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6 Money Saving Road Trip Tips For Memorial Day

Updated: March 8, 2024

If you’re looking for money saving road trip tips you’ve come to the right spot! Memorial Day weekend is almost here, which for many means traveling to visit family or a favorite vacation spot. AAA predicts an estimated 42.3 million people will travel 50 miles or more from home on Memorial Day weekend. In 2023, 2.7 million more people were predicted to travel for the unofficial start of summer; a sign of what’s to come in the months ahead. If you’re looking to road trip this weekend without breaking the bank, then follow these 6 money saving road trip tips for Memorial Day travels.

1. Find the Best Place to Stay

Take time to research the area you’re staying in and make a list of hotels/Airbnbs. Price each of them then check sites like Hotels.com for deals on those locations. This will give you an idea of the places you can afford and how close they are to the attractions you’ll be visiting. Booking your stay at a hotel that offers free breakfast could also save you some money on meals.
Hotel room
Cooler full of snacks

2. Pack a Snack

Packing a cooler full of snacks and drinks for your trip will save you from buying higher priced items at gas stations. Not only that, but it will cut down your travel time because you won’t need to make as many stops. You can also plan to pack enough food to have for the duration of your trip to reduce the need to eat out for every meal.

3. Search for the Cheapest Gas

Even with a significant increase in gas prices, we expect a large jump in holiday driving compared to the last few years. Download an app like GasBuddy to search for the cheapest gas prices along your trip route. You can also look for dining and shopping deals on GasBuddy and use those points towards free gas.

Filling gas tank
Road Tolls

4. Avoid Tolls

For those hitting the road, Thursday and Friday are anticipated to be peak traffic days. If time allows, choose a trip route that excludes tolls. While routes with tolls are usually faster, you can end up spending a good chunk of change on them. Look at the different routes ahead of time on Apple or Google maps and see if a longer route without tolls is doable for your road trip.

5. Find Free Events

Check out local event calendars for wherever you’re headed. There are usually free community events during holiday weekends.

Family of 3 at an outdoor event
Launch Visa Rewards card

6. Use Perks

If you’re a credit card holder, visit your card’s site and check to see what perks you have for using your card at certain hotels, gas stations, etc. If you have a “stash” of points from previous purchases, these could go towards your hotel stay or items you need for the trip. Our Launch CU Rewards Visa credit holders earn 1 point for every dollar they spend. These points can be redeemed for statement credits, cash back, travel, gift cards, merchandise and a lot more.
 
At Launch CU, members can open a Holiday Savings Account. By making contributions throughought the year, this account could be a great way to budget for your next vacation.

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