RachinCali

We're planning ahead and saving! But we also got lukcy and are using FF miles for our flights and are cashing in American Express Rewards points for our car rental. So all we have to pay for is hotel, food and activities. We're fortunate that my husband's company hands out very generous bonuses in June, which will be how we fund the rest of our trip.

vacationdreamer

This made me think of when I visited Thomas Jefferson's Monticello. When the tour guide (who clearly was not a fan of recent controversy around him)mentioned that Jefferson died broke and that Monticello was sold off, someone asked whether the cost of building Monticello was what made him go broke.

The tour guide defiantly responded, NO, NO, NO - he did not spend too much money, it was not because of how much money he spent.

Instead, it was simply that he did not earn enough money. We were like hmmm, huh, ok, whatever. So I guess it is just a manner of perspective (or maybe the lesson is you should just spend whatever you need and then try to put off paying your creditors until you die...).

puddy

It's still early for airfare. Rates will probably come down a bit, especially for November since it's kind of a lull period.

Go to travelocity and sign up for airfare alerts. You can plug in your airport and destination (up to 5 I think). They will email you when the price drops.

You can also call Pleasant Holidays... they should be able to get you good rates from Detroit.

Celine

Great comments, although using FF miles is pretty obvious...I mean we'd use them if we had them right!

We can completely afford to take a $$$$ trip, but we don't simply because we want to retire before we're 75...it's all about priorities.

I'm personally against paying for trips on credit cards (if you're paying interest), it just means that you really can't afford it in the end.

Sorry, didn't mean to make my post sound so negative...just being honest.

crazy4Hawaii

Yep, I think we all agree it's all about priorities. And obviously, all of ours are different. Life is about the journey not the destination. Not all of us will make it to 75 and some of us will make it but be too infirm to travel by then... "Afford" is just a concept that means different things to different people.

ggrtist

My 68 year old Grandpa tells me to go on my adventures now rather than retirement age because he says you can get a lot more out of traveling when you're younger. I work at a senior center and although many members are active and travel a lot, I don't think many could handle a 4 hour rt hike to a waterfall or cliff jumping into an ocean. There are always exceptions, but when most of the senior members where I work go on trips to places like Hawaii they do more of the relaxing and bus tour stuff. Some people that wait too long may never know what they're missing.

travelin9

So true ggrtist! That is my motto. You never know what the future will hold. I don't want to wait until I'm 65 or 70 yrs old to travel. I don't know what my life/health may be like at that time. Plus you won't be able to enjoy things like you would if your younger. For instance, my grandparents are in there late 70's still love to travel, but mainly due cruises. Less stress and walking for them. I want to enjoy things in life while I still have my health and younger years.

Lorio

Like so many other people have said - frequent flyer points!!!!! It seems to be the only way for us to get there.... we actually have a timeshare so we simply exchange to get there.... so basically other the the tax on the flight and exchange fee for the timeshare, it only saving up spending money. The very first time we went to Hawaii we did have FF mile and purchased a charter flight from Canada for only $550 CAD per ticket, return... beleive me - this is a good deal.

Lori

pspercy

crazy4h..., re "Afford", I agree 100%. Good (older) friends of ours waited for years to take the dream trips, by the time they were retired and ready one got a terminal diagnosis so in the end no trips were taken; so, you might say, some folks crater soon after 65, that's life. Well, life can be cruel, my wife's friend died recently, she was 44 - a year ago she was carefree.
My take on this type of scenario is simply to take the trip, if at all possible, because you never know what's in your cards for the future, unlike baseball, we get just one inning. Regards.

crazy4Hawaii

Right, pspercy! I don't feel that I can "afford" not to take those nice vacations when possible. I'm not wealthy enough to pay cash outright for a car either, so if I have to go into a little short-term debt for a dream vacation, I DO IT! When I'm on my deathbed, I'm willing to bet I won't spend a second thinking about the cars I've had, but I'll sure be reviewing these wonderful memories I'm making with my family.

