Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't think that DW is a vacation, lol. At least, not for the parents.

How about exploring cities within driving distance like Philly, Richmond, Atlanta, Greenville SC, etc.

I'm a parent, and I LOVE DW. It's so manageable with little kids, plus there's other fun little kid stuff in and around Lancaster. Depending on the ages of the kids, Hershey is good too (and you can usually find discount tickets somewhere).

Also, agree with OP about camping - not interested, not going to do it.

+1 Our trip to Dutch wonderland last summer was incredibly fun. It felt designed for my family at this age. Just great.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe too lame but we've actually taken those "three nights for 195 dollars provided you sit through the timeshare presentation" things. Look at Diamond Resorts in OBX, and Blue Green Resorts in Shenandoah, as well as Massanutten. I don't know if you can do it if you are either divorced or a single parent, since they seem to want a married couple to sit through the timeshare presentation -- but we've seriously had nice weekends at all the places I just listed. Just tune out the timeshare presentation -- and whatever you do, don't BUY one!

What did you do with the kids while you were in the presentation?

When I was a kid, my parents did this a few times. My older sister and I just wandered around. Once the lady told us there was a lake with boats we could take out. Our parents were super, SUPER strict with TONS of rules, but they chilled out considerably on vacation, evidenced by the fact that they let two kids who COULD NOT SWIM go get in boats and twirl around a lake by ourselves unsupervised.

I asked my parents about it once. Like "what the hell were you thinking? We could have drowned and died!" They kind of shrugged and were like "You're both athletes and both good problem solvers who move in an emergency rather than panic and freeze. We figured if you didn't think you could do it, you'd have come back." Oddly, I totally understand this logic.

Wait - was the original title of this thread that everyone is so offended by?

Anonymous wrote:Maybe too lame but we've actually taken those "three nights for 195 dollars provided you sit through the timeshare presentation" things. Look at Diamond Resorts in OBX, and Blue Green Resorts in Shenandoah, as well as Massanutten. I don't know if you can do it if you are either divorced or a single parent, since they seem to want a married couple to sit through the timeshare presentation -- but we've seriously had nice weekends at all the places I just listed. Just tune out the timeshare presentation -- and whatever you do, don't BUY one!

What did you do with the kids while you were in the presentation?

Anonymous wrote:Here's what we do: staycation but hire a nanny for part of the week. That way DH also get time to ourselves while the nanny takes the kids to fun events. Best thing ever!!

A vacation should be with your kids. That sounds pretty selfish.

I think a lot of lower income people do the six flags season pass-it's good entertainment value if you live nearby.

Anonymous wrote:Last year my friend took her kids to Six Flags every single day of Spring Break. They went like 8 days in a row because they had season passes that included a meal plan. The kids LOVED it, my friend is super fun and insane at the same time.

Your friend is hilarious and insane. One day at six flags kills me.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm actually poor. We don't go on vacation. I think OP must have meant "where do lower middle class/blue collar workers go for vacation?" Real poor people just don't.

Not true. Camping is cheap. You can get inexpensive hotel rooms and explore a nice area for very cheap - pack food, even a bottle of wine to bring along.

You can ride the metro in to visit the museums in DC.

Just try to put a little away each month and plan for it.

Put what away each month? I'm trying to get back to a place in life where I can buy conditioner. You have no concept of what it means to be poor if you think there is money left over at the end of a month on a regular basis.

Take the family to Knoebels in the middle of PA. You pay per ride and the hotels somewhat nearby are reasonable. Cheap family vacation and not too far away.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I'm actually poor. We don't go on vacation. I think OP must have meant "where do lower middle class/blue collar workers go for vacation?" Real poor people just don't.

Not true. Camping is cheap. You can get inexpensive hotel rooms and explore a nice area for very cheap - pack food, even a bottle of wine to bring along.

You can ride the metro in to visit the museums in DC.

Just try to put a little away each month and plan for it.

If you are truly poor, you may not have a job with the paid vacation. And even extra gas and an inexpensive hotel room may be out of the budget.

We just booked a week in Western NC (Asheville/Black Mountain) as soon as school gets out. Nice cabin with 3 BR. for $1200-1300 for a week, so less than $200 a night. Kitchen, so we will buy groceries and eat two meals a day in. About a 7 hour drive for us. Great time of year and beautiful weather. Biltmore. Arts District. Lots of funky shops. Craft guilds. Blue Ridge Chocolate factory. Great hiking, waterfalls, fishing, Blue Ridge parkway, nature, etc. Fun places to eat (like pizza and brewpubs) that don't break the bank. This is the third year we have done this. All told, a very nice, relaxing fun week with kids, not all crammed in the same hotel room for around $2000, lodging, travel, good and a couple excursions (lots of free and very low cost things to do, because of the National Parks). We love it. The kids love it. Great to recharge.

Now, this is DCUM "poors" vacationing on a budget, and not genuinely poor. I recognize that. But for nice, relaxing, lots of fun things to do, and cost effective it is hard to beat.

I can't wait!

Low budget for these boards:

I cut my vacations down to 5 days instead of 7.
Philadelphia while staying in a $100 a night Holiday Inn in New Jersey.

Pittsburgh.

Gettysburg.

Flights to Toronto were really cheap last time I looked. And the exchange rate is very good. Everything there will feel very cheap. If the hotel there is $125 Can a night, it's really $93 USD. And so on.

We are doing the NY finger lakes this summer. Staying near Cornell. Want to see some of the water falls. Will just get a regular hotel. Driving, of course.

Anonymous wrote:I'm actually poor. We don't go on vacation. I think OP must have meant "where do lower middle class/blue collar workers go for vacation?" Real poor people just don't.

Not true. Camping is cheap. You can get inexpensive hotel rooms and explore a nice area for very cheap - pack food, even a bottle of wine to bring along.

You can ride the metro in to visit the museums in DC.

Just try to put a little away each month and plan for it.

Last year my friend took her kids to Six Flags every single day of Spring Break. They went like 8 days in a row because they had season passes that included a meal plan. The kids LOVED it, my friend is super fun and insane at the same time.

I'm actually poor. We don't go on vacation. I think OP must have meant "where do lower middle class/blue collar workers go for vacation?" Real poor people just don't.