cheap or splurge

5 Tips for Planning the Perfect Cheap Hawaii Vacation

January 16, 2019 By Jason Kinney 1 Comment

Previous posts I have always listed as something like “Las Vegas on the Cheap.” Unfortunately, there is nothing cheap on the islands of Hawaii. So the biggest thing is reducing the costs. This article covers some of our favorite cheap Hawaii vacation tips.

1. Flights for your Cheap Hawaii Vacation

When Joni, Cheyenne and I flew out to Hawaii, we did this on miles. Luckily for us, we found an excellent redemption deal on United Miles for 45,000 miles each round trip for a non-stop flight from Chicago. This still took a long time to save up for, but this also gave us time to plan out our trip.

Southwest Airlines is currently looking at having flights for Hawaii. Rumors are that they will be available within the next year and that will most likely cause more significant competition meaning more affordable flight costs. These new flight option will be great for anyone trying to plan a cheap Hawaii vacation.

2. Plan for Parking Concerns

Something we learned while we were out there is that the cost of driving in Hawaii is unreal. We did get a rental car deal going through Enterprise with our work account which was better than anything else I could find. The rental cost isn’t the issue; the cost killer is the parking.

With the island being so tight for space, parking costs are at a premium. Most hotels charge for parking which will add another $40 a day to most hotel stays. Vacations are also meant to be relaxing. The bumper to bumper traffic that is so bad, that even the interstates have speed limits of 45 MPH makes it a pain to get from point A to point B.

We ended up returning our car several days early because of this and the upcoming hurricane. We did not want to deal with any weather damage claims and saved ourselves the extra parking fees as an added bonus. The best benefit of the car was those off the path restaurants (Like KoKo Head Cafe) and getting to some of the tourist destinations (Like beaches and Shaved Ice) we wanted to see again.

3. Best deals for Hotels in Hawaii

With Hawaii being so famous, you have many choices when it comes to booking your hotel stays. Options ranging through Marriott, Hyatt, and Hilton are plentiful. Almost every major hotel chain has a hotel and many let you use points you have accumulated.

We ended up staying at a boutique hotel that is part of the Marriott group right of Waikiki Beach. Not only is this a great tourist destination it puts a lot of things within walking distance.

4. Best Tourist Destinations

Luckily Joni did the research on the site seeing and the best deals. If you don’t plan ahead and just show up at the events day by day, you will find the costs to be huge, or not even able to get access as entrances at certain items are limited.

The “Go Ohau Card” is part of the “Go City Cards.” These cards allow you to visit several tourist stops throughout several days depending on the options you purchase. Usually, these are a good deal if you plan to visit a number of the locations the cards offer anyway.

Our Go Oahu card gave us a choice of using a premium feature such as swimming with dolphins. We were able to then purchase these cards through a shopping portal through Groupon to get even more travel points instead of getting them through their website alone. The tours are highly recommended, especially the circle tour at the beginning of the trip.

The tours gave us a chance to see some of the tourist places around the island and even if we didn’t stop during the tour we were able to take our car and visit the next day. The things we did were:

Pearl Harbor
Oahu Hidden Gems and Snorkeling with Turtles
Makani Catamaran Sail
All of Oahu in one day Tour
Iolani Palace
Bishop Museum

5. Be Patient

This trip took almost two years for me to plan out and ten years of Joni asking for us to go to Hawaii. The biggest and probably most important tip is to be patient with your planning. Maximize your points and take advantage of points deals to get bonuses and extra savings. If you are looking for a cheap Hawaii Vacation, you will probably need to plan it for several months.

5 Amazingly Easy Strategies to get Cheap Eats in Las Vegas

September 6, 2018 By Jason Kinney Leave a Comment

With any trip to Las Vegas, it isn’t just the hotel and the airfare. You have to eat also. The first trip we had we were going out for a friends wedding and a delayed honeymoon. Very little money and very little knowledge of Las Vegas. Back then luckily you could eat at a Coffee Shop or a buffet for cheap. Nowadays that isn’t as much of an option. There are options for cheap eats Las Vegas style. Additionally, check out our article Where can I purchase snacks while visiting Las Vegas?

My Cheap Eats Las Vegas Strategy

Plan for only two meals. If you eat a more substantial meal in the morning most likely you will find you can get by with just dinner after. I found I don’t eat as much with walking.

Food is always cheaper off the strip. Depending on if you decide on a rental car, you can find some hidden gems that are reasonably priced. Buffets at most off strip casinos such as Main Street Stations or other Boyd properties can be a diamond for your budget.

Fast food is your friend for Cheap Eats Las Vegas Style! There are McDonald’s and other fast food areas all down the strip. I have found that I tend to eat a couple of times at Denny’s. If I do not want to venture off the strip, it is a quick meal with their $2-$6 side menus.

***ProTip: Las Vegas Fast Food: 5 wonderful places you need to try

Watch hotel booking deals – Usually, every trip when booking the hotel, there are usually food/drink credits depending on when you book. This is a great way to assist with some of the splurge restaurants. Check out our favorite hotels to stay at in Las Vegas: Preferred Options: MLIFE Casinos and Hotels

Off menu items. If you research beforehand, you can find off menu deals. Sometimes you just need to ask for what some of the specials are. It can be that simple. Otherwise looking online you can find hidden options such as “$7.77 special” at Mr. Luckys at the Hard Rock Casino. Steak and shrimp for under $10.00 were always one of my friend’s favorites.

The biggest thing is to plan accordingly. If you do not plan where you will end up eating, your cheap eats will be expensive eats.

Where can I purchase snacks while visiting Las Vegas?

June 18, 2018 By Joni Kinney Leave a Comment

Who wants a $5.00 bottle of water or a $4.00 bag of chips? You will pay that price if you are purchasing snacks using those convenience stores in the casinos. I didn’t like this idea, so found a few quick tips for getting Vegas snacks for cheaper. If you plan you’re snacking you can do better too.

Keep in mind most hotels do have a fridge but do not allow you to put your stuff in those. They keep their $8.00 bag of M&Ms for you in there. One of the exceptions I use often is Vdara. Some of the suites have a full refrigerator to allow you to keep your stuff cold. Of course, you could always pack snacks into your luggage and bring some with for the hotel rooms. Personally, I never know what I’m going to want so this doesn’t always work out for me. Below are two options I have for getting your Vegas snacks on the cheap.

Walgreens/CVS

1.) As you walk down the Las Vegas Strip you will see that there seems to be one of these every block. These will be cheaper than the alternative inside the casino. I usually would stop each day to minimize the amount I have to carry…if I didn’t rent a car.

Target/Wal-Mart.

2.) If you rent a car, there are Targets and Wal-Marts all over Las Vegas. Stopping in for five minutes to grab your snacks and water for your room. Renting a car and going to get snacks helps with packing as I have been able to grab those items you forget in the packing rush.

You will notice also during on the summer you will see someone screaming “Water! Water! One Dollar!”. Purchase at your own risk. What they are doing is technically illegal. I have heard of stories/rumors of people reusing the water bottles and personally, do not take that chance.

Las Vegas wehre can I buy cheap snacks? #vegas #lasvegas #snacks

Other money savings articles you might be interested in:

Cheap or Splurge – Las Vegas Strip Hotels

March 21, 2018 By Jason Kinney Leave a Comment

Las Vegas Strip Hotels

On the Las Vegas Strip there are two companies that own majority of the casinos. The two companies with the most Las Vegas Strip Hotels are MGM Resorts (MLife) and Caesars (Total Rewards). Most die hard “Vegas Trippers” have their favorite and tend to stick to one of those two groups. I personally prefer MGM Resorts and I have stayed at several Caesars properties over my last thirty or so trips. My personal opinion is for the cost of the hotels I have found I got a nicer room; that I personally enjoyed more with MGM Resorts. Caesars has recently gone through Bankruptcy but are in the process of updating some of their casinos. It will be interesting to see within the next couple years.

How do you choose where to stay?

One of the reasons I have stayed with MGM Grand is the snowball effect. The more you visit, the better deals you would continue to get through their hotels. Keep in mind one thing you will see at almost all hotels in Las Vegas is the dreaded “Resort Fee”. These will cost about $30-$40 a night depending on the hotel. You should consider this fee this when deciding where to book.

When booking my rooms I go through three groups of choices.

If you have been to Las Vegas before, always sign into your account online to see if you have any good offers. You can sometimes get free rooms, discounted rooms, or free play and free food/beverage towards your stay with MGM Resorts and/or Caesars Resorts.
One other group of hotels/casinos is owned by the Sands Group and those are the Venetian and the Palazzo. I do stay at those usually once a year because they are also partnered through www.IHG.com which is the hotel group that includes the Holiday Inn. By having a Chase IHG credit card that has an annual fee of $49.00, I receive one free hotel night at any IHG hotel. I have been able to pair this free stay up last year for a December 30th stay that was asking over $300 a night. That alone was worth the $49 annual fee.
My favorite site I use for hotel bookings in Las Vegas is My Cheap Vegas. They do all the leg work for you by search all over for the booking codes that you can use to book at a discount. I’ve used this and ended up with a reduced rate along with an additional $120 food/beverage credit for the trip.

Keep in mind most of the time these are refundable rates. You can book your room months out from your arrival date. If a different deal comes along that is better, you can cancel and book that new offer with no penalty. A few do have “Non-Refundable” rates so make sure you read the fine print before booking.

On the Cheap:

If you really wanted to go on the cheap, you can always stay down on Fremont Street or one of the Travelodges on the strip. My option I do not consider ‘cheap’ but more as frugal. When I am on vacation, I do prefer having a bed softer than a plywood board and some place better than the standard hotel room. I have found my two choices most recently have been MGM Grand and Mandalay Bay. I have stayed at these two hotels for most of my trips the last year. Some people may question the Mandalay Bay choice. I did stay there a week after the incident in Vegas. That would be a choice only you could make. Some of the nicest staff and great rooms I have had have been here. I have started to move towards MGM Grand also due to more of a convenience. Both locations are easy to get in and out with a rental car. Both locations have good buffets and restaurants that I frequent for breakfast or lunch. The reason for the nod towards MGM Grand is that it is closer to T-Mobile Arena. Most of my trips now revolve around the UFC fights. When you have so many people going to and from the arena after a UFC fight or a Vegas Golden Knights hockey game, I found it beneficial to be just a casino away from my room.

Room to Splurge:

When I splurge, I still try to stay within a budget. You could say a penthouse at the Bellagio, but not many could that be realistic. When Joni and I go down to Las Vegas, I will always try to get a couple nights at the Vdara which is an Mlife Hotel. Notice that I did not say casino, because there is no casino at this all-suite, non-smoking hotel. It is right on the strip and steps away from the Bellagio and Aria when you have that itch to gamble. I usually book a “Vdara Fountain View Suite”. Many nights we have just gone back to the room early and watched the Bellagio fountains from the comfort of our room. The non-studio suites come with a full refrigerator with chilled water, which is awesome after a full day of walking around. In addition you get a Dishwasher, Laundry washer and dryer and other amenities. These rooms are up for purchase as living quarters so you have all the comforts of home while over looking the fountains. These rooms are a little more expensive but can be rented for $125-200 a night depending on the week night. If money was no issue on any of my stays, these rooms would be my choice each time due to space, location, comfort and views.

Want to know more? Check out these other articles you may be interested in.

If you enjoyed this article or think other might please share!