tbelgian

Our family vacations are worth so much to us! We put all our expenses on credit cards that pay airline miles. We can get some tickets that way and pay for the rest. We watch prices for ages to get a feel for what's a good price. Then when we see the price we want,we book it! You've got to do it!

eileen

We're a family of four who takes 2 - 3 "big" trips (not counting excursions to FL to visit grandma) a year and we are not rich. How we do it --
1) Own a timeshare that we trade for condo resort for one trip a year
2) Auto deposit of funds directly from paycheck to special vacation account at a different bank so it never hits the "black hole" (our checking account)
3) All four of us have freq flyer accounts and also belong to Amex membership rewards -- use this to "top off" accounts to get enough miles, use the Amex for lots of everyday expenses
4) It's a priority -- if it comes down to the trip or new furniture, I go with the trip every time!
5) Willingness to pick up extra work for special trips - husband's a professor who can teach other courses as an adjunct
6) Lots of advance planning to maximize the timeshare trade opportunity and those ff miles!
Our trips are very special times for our family, we're making memories for a lifetime!

jimnyo

so, luvtravelin2, did you ever go?

TahitiTams

Hi..
They usually dump their deals around midnight on Tuesday on Expedia.com and I have found the best deal all over the world..Know the high and low of the place that will work for you..
Good Luck!

sherrie

Save, Save, Save. We're headed to Maui for second time, and this will be our first trip to BI. We have saved for two years to have enough to pay for it without incurring any debt. Of course, that's how you get anything in life, isn't it. You plan for it and prepare. You can do it, it just takes a little planning. Good luck.

jill777

I have spent the little extra fees incurred to get those darn miles, MCI and Northwest are partnering and give up to 10,000 miles for signing up for 6 months of long distances, everytime I rent a car I get 500 miles, Vons/Pavilion markets give 250 points for every $500 spent on grocery you name it I signed up to get it, I just wish I can get some flights out of Southern California, I had to reserve a whole year in advance to get to Maui on United, the seat become availabe exactly 1 year in advance, when I called at arount 9am they were sold out, so I called at the crack of dawn the next day and delayed departure a day and was lucky to get tickets 1 year before departure, how many people can say when they will be taking a vacation 1 year from now. pretty daunting. I have tried to use Northwest to vacation now for 3 year in a row and can't really use it out of California, so will be trying again and again for another 3 years I guess, it calls for a lot of creative reservations to vacation on the cheap. GOOD LUCK

Intrepid1

Last December we flew from Washington, DC, to Honolulu for $900 each R/T in First Class and stayed for two weeks...we got the tickets throuhg a consolidator www.onetravel.com. You can do it, too, if you plan ahead. We made the reservations in February.

SAnParis

"Don't put off until tomorrow, what you can do today.." We prioritize travel. For example, we're moving to a larger yet cheaper, house in the 'burbs. Our cars are paid for - a 2003 Mazda & a 1998 Mercedes, both have plenty 'drive' left in them. We pay off our credit cards every month. So even if we put the trip on the card, we'd pay it off. If you plan ahead, you can help distribute the costs over time. Usually by the time we travel, most everything is already paid for. We typically rent homes or apartments & steer clear of resorts & hotels. We eat in a lot, even on vacation. We use miles a lot & our credit cards + my travel hotel points all turn into miles. I plan major trips like that, 6-12 months ahead & would schedule whenever 'shoulder' or 'off-season' is.

mcdonjo1

We keep the cost down by sharing our vacations with other family members and close friends. We'll be going to Kauai for our 25th Anniversary next month and it'll be 5 couples sharing a house with adjacent cottage. We did the same thing several years ago in Oahu and had a great time. Last year, just me and the husband went to Maui. Still had a nice time, but just not as much fun without the family and friends to share the experience with! So ask several other couples, close friends or family if they'd like to go along with you.

tcreath

I think most of us decide where we want to go long in advance and then save up for it. I take two trips to Europe every year, but I put money aside all year into a separate savings account to pay for these trips. I put any extra money I get throughout the year (tax returns, Christmas money, etc.) into that vacation savings account. I also try to travel during off-peak season to keep costs down.

Tracy