Six Last Minute Summer Vacation Tips for Families

New York, NY, July 20, 2013 --(PR.com)-- t’s now the middle of July, and many families still haven’t taken their annual summer vacation. But families shouldn’t worry if they haven’t made summer vacation plans yet. According to Suzanne Rowan Kelleher, family travel expert and Managing Editor at MiniTime.com, a family vacation-planning website, there’s still time to pull together an affordable getaway.

“There are many wonderful summer travel steals if you know where to look,” says Kelleher, who recommends these six tried-and-true strategies to get more bang from your summer vacation buck:
1. Weekend in the city. Big-city hotels can be notoriously expensive, but summer can be a season of deals, says Kelleher. “When temperatures rise, business travelers tend to stay away and locals retreat to cooler hinterlands. In New York City, for example, hotel rates drop in the summer, especially on weekends, and Sundays can be the best bargain of all,” says Kelleher. “This time of year, a Sunday night hotel stay in the Big Apple can be 25 percent less expensive than midweek.”
2. Luxuriate in a hot spot. Want to stay at a luxury resort for less? Prices tumble in July and August at high-end resorts in sizzling destinations like Arizona and Florida. “Of course it’s going be pretty darn hot—but so what? Choose a resort with a phenomenal deal, air conditioning, and a spectacular pool and water-play area,” says Kelleher. “Stay put, stay cool, and have a wonderful time.”
3. Get active in the hills. Like being on the move? “Head to a swell little ski town, such as Breckenridge or Aspen, in Colorado, or Stowe, in Vermont,” suggests Kelleher. In the summertime, these destinations transform into playgrounds for active families who love mountain biking, alpine sledding, zip-lining, hiking, and horseback riding —and lodging costs considerably less now than during ski season.
4. Park it. Our national and state parks are a goldmine for summer deals even after summer has hit full tilt, says Kelleher. “I know from experience that there are still openings at many of the park system’s lodges, hotels and cabins,” she says. “This time last year, I was able to book a four-night mid-August stay at the Mammoth Hot Springs hotel inside Yellowstone National Park.”
5. Aim for the fringes. At the country’s most family-focused properties, prices often drop at the end of the summer when many kids are already heading back to school. “In the northeast, for instance, rates at award-winning family resorts such as the Tyler Place Family Resort in Vermont and Winnetu Resort on Martha’s Vineyard are 20 to 50 percent lower during the week including Labor Day,” says Kelleher.
6. Look to a lake. If families are looking for a bargain beach getaway, they should pick a gorgeous lake resort rather than one on the ocean. “From the Great Lakes to Lake Tahoe to the Finger Lakes, there are beautiful waterside hotels set on gorgeous, sandy beaches with many of the same water sports you find at the ocean—but typically rates are a fraction of what they charge on the coasts,” says Kelleher. “Also, families with small children often prefer fresh water to saltwater for swimming, and they don’t have to worry about riptides, big waves, or ocean critters.”

MiniTime.com is the first and only family travel website to give parents travel recommendations based on the ages of their children. MiniTime.com offers parents a unique combination of expert travel advice, a community of like-minded parents, and powerful user tools to help parents plan, book, and share their family travel experiences. For more information about MiniTime.com, visit www.minitime.com.