How to Plan an Inexpensive and Memorable Winter Vacation

Want to travel during the gloomy winter months? Planning a winter break can help you recharge and rejuvenate during the cold, dark times of the year. But going on a winter vacation doesn’t have to break your budget.

Let’s take a look at some ideas on how to plan a winter vacation that can give you a fantastic travel experience at an affordable price.

Choose a city with cold weather

When most people plan a winter vacation, they want to go to warm-weather destinations like Florida, California, or Mexico. Many people want to go to the beach, Disney World, or other sunny destinations. But because everyone wants to go somewhere warm in the winter, airfare, hotels, and tourist experiences are much more expensive.

If you can tolerate the cold well, you can save a lot of money on winter vacation! Go to a snowy city. Although they may not be ski resorts, even those places can get crowded and expensive during the winter. But a fun city with great restaurants, live music, and culture can be the perfect winter destination.

Last year, my family and I went on a winter vacation to Montreal, Canada. Flights were cheap, and the US dollar was strong against the Canadian dollar, so we could get a lot of bang for our buck on meals at Airbnbs and restaurants. And we loved Montreal!

The weather in Canada was not much colder or darker than what we experienced at home in the American Midwest, and we had an amazing time exploring this fascinating, multilingual, cosmopolitan city. We ate great Vietnamese fusion food, bagels and poutine, watched a Montreal Canadiens hockey game, visited a museum and saw the symphony. Even though the weather was cold and the sun set early, this was one of the happiest vacations we’ve ever had.

Remember: Even if you’re spending winter break in a cold-weather city, you can still spend most of your time indoors enjoying delicious food and hot drinks.

Visit rural areas or small towns.

There are many little-visited places in the United States in small towns and rural areas that are often overlooked by tourists. What if you could plan a winter vacation to get off the beaten track? Here are some ideas for winter vacations in rural America.

• State Parks: Many state parks offer cabin rentals and winter activities such as hiking, cross-country skiing, and snowshoeing. A nearby hotel or Airbnb will likely be much cheaper than you would pay in a big city (or a crowded national park).
• Unique country accommodation: What if you could stay in a rustic cabin in the woods, a mountain cabin, or a riverside villa? There are many ways to get closer to nature and have an enjoyable experience while retaining modern comforts like Wi-Fi.
• Farm stay: Have you ever wanted to experience life on a farm? Join an agritourism farm stay where you can wake up in the countryside, feed farm animals and experience farm-to-table cuisine.
• Small town tours: Small towns like Galena, Illinois (a popular weekend destination for people from my hometown) have historic buildings, great restaurants, fun shopping experiences, and friendly people who want to share their community with you.

Don’t think great winter vacations can only be found at the beach or in big cities. If you’re curious and open-minded, you can find great winter vacations at various points on the map.

Not sure where you want to go on vacation? Want to find the best possible travel deals, even to places you’ve never heard of? If you’re looking for a flexible and affordable winter vacation, check out these travel search tools: You can use the following search tool to search “anywhere” without a specific destination.

• Airbnb: Click on ‘Flexibility’ in the ‘Destination/Search’ search bar to see a variety of locations and accommodation options. You can also choose from unique accommodations like cabins, tree houses, farms, boats, and “OMG!” It offers some truly unique lodging options, such as the Conestoga Wagon “glamping” resort or a converted 1920s gas station.
• Google Flights: Click “Wherever” in the search bar that says “Where” to see a variety of airfares for travel around the world. This is a great way to get ideas for new places to visit during your winter break, and you may even find surprisingly cheap airfare.
• kayak: On this travel site, you can click “Explore” to find the best winter vacation travel deals. First enter the airport of your home city, then select the month you want to travel. Kayak quickly shows you a variety of low airfares to multiple destinations. You can also choose the type of winter holiday you want: ‘Beach’, ‘City’, ‘Family’ or ‘Outdoor’.

Use a travel credit card for rewards and special offers.

If you want to save money on winter vacation and gain special travel experiences, it might be a good idea to consider applying for a new travel credit card. The best travel credit cards offer generous sign-up bonuses like 75,000 miles or 60,000 bonus points to help make winter vacations more affordable.

It may be a good idea to purchase a travel or airline credit card, especially if your winter break involves booking international flights and staying for multiple nights for your family. Paying for a long winter vacation with an airline credit card can help you earn elite airline status. Maybe you’ll earn so many reward points or bonus miles that your winter vacation will help pay for itself!

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