National Parks, the Best Trip to take on a Budget

So, before I start going through specific destinations and guides, I'm going to give a quick overview of the best types of trips you can take if you're working with a tight budget.  You might miss out on some things, but remember, when travelling on a budget, some sacrifices usually have to be made.

The National Parks!

Those of us in America are very lucky to have our national parks.  Most of them have unrivaled scenery and beauty that you can't find anywhere else.  Also, compared to a generic amusement park, the value of a national park pass is incredible.  Want to go to Disneyland for a week?  Well, admission is going to cost you 100's of dollars. Want to see every single national park during a whole year?  Well admission is going to cost you just 80 dollars!!  I'll give you the link so you can sign up immediately since you felt silly thinking about spending a couple hundred dollars to ride some rides in Disneyland.  Now that you realize that going to a national park will be much better:

Buy Your National Parks Pass
Explore your National Parks Here!

What if you want to check out just one National Park in the next year?  Well, the prices are going to get even better.  The most expensive national parks, like the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone, or Yosemite, are only going to cost you 25 dollars to get in.  Even better news for you is the pass is good for seven days.  A week of exploring all Yellowstone has to offer and all you have to do is pay 25 dollars?  What an amazing deal.  Also, National Parks have days throughout the year with no entrance fee.  These days are obviously going to be more crowded, but free is free.

Entrance Fee Free Days in National Parks

For a budget minded traveler, National Parks also offer you the benefit of being able to camp.  Pitch a tent in a national park and usually pay under 30 dollars a night.  You might lose the comfort of a hotel room, but your wallet will feel a little heavier then it otherwise would.  I'm including a link for the Yellowstone campgrounds, just to show you  that to camp in one of the most popular tourist spots in the country is only going to cost you between 15-30 dollars.  If you have an RV, you may be getting closer to 50 dollars, but it's still way less than a hotel.

Yellowstone Campground Options

I'll go through the math and give you a good estimate of how cheap a week in a National Park could be.  You decide that you want to go to Yellowstone, and to get the most out of the entrance fee, you want to stay the whole week.  You get your campground reserved for 21 dollars a night and pay the 25 dollar entrance fee.  For seven nights, plus the entrance fee, you're paying 172 dollars total for the whole week!  Find three more friends to tag along with you, and you're each only paying 43 dollars to explore Yellowstone for the week.  Buy a foam cooler, some sandwich fundamentals, and some bottled water.  Budget around 20 dollars more a day for food and souvenirs.  You and four of your friends can stay for a week in Yellowstone for around 200 dollars each. Obviously knock a couple days off, or pack even more food with you, and you could spend even less.

National Parks are perfect spots for the budget minded traveler.  They offer unparalleled beauty and scenery. Many are large and will take days to explore. The entrance fees and camping fees allow you to stay and play for cheap.  If you want to travel on a budget, one of the first places I recommend would be a National Park.  Here's an interactive map so you can find the one closest to you!

Look at all the Parks!