Trimming vacation travel expenses takes focus.  View travel as a door-to-door experience.  Anticipate your needs throughout the trip to avoid those small, almost-invisible expenditures that add up quickly.  Recall The Money Skinny™ mission is to save you time and money.  Start by reading The Money Skinny™ Save Vacation Cash with a Commuter Train.  Let’s review ways to reduce those small added expenses.  Having a plan and anticipating your needs can save money.

Tips for Trimming Vacation Travel Expenses

• Bring an empty water bottle to fill at drinking fountains. 
• Single drink packets mixed with water are cheaper than purchasing drinks.  They mask the taste of unfamiliar tap water.  Snapple Singles are sold at Walmart or Dollar Tree.  True Lemon Strawberry Lemonade is sold at Walmart.
• Use off-site airport parking or a ride sharing service. Convenience costs money.
• Pack miscellaneous snack bars or nuts. 
• Freeze a sandwich the night before take-off that will defrost hours later when you want to eat it.  **Extra credit if you reuse a bread bag for storage.**
• Collect freebies like a toothbrush / toothpaste from the dentist.  Use miscellaneous product samples. 
• Fill small containers with products sold in larger quantity or volume.
• Skim products like pain reliever tablets, antihistamines and even a few bandages from bottles and bins. 
• Dollar Tree sells smaller quantities than warehouse club jumbo but larger than the grocery store travel product section.  For a dollar.  Avoid the $5 two-tablet airport package.

Miscellaneous Travel Expenses

More ways to reduce vacation travel expenses are available in The Money Skinny™ post Wedding Guest Expenses and Cost Cutting Tips.

Prioritize Vacation Travel Expenses

We like to live it up on vacation.  Having fun doesn’t have to mean spending a lot of money.  Decide what vacation travel expenses are important when planning your trip.  Focus time and money on those priorities.  Trim expenses that don’t matter.  Who cares if you pack a sandwich for the airplane?  Or bring your own can of Pringles Potato Crisps?  The $10 savings can be used on what’s more important to you.  Trimming those invisible vacation travel expenses can have a big impact on the total cost of the trip.