voiles aerial ropes course on two separate days, taking a Star Wars type light saber class, and wandering the charming Plateau neighborhood where we had an AirBnB.
We loved Montreal. We were there for two days on a longer trip last summer and wished we had planned for longer. It was fabulous.
american_mama
11-21-2018, 01:18 AM
We went to Merida, Mexico last August and it was inexpensive. It's in the Yucatan peninsula about 3 hours west of Cancun. You can fly right into Merida. Flights in the summer (cheaper because it is hot then) were $600 or less from DC. Air BnB's were comparable to the US, but hotels were cheaper and would have been better for us (I have several hotel recommendations from tripadvisor that came too late). It has cenotes for swimming (underground caverns with fresh water), fascinating Mayan history, many Mayan ruins including 1 hour to the two most famous (Chichen Itza and Uxmal), beautiful colonial architecture, good food, and very organized, free cultural festivals/performances every night in the town center. Swimming in the Gulf of Mexcio is 45 minutes away by bus, but it was a bit of a letdown... very warm water, no waves, pretty but cloudy blue water.
magnoliaparadise
11-21-2018, 01:50 AM
We loved Montreal. We were there for two days on a longer trip last summer and wished we had planned for longer. It was fabulous.
I am planning a trip to Montreal this summer with my kids. My idea is to be more US and Canada bound until my DD2 is a little older and can really appreciate more expensive trips. Canada is not as exciting as some of the vacations that my friends/my kids' friends are going to in internationally, but it's pretty close in the sense that it *feels* pretty exotic for them. We are looking forward to it. I haven't been since I was a kid, but remember loving it.
magnoliaparadise
11-21-2018, 01:52 AM
I'd subscribe to the premium version of Scott's Cheap Flights, watch for airfare deals, and go from there.
Whoa, thank you so much for this!! I just googled it and it looks amazing!! I'm going to sign up!
StantonHyde
11-21-2018, 01:45 PM
I vote for Montreal and Quebec. Maybe Vancouver even? I love Canada.
Jeanne
11-21-2018, 02:06 PM
Take St. Martin/Maarten off your list. The island has a looooong way to go to recover. I follow it closely as we've been 7 times. It's our favorite island and the French side was destroyed. Some stuff has come back but much of it has not. We expect we won't get back down there for another 4 years at least. Also, remember that it's truly only the Caribbean and you will be paying Euro on the French side. It's a lot to spend to sit on a beach. It is not an island we take our kids to.
moosemama
11-21-2018, 02:12 PM
I vote for Montreal and Quebec. Maybe Vancouver even? I love Canada.
Yes, if you are going to Montreal, definitely visit Quebec City as well. Depending on how much time you have and where you are coming from, perhaps Ottawa as well.
Thank you so much, y’all!!! We lived 30mi from the Canadian border. My girls really miss Canada...we visited Ottawa every few months. We’ve also been to QC, which we LOVED! Never Montreal and I have very good friends from there. I think this idea might excite DDs!! Great ideas!!
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Take St. Martin/Maarten off your list. The island has a looooong way to go to recover. I follow it closely as we've been 7 times. It's our favorite island and the French side was destroyed. Some stuff has come back but much of it has not. We expect we won't get back down there for another 4 years at least. Also, remember that it's truly only the Caribbean and you will be paying Euro on the French side. It's a lot to spend to sit on a beach. It is not an island we take our kids to.
Thank you! Very good reminder. [emoji22]
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JustMe
11-22-2018, 12:52 PM
I appreciate this thread as I am in a similar boat. I am looking for some reasonable international travel from the west coast. I may go as early as Feb, as there seem to be good deals during that time, and I want to go somewhere warm in the winter.
ETA: Nevermind, just remembered Hillview has a post on Belize in the Places to Go subsection.
ahisma
11-22-2018, 01:40 PM
Whoa, thank you so much for this!! I just googled it and it looks amazing!! I'm going to sign up!
I've subscribed for a year and love it. So far this year I've bought tickets to London for $500 r/t (ORD to LHR) during peak spring break season and tickets to Kauai for $236 r/t (out of Minneapolis) during August. I've seen a bunch of other great deals - including $300s to Europe many times - but there are only so many tickets that we can buy in a year. $39 to save thousands is a great option in my book though.
I've subscribed for a year and love it. So far this year I've bought tickets to London for $500 r/t (ORD to LHR) during peak spring break season and tickets to Kauai for $236 r/t (out of Minneapolis) during August. I've seen a bunch of other great deals - including $300s to Europe many times - but there are only so many tickets that we can buy in a year. $39 to save thousands is a great option in my book though.
Wow!!!! Fantastic deals!!! [emoji1695][emoji120][emoji2533] we’ll score some too!
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