Planning for Travel in a Bad Economy

Tushar Mathur — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 08:54:59 +0000

Vacations and holidays are possible whether or not you are living on a small budget due to the bad economy. There are strategies to save cash to put in your holiday fund and then find a destination. The most effective way to save for a holiday is to chop costs like skipping the cafe in the mornings or not dining out before you make a journey. You can have a garage sale to earn income for your holiday. A giant sale could give you enough money to pay for the whole trip. Look online at the travel internet sites for bargains. If you are pleased to select your destination based mostly on price, it is possible to get deep deductions by waiting till last minute. One of the least expensive holidays could be a cruise because everything is paid for in one price after you get to the ship. This can help to save you big money in food and other immaterial costs.

If you’ve got an explicit destination to mind, get a visitor’s guide beforehand which will list many accommodations and traveler attractions and supply vouchers. You can frequently get 2-4-1 offers that are useful to families. You can find travel info at hostels if you’re prepared to wait till you get to your destination to plan your activities. There could be leaflets or flyers in the lobby with reductions that are not always publicized.

Check with the concierge, and weeks beforehand. Be certain to check in the local papers’ sites to see what kinds of free holidays or similar events are happening. Another way of finding free or inexpensive holiday ideas is by stopping at a visitor’s center to get vacation brochures for visitors. They can regularly tell you about obscure places that cost little or are free.

Most of them don’t pay for advertising; they are not as well known. Should you be looking for more cost-effective accommodations, a visitor’s guide will also list cottages, cabins, and camp sites where you can stay for a small slice of the cost of a hotel.

You may plan your Bargain Holiday around visiting family or mates who live in another town or state. They are going to know all the inexpensive places to eat and visit and can provide you with an individual tour.

One of the least expensive methods to holiday is camping in your own state which can cost little if you bring your own food and supplies. It can be relaxing without having to spend very much cash. You’ll be able to find state parks in the visitor’s guide that permit camping and hiking.

It’s actually possible to take a holiday while avoiding spending much money.

Review: Westin Hilton Head Resort

Tushar Mathur — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 00:45:27 +0000

This 4th of July weekend, we (along with my wife and daughter) went to Hilton Head Island, SC for a weekend getaway. Our lives were getting too hectic and breaking the routine was kinda important. So we decided to visit the island which was a 5 hour drive from Cumming, GA (suburb of Atlanta). Since we were not planning to do touristy stuff, the best way to enjoy was to stay in a resort. So that’s what we did. We decided on the Westin Hilton Head Resort. The price of the room per day was $350 including a $50 “resort fees”. Yeah it was pricey, but we wanted to pamper ourselves.

The drive was very comfortable and as we approached Hilton Head the scenery was just gorgeous. You could see all the major stores and restaurants that you would expect to see on a tourist town, but they were all tucked in behind beautiful palm trees and greenery.

We quickly checked in Westin since indoor parking was located conveniently and there were elevators to take us to the lobby. The room was a good size and the KING bed was very comfortable. Soon it was time for dinner and we decided to order Room Service. Of course the prices were a little steep , but hey, we were not here on a budget vacation. So I ordered a meat pizza and fish sticks for my daughter. When the food arrived, it was hot and pretty good.

Then we decided go down and explore the resort a little. There were 2 outdoor pools that full of vacationers and there were hotel staff giving out marshmallows to toast them in the fire, to make S’mores. That was awesome. We then moved on to go to the beach. It was just a few steps from the pool. It was quite windy, but it was very beautiful.

Once back in our room, we decided on going to bed early (It never happens when we are home). Now for the annoying part. In our room, whenever the air conditioning turned off it made a clunking sound loud enough to scare my daughter. We didn’t report it though (which we should have done right then), since we were tired and just wanted to sleep and once asleep the noise didn’t really bother us.

The next morning we ordered some breakfast from Room Service. Eggs, bacon and some various breads including muffins, danish, toast etc. It was very good!

Later in the day we had spa appointments at the ‘Westin Heavenly Spa’ that I review in a later post.

By the time we were done with our spa treatments (me and my wife), it was lunch time. Now we really didn’t want to leave the resort to go for lunch, but we were craving for Thai food. So I asked the Concierge at the hotel. She said that there was just one Thai restaurant and they did not deliver. So I asked her if there were any Chinese restaurants that delivered. She promptly gave me the menu for Yummy House. So I ordered some Chinese food for us. It came in 20 minutes (I thought that was fast). But the food itself was not very good. It was pretty tasteless and just full of large cut veggies, that I don’t really care for. I would NOT recommend this restaurant for Chinese.

We managed to fill our stomachs with some of the food and then off to the beach we went! The hotel was renting 2 beach chairs with an umbrella for $30 for the day. And most of them were already reserved. By the time we reached the beach, half the day was over and it was not that sunny. So we just rented the 2 chairs for 11 bucks. The beach was quite clean. It was as if we were at a private resort beach. Oh wait..we were!

Then after that, the best way I could think of to remove the sand from us was to take a dip in the pool. So that’s what we did. There is a beach side restaurant called “Turtle Cafe” that serves cocktails, burgers sandwiches etc. all day. So we both took a cocktail and lay by the swimming pool. The cocktails were very good.

Then dinner time rolled in and we headed back to our room to dress for dinner. We decided to have dinner at the Westin restaurant “Carolina Cafe”. They serve a very good seafood buffet and the desserts were sensational. Although a bit pricey ($32 per person), it was totally worth it. I highly recommend it.

We were going back home the next day, so we went back to the room, watched some TV and then slept off.

Next day, we ordered breakfast checked out of our Westin Resort and headed back home.

All in all, we were able to spend some quality family time together which is what we came for. We also relaxed at the spa and tried our best not to talk about work and our worries. We came to Hilton Head to unwind and that’s exactly what we did and the Westin hotel was a good choice for us.

Here are few photos of the Westin Hotel.

Travel - Eat - Sleep » Concierge

Planning for Travel in a Bad Economy

Review: Westin Hilton Head Resort