My family vacation for $32 per person per day!
by
Scott Bilker |
|
That's
right, $32 per person per day is what it ended up costing for our
family's April 2002 vacation. This article will cover the details of
all costs related to this vacation, along with photos! I think
that's a great price, but please let me know if you think it's a
thrifty, quality vacation. You will be able to do that by responding
to the survey at the conclusion of this article.
Our vacation in Pennsylvania lasted four days and
three nights. While there we visited Herr's
potato chip factory, Longwood
Gardens, and Winterthur
(in Delaware).
The main reason the price of the
vacation was low is because we stayed in a cabin. I think cabins are
great. First of all, they're generally less
expensive than hotels. And second they're much more flexible
for the family. Farm cabins are even better since young children
love seeing, petting, and feeding animals.
A cabin also helps save money
because they typically come with a full kitchen! This means that you don't have
to eat out or call for room service for every meal.
If you're bringing young children on
the vacation they'll enjoy--and you'll enjoy--allowing them burn out some
energy by running free in the yard. Having had my kids stay
with me in a hotel, I can tell you that a hotel room is simply a
small room with two trampolines (beds).
The beauty of the cabin is that it's
much more spacious, less expensive, and provides more activities for
kids. A major part of the family vacation is just staying at the
cabin, relaxing--you know, the reason why you wanted to go on
vacation in the first place. :)
Researching
for cabins, or any other lodging, is best done online. Searching for
cabins online is becoming more and more popular, in fact, most
of the places I've contacted say that people are finding them
online. I always look for a site that gives as much information as
possible about a potential cabin since a cabin is definitely my first choice.
CABIN
Cost: $48 per night
Total Lodging: $144.00 (4 days, 3 nights)
Food Shopping Total: $82.27
Dining Out: $28.71
Gasoline: $28.89
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Photo #2: Living area with bunk beds. There is
another bedroom with two double beds |
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Photo #3: Wood stove, kitchen, and
dining area. I certainly needed that wood stove to keep the
place warm! |
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Photo #4: Playground right outside the
cabin. Perfect for the kids. There is also a pond on the
other side. |
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Photo #5: My daughter Brooke, son
Grant, and myself. |
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Photo #6: Cabin comes with dog! My kids
had a great time playing with, and feeding, Skippy.
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HERR'S FOOD TOUR
Cost $22.47 in gift shop for souvenirs.  The
tour was free and included a video of their history, free potato
chip samples, and a bag of pretzels. Great experience! Only drawback
was that you are not allowed to take photos in the production area.
There are many
companies that provide free tours. The book Watch
it Made in the U.S.A. by Avalon Travel Publishing covers
many companies that provide similar tours. I highly recommend a
visit to companies that offer this PR service. The kids absolutely
loved visiting Herr's and learning (and seeing) how their favorite
snacks are made.
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Photo #7: My wife, Larissa, filling out
the survey at the end of the Herr's tour. Surveys are also
entered in a contest. The winner receives a one-year supply
of Herr's potato chips!
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LONGWOOD GARDENS
Admission: $30.00
Gift Shop: $40.08
Lunch at the Terrace Restaurant: $90.79 Longwood
Gardens was created by industrialist Pierre S. du Pont (and is
sometimes referred to as the DuPont Gardens). It offers 1,050 acres of gardens, woodlands, and meadows; 20 outdoor
gardens; 20 indoor gardens within 4 acres of heated
greenhouses; 11,000 different types of plants; spectacular
fountains; extensive educational programs including horticultural
career training and internships; and 800 horticultural and
performing arts events each year, from flower shows, gardening
demonstrations, courses, and children’s programs to concerts,
organ and carillon recitals, musical theatre, and fireworks
displays. Longwood is open every day of the year and attracts more
than 900,000 visitors annually.
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Photo #8: Grant (on left) and my first
son, Brandon, looking at the gardens from inside the
Conservatory. |
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Photo #9: Brooke and Grant posing by
one of thousands of flower displays. |
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Photo #10: The Terrace Restaurant. This
place was excellent but a little pricey. They did have an
alternative cafeteria-style dining area however, with
the kids, we needed the break, so it was worth the extra
money. I
had the pan seared rainbow river trout--um, um, good. |
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Photo #11: Grant and I by the Watch
Tower. Unfortunately, we were not able to go inside.
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WINTERTHUR
Admission: $32.00
Mansion Tour: $25.00
Gift Shop: $50.95
Food: $27.03 We
planned to visit Winterthur
with our close friends, Jen and Joe Macedo. They met us at the cabin,
with their two daughters, Lauren and Sarah, to join us for our last
night. It only cost $12 dollars extra for the additional guests
in the cabin!
Winterthur features a museum with a
magnificent collection of American antiques celebrating the best in
style and craftsmanship. You can stroll through the glorious 60-acre
garden and surrounding landscape of hills, waterways, and rolling
meadows. It also includes a magical, fairy-tale garden for children,
The Enchanted Woods.
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Photo #12: Dinner with Jen, Lauren,
Larissa, Brandon, Grant, Sarah, Brooke, and Joe at Margheritas
($31 for my family of five). |
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Photo #13: Joe and I back at the cabin. |
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Photo #14: Last morning at the cabin. It
snowed the night before. I was very surprised to see snow on
April 5th! |
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Photo #15: Brooke and Grant enjoy the
displays at the museum. |
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Photo #17: Larissa and I near the
Enchanted Woods. |
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Photo #18: Sarah, Grant, and Brooke
standing on Green Man's Lair.
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SUMMARY OF ALL SPENDING
|
Name |
Type |
Amount |
|
Longwood Gardens |
Entertainment |
30.00 |
|
Winterthur Museum |
Entertainment |
32.00 |
|
Winterthur Museum |
Entertainment |
25.00 |
|
|
TOTAL |
87.00 |
|
|
|
|
|
Brunswick Diner |
Dining |
28.71 |
|
Dutchmans Market |
Groceries |
54.40 |
|
Dutchmans Market |
Groceries |
27.87 |
|
Winterthur Museum |
Dining |
27.03 |
|
Margheritas |
Dining |
31.00 |
|
Terrace Restaurant |
Dining |
90.79 |
|
|
TOTAL |
259.80 |
|
|
|
|
|
WaWa |
Gas |
28.89 |
|
|
TOTAL |
28.89 |
|
|
|
|
|
Elver Valley Farm B
+ B |
Cabin |
144.00 |
|
|
TOTAL |
144.00 |
|
|
|
|
|
Herr's Gift Shop |
Souvenirs |
22.47 |
|
Longwood Gardens |
Souvenirs |
40.08 |
|
Winterthur Museum |
Souvenirs |
50.95 |
|
|
TOTAL |
113.50 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
TOTAL |
633.19 |
That's $633.19 for
5 people, for 4 days. This works out to be $31.66 per person, per
day ($633.19 divided by 4 days, divided by 5 people).
Please let me know what you think
about the cost of this vacation, and this article, by clicking here
and taking the survey--thank you!
VACATION RESEARCH LINKS
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