Romantic Getaway on a Budget: 2nd Edition.

A few weeks ago we celebrated our wedding anniversary. Now that my husband's done with school and we're in position where our monthly income exceeds our monthly expenses, we probably could have really splurged for our anniversary. However, we're trying save money and pay off the student loans that we acquired putting him through school instead. Besides that I was seven months pregnant at the time and extensive traveling isn't high on my list of things that sound like fun. The answer: plan and find a coupon. We visited family in Utah county for a few days, then left the kids with Grandma and headed to Salt Lake for a couple days with an envelope full of coupons and gift certificates. All total our getaway cost less than $200 and I over-prepared as far as coupons were concerned. (We also hit a movie with a movie gift card that a friend had given us.) But you can take any of these deal sites, pick your destination and find deals on food and entertainment.

Here are some of the deals I planned:

Groupons:
Blue Iguana for dinner-50% off
Vosen's German Bakery for breakfast- 50% off
Laser show at Clark Planetarium- 50% off

I love Groupons.  Every Groupon is at least 50% off. I've gotten some great deals on restaurants and shopping. It also takes some of the guess work out of where we should go for dinner.

CityDeals Gift Certificates:
60 Minute Massage- 85% off
Taste of Thai- 60% off

I am very pregnant and my husband is developing back problems from sitting in front of a computer screen all day. We both needed a good massage. I also enjoy Thai food. :) One bonus with gift certificates is that you're less likely to run into the problem of the cashier, waitress, etc, not knowing how to ring up your discount.

Ebates
Hotels.com- Here I booked a popular hotel for 50% off and using Ebates I got $6 back.
Restaurant.com- Another discount restaurant gift certificate site where I got a few discount dinner options. Pros- With Ebates you get 15% (sometimes more) back + there are often coupon codes to get an additional 60-80% off. Cons- there are a few more stipulations to the gift certificates than others that I've gotten. However, they can still be well worth it.

For other ideas on saving money on a romantic getaway, see my post from last year.

CityDeals

Have you guys heard of or seen CityDeals before? It's kind of like Groupon in that you can get a really great discount, but instead have a 24 hour window to snag the deal, there are just a limited number of each deal to snag. I have seen discounts upwards of 80%. There are deals on restaurants, recreational activities, services, spas and more. Sometimes you snag multiples of the deal and other times they are limited to one per person. There are a whole range of deals, many for places to that are a little far to be convenient for me, but there are several that will save me quite a bit. Here are some of the deals that I have grabbed in the past couple months.

• Giftcard to Subway for 50% off
• Gift Certificates to Gandolfo's for 60% off and again for 70%
• Walmart giftcard at 20% off (that one went super-fast)

Gift cards and gift certificates make great Christmas gifts and stocking stuffers. Plus they're just a handy way to save money on traveling or otherwise eating out. I always like to put one or two in my husband's stocking. (Giving him a gift certificate is a simple way to guarantee me a date, and we both really like Gandolfo's sandwiches.) The deals available depend on what area you live and the deals are always changing, but it is definitely worth checking out.

A Romantic Getaway on A Budget

This week my husband and I are celebrating our wedding anniversary. As I was planning something fun I realized, I can't even remember the last time that we had a real date. Really. If you are in the same situation I suggest that you follow the steps below. Even getting away for just one night can be fun and a simple way to strengthen your relationship.

1. If necessary, find someone to watch the kids. This is biggest barrier for us. You can find things to do for free, but getting a babysitter can be expensive, plus they're often hard to find. For this occasion, Grandma and Aunty came to visit. If you don't have family that are willing/able, try swapping with a couple with kids whose ages are close to your own kids.
2. Choose an event that you and your significant other both enjoy. Then look for a coupon. We decided to splurge a little and see Phantom of the Opera but I found a coupon that got us $100 off so we weren't paying full-price. It doesn't have be that big, just find something that you both will look forward to. Camping, football games, dancing, a museum exhibit...Do what works for the two of you.
3. Get away. It doesn't have to far or long, just away. Hotwire.com, hotels.com and Expedia.com are great places to look for a good deal. For this one we booked a room in a 5-star hotel at less than half the average rate through Hotwire. Then we got lucky and when we arrived, they upgraded us to a suite for free. So we got an awesome hotel stay for more than 75% off. There were several options, this was the one I chose because it was close to the theater.
4. Allow some time for "winging it". Don't put yourself on such a schedule that you're too rushed to enjoy things. The point isn't to see or do the most you can because it's easier without children in tow. The point is to enjoy one another's company without having to focus on the needs of those cute little people. (Although we found ourselves frequently talking about them. 'Oh, the kids would like that' or 'I love it when she says...')
5. Talk to one another. (Oh, it was nice to have many extended conversations without insistent demands.) Think back to when you were first dating, other fun things you  have done together, things that the two of you have overcome or plans for the future.

Other tips when planning your getaway:

• Many hotels and ticket events are often cheaper during the week. Try to book Monday through Thursday if your schedule permits.
• If you can't book Monday through Thursday, business hotels often offer discounted weekend rates
• Something you want to watch for: some hotels tack on an additional resort fee, I chose ours because it didn't.
• Casinos often offer great rates on hotel rooms because they count on most of their customers spending a lot on gambling. If you don't gamble, you can snag a sweet deal (like we did).
• Going to a destination off-season is another way to score deals. Cheapest Months to Travel
• Take this opportunity to go to eat somewhere you'd like to try but you know your kids would have no interest in experiencing.
• Wear good shoes, especially if you plan on doing much walking. I made the mistake of thinking "I'm not chasing or juggling kids, I'm going to wear some sexy wedges." I ended up spending more than I would have liked on a new pair of shoes mid-evening because my soles were covered in blisters and I really couldn't make it back to our hotel in those cute, but pain-inducing shoes.
• Bring a couple bottles of water, so you can avoid paying $8 for the bottled stuff in your hotel room.
• Remember that if you look for them, there are many free things to do out there.
• And most importantly be creative, you don't have to spend a lot of money to let your sweetheart know that he is loved.

Valentine's Day on the Cheap

 This year for V-day I made beef jerky for my beloved. He will know this truly a sign of my love because I HATE touching raw meat, which is an unavoidable downside of making your own beef jerky. (Although it's very tasty, and super easy and inexpensive to do if you have a dehydrator and a jerky gun.) Including the cute container to put it in, it cost me less than $4. For my kids I found some cute V-day socks at Old Navy for 70 cents each and a couple books for a few dollars each.
 In the past we have made it a point to not go out to dinner on Valentine's Day. Even the places that are usually empty are packed. When it's so busy service seems to decline and you spend a large part of your evening listening to each other's stomach's growl as you wait for your food. So we have made it a tradition to make dinner together, and then go out a few days before or after. And Valentine's is the one day of the year that I make his favorite dessert, that I hate. This year we'll make heart-shaped pizzas as well as a few batches of cookies. Showing your love doesn't have to cost a lot of money.