When you travel as well as where you are going will dictate how expensive your vacation will become. Visiting friends or relatives in New Orleans in February will be costly. New York or Hawaii over the Christmas and New Years holiday period will set you back a King’s ransom. Arizona or Florida in winter can be very expensive.

But Florida can be expensive in summer as well, as can San Francisco or New York. Rather than hunker down under the covers all year however, try traveling in the ‘shoulder’ (sometimes called off-peak) seasons.

These of course are generally Spring and Fall. Even going to New England in October or late September is better than when school is out. In fact, many people who simply want to go camping will target early September for their travels as the weather is still excellent and campgrounds tend to empty out after Labor Day. The same is true for Arizona and Florida in October or November – the oppressive heat has usually dissipated and the winter crowds (snow birds) haven’t arrived yet.

National Parks like Yellowstone, Yosemite and the Grand Canyon will have much more budget pleasing rates (as well as availability) in October than they do in July. San Francisco is a paradise weather wise in September and October, you can actually get ON a cable car without a 45 minute wait AND last minute hotel rates are usually 25-30% lower than summer time.

Even cruising and house boat rentals are significantly lower after Labor Day. At Lake Shasta, a deluxe houseboat rents for over $7300 in summer but is $5300 in Fall and $5500 in Spring, a $2000 savings! Cruises (except for those with little competition) are generally hundreds off if you wait until the kids are back in school.

So to visit the places you want to visit but plan your trip for the shoulder seasons and you will probably save enough to take more than one vacation!