One of the most expensive budget items on a Washington, DC vacation can be the food you consume eating out. Just how expensive? Well, my husband and I took our family of five small children out to eat this weekend to find out. We stayed clear of expensive eateries and instead opted for kid-friendly chains.
In the course of a five-day vacation we could easily spend close to $1000 on eating out. Sound ridiculously excessive? That’s because it is. Of course vacations are all about relaxing, but you can still relax without breaking the bank.
Ways to Save
- Refrigerator in the Room.Consider staying at a hotel where a refrigerator is one of the room amenities. You can buy cereal, fruit, milk, and sandwich makings for the week for $75.
- Clip coupons. If you are going to a chain restaurant, look for coupons and weekly deals.
- Share plates. The amount of food some restaurants serve on one plate is considerable and can easily be shared by two. Don’t be shy to order a dish and split it.
- Skip the alcohol. The mark-up is high and it simply adds to your food tab.
- Plan your meals ahead. When you and the kids are hungry, it’s easy to think with your stomach and not your wallet. But if you decide ahead of time when and where you are going to eat out, it can also be a cost savings.
- Skip the street vendors. They are over-priced and a real tourist trap. A single ice cream treat will run you $3.
- Snack. Skip lunch and instead go to the grocery store and load up on healthy snacks that you can toss into a back-up and eat in between touring the museums and monuments.
Do you have a budget saving tip to share?