Jasmine Birtles
Your money-making expert. Financial journalist, TV and radio personality.
MoneyMagpie’s 2023 Guide to Saving Money over the Summer Holidays
Reading Time: 4 minutesIt’s not too long now until the end of term and lots of us are starting to think (and even worry) about how we’re going to cope financially over the summer holidays. As a mother of two, I know only too well how hard it can be when faced with a long six weeks stretching out ahead of us – especially this year when the cost of living crisis only seems to be getting worse and buying just the basics seems to wipe out our budgets. It doesn’t feel like there’s a lot of money left for fun.
We all want our kids to have a great summer, but finding activities and days out that don’t break the bank is getting harder and harder. Even if you’ve saved what you can and want to get away, it might feel as though you can’t. Quite frankly, we all need every bit of help we can get this summer to keep the kids entertained and fed while keeping the costs down.
Below you’ll find our guide to saving money and getting help over the summer holidays. We have ideas for free days out and all of Bablands posts in one place. There are tips and tricks on how to have a holiday in the UK or abroad without blowing your budget, advice on how to save when camping as well as all the free festivals and carnivals happening over the coming months.
We also have information on how and where to feed the kids for free or under £1 as well as some great ideas about making your own healthy snacks. Lastly, we’ve included our round-up of all the financial help that is available at the moment – it’s comprehensive and full of all the information you might need.
Read on for your guide to surviving and saving money over the summer holidays:
DAYS OUT
It might seem almost impossible these days, but there is still such a thing as a free day out! We have two great articles that list the top free days out across the country: FREE DAYS OUT SUMMER 2023andFRUGAL FUN FOR THE SUMMER HOLIDAYS. From geocaching to days at the beach, there are so many ways to have frugal fun, both cheaply and for free!
Our resident parent blogger, Emmy, has some fantastic ideas for entertaining the kids. It’s worth checking out her posts from earlier in the year too, they are a treasure trove of tips: BABLANDS POSTS
Many people think festivals are unaffordable or just too expensive to justify (and they’d be right about a lot of them!). Most tickets run into the hundreds of pounds and that’s for just one person. What if you’re a family? Well, we have the solution. We’ve put together a list of the free festivals happening this year: BEST FREE FESTIVALS
HOLIDAYS
Although in Britain we may not have guaranteed sunshine throughout the summer months we do have an abundance of historic cities and beautiful landscapes. From weekend breaks staying in city B&Bs, to getting away from the hustle and bustle whilst exploring the countryside, there are plenty of ways to keep costs down and have a cheap holiday in the UK: HOW TO HOLIDAY CHEAPLY IN THE UK
Camping is one of the most cost-effective holidays you can have, especially as a family with kids. The coastlines and counties of the UK offer hundreds of prime camping spots, with everything from rugged beaches to soaring mountains within reach of the pitch sites. We’ve put together a few camping hacks which are really useful for everyone from the seasoned pro to those going for the first time: CAMPING HACKS
For some, staying in the UK (or in a tent!) is just not what they’re after. If you want to get on a plane to get away, you can do so without spending a fortune – there are things you can do to keep the cost down and stick to your budget. We’ve teamed up with RatePunk to provide you with the most cost efficient ways to book a foreign holiday: 7 INSIDER TIPS FOR BOOKING YOUR SUMMER GETAWAY
MEALS AND SNACKS
6 weeks of meal planning and making sure the kids have plenty of healthy and nutritious food to eat can be really hard. If you’re like me, you can run out of ideas pretty quickly! So we’re really pleased to see so many venues carrying on with their “Kids eat free” or Kids eat for £1″ schemes. This is where we can all save so much and hopefully ease some of the financial pressure: KIDS EAT FOR £1 or LESS
Our resident blogger, Jane from Shoestring Cottage, also has some brilliant ideas for frugal and healthy snacks: HEALTHY SNACKS
FINANCIAL HELP
Lastly, it’s so important to remember that there is help out there if you’re really struggling. Don’t try and cope alone, read this article for all the advice you could need on who to ask and where to go for help over the summer holidays: GRANTS FOR THE SUMMER HOLIDAYS
Do you have any tips for how to have fun days out for less or where to find the best deals? If so please share them in the comments below!
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So thank you all for this incredible website.
Lynn
We need this thank you