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There are ways to spend less money on meals when traveling - especially when you are feeding a family that includes small children. Wherever you are traveling should have access to local supermarkets in order for you to stock up on things when you are away from home. When booking your hotel, inquire about the availability of refrigerators in the room. Even if you are required to pay a small fee to rent one, it often is worth it when you consider what you will save on foods you can stock up on.

When traveling on a family vacation - one of the biggest expenses will be the meals and snacks during the trip. Part of the fun of the trip is getting to eat out and not cooking and washing dishes after your meals, but when you think about the money you will be spending, it really does add up.

A good way to save money on meals is to try to eat breakfast in your room. This is especially helpful on trips to Disney World, Disneyland or any amusement park type of trip, where availability of healthy and low cost foods are rare. By purchasing cereal boxes (the small assorted type packs are great), milk, disposable bowls and spoons, you can be sure your kids are starting the day with a good meal and will not be asking for food as soon as they get to the park. Fruit is another good idea to have in the rooms (bananas, grapes, apples) can be grabbed as you are running out the door to your day trip.

You can also save money by purchasing water and soda cans and storing them in your room refrigerator - hotels usually charge $2.00 or more for drinks in the hotel machines. For families that have kids always looking for snacks - it is best to stock up on those small bags of snacks (goldfish, pretzels, cookies)- they work well when on the go or just relaxing at the hotel pool.

Of course you are on vacation and will be eating meals out - consider the size of the meals when ordering. Usually meal portions are quite large - when traveling with small children (or children with smaller appetites), and adult meal can usually feed one adult and one child. Or one child’s meal can feed two small children. Also, if a restaurant does not advertise children’s meals - inquire about half portions or lunch sized portions for your children. When purchasing “child meals” you can usually purchase the items a la carte, so you are not paying for the full child meal if you don’t want the fries or the drink.

When planning your next trip, consider your options for saving money on meals - you might be surprised how much you save, with very little extra effort!

Tags: travel, family+vacations, lifehacks