Fun, unique, affordable places to vacation?

kyzen

Golden Member
Oct 4, 2005
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www.chrispiekarz.com
Me and the girlfriend are talking about going on a short trip somewhere this summer. She has only seen an ocean once in her life, when she was really young, and would really like to go somewhere by the sea.

That's her only requirement; the ocean.

I personally like places with a lot of local atmosphere, that aren't filled to the brim with McDonalds', Walmarts, etc, and have only a moderate tourist industry (I like being able to walk down the street without being bombarded with offers for stuff). The last place I went to like this was Catalina Island in California.

I'd go there again, but the summer prices are pretty expensive. Our overall budget for the trip will be in the vicinity of $2000, and we'll have as many as 8 days off from work to go do whatever, and obviously the longer we can stay away, the better! :)

We're fine staying anywhere - a tent, a Motel 6, a Hilton, whatever.

So... anybody know of some really fun places to go, perhaps places that not many other folks know about?

EDIT: We're in Coolorado, and would prefer to stay somewhere within the United States. Maybe Mexico.
 

Patt

Diamond Member
Jan 30, 2000
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Go to the Oregon Coast ... there are plenty of places you can lose yourself without hordes of people.
 

neovan

Diamond Member
Mar 8, 2001
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You can go camping at Catalina Island. Its really nice just as long as you stay on the other part of Catalina (I think its called Two Harbors). Or stay at a bed and breakfast in Avalon if you want to do shopping & restaurants.

Other ideas:
San Diego (go kayaking)
Santa Barbara and up along the Central Coast (stay at B&B by the ocean)
 

altonb1

Diamond Member
Feb 5, 2002
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See my signature. PERFECT deal for Orlando, which is an hour from the Atlantic Ocean and ~90 mins from Clearwater Beach and the Gulf of Mexico.

PM me and I'll see if I can work you a deal.
 

vi edit

Elite Member
Super Moderator
Oct 28, 1999
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2 grand for two plane tickets, and 8 nights?

Uhhh good luck.
 

kyzen

Golden Member
Oct 4, 2005
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Originally posted by: vi_edit
2 grand for two plane tickets, and 8 nights?

Uhhh good luck.

I did Catalina for two people a year ago for $580 transportation + lodging (gas (we drove), boat fare, 3 nights in one of the nicer hotels), we spent maybe $300 more on food and stuff. And like I said, I'm not requiring a super nice place to stay, we're fine with wherever. I'm mainly interested here in fun places to go, I can figure out how to pay for it all later.

The Oregon coast sounds pretty nice, as does Florida (though I don't think that condo would work for us, too far from the ocean).

Keep the ideas coming :)
 

OdiN

Banned
Mar 1, 2000
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Catalina is cool if you miss the tourists :p

Rent kayak's and have fun paddling around all day.

Another thing I would recommend is seeing some of the mountains here in CA - Yosemite, Sequoia/Kings Canyon, maybe Shasta.
 

MrMaster

Golden Member
Nov 16, 2001
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Orlando is a hyper-competitive market when it comes to flying there. I don't believe their hotel rates are very cheap. Car rental prices are fine as well.

However, there is a lot to be said to just going to a beach town (one that isn't all built up) and just relaxing. Myself, I do fly to orlando and do the car rental thing to hit the coasts but I also get free room and board at a friend's house when i am there. I save a lot of money that way.

At least from chicago there are plenty of packages that I saw for close to 800 per person to go just about anywhere warm in the northern hemisphere.
 

Descartes

Lifer
Oct 10, 1999
13,968
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You can come hang out with me for 8 nights. I have a nice place and I'll only charge you $1900!
 

gwrober

Golden Member
Sep 3, 2005
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Originally posted by: altonb1
See my signature. PERFECT deal for Orlando, which is an hour from the Atlantic Ocean and ~90 mins from Clearwater Beach and the Gulf of Mexico.

PM me and I'll see if I can work you a deal.

Another vote here for that area of Florida - I frequent the Clearwater/Weeki Wachee/Homosassa area alot - wonderful for snorkeling, etc. Fishing's great. It's on the Gulf side of Florida tho, if that matters. I love it.....
 

JulesMaximus

No Lifer
Jul 3, 2003
74,542
920
126
Originally posted by: kyzen
Me and the girlfriend are talking about going on a short trip somewhere this summer. She has only seen an ocean once in her life, when she was really young, and would really like to go somewhere by the sea.

That's her only requirement; the ocean.

I personally like places with a lot of local atmosphere, that aren't filled to the brim with McDonalds', Walmarts, etc, and have only a moderate tourist industry (I like being able to walk down the street without being bombarded with offers for stuff). The last place I went to like this was Catalina Island in California.

I'd go there again, but the summer prices are pretty expensive. Our overall budget for the trip will be in the vicinity of $2000, and we'll have as many as 8 days off from work to go do whatever, and obviously the longer we can stay away, the better! :)

We're fine staying anywhere - a tent, a Motel 6, a Hilton, whatever.

So... anybody know of some really fun places to go, perhaps places that not many other folks know about?

EDIT: We're in Coolorado, and would prefer to stay somewhere within the United States. Maybe Mexico.

I used to sail there once or twice a year on a friend's 38' sailboat. Costs $10/day for a mooring in Avalon harbor. At least it used to anyway. I like Catalina but you can run out of things to do there quickly. I'd say 3-4 days max.

Oh, and go in July or August. It's usually gloomy there this time of year and the water is cold right now.

Have you thought about a cruise? Or Mexico? Or a Mexican cruise? