The cost of a family outing is sometimes very expensive, especially for a family on a strict budget. Below are some suggestions for going out on the “cheap.”

Movies

Many cities and towns offer newly released movies at a discounted rate (less then half the price of a regular ticket) on certain days of the week. All that is required is that you sign up for a FREE movie card. In my city, there are several theaters that also offer a free popcorn along with the discounted movies on certain nights. My movie card keeps track of how many times I’ve visited the theater and I also receive other discounts – such as free drinks, free snacks and sometimes a free movie ticket. With the skyrocketing price of movies today, this really is a winner if you’re on a budget.

Meals

Pay attention to those coupon magazines and flyers you receive in the mail. Many times they offer big discounts on meals in your area. Restaurants often offer buy one/get one free coupons for lunch and dinner as well as a full breakfast for under $3.00 or $4.00. This could also be a great add-on to the discounted movie night with the family.

Bowling

After not having been to a bowling alley in a quite a while, I was surprised to see how much the price of this activity had gone up. However, I did discover that many alleys offer a free “birthday club” that you can sign your child up for and in some cases, even adults can participate in this. The alley will send you coupons for several free games of bowling during your birthday month. Many times coupons for bowling are also offered in those coupon magazines and flyers. You can also check out the bowling alley’s website, if they have one, for printable coupons that offer great discounts.

Nature Centers, Parks, Etc.

Nature centers offer children a free look at the way our wildlife lives. Children can often pet the smaller animals and feed them and free programs to learn about wildlife are offered. Our city’s parks seem to be expanding nowadays as well. Many of them provide a wide variety of things for children to play on and many parks have small “water areas” for the children to run through on hot days and full sized swimming pools. It might be an extra treat to follow that $3.00 breakfast with a trip to the park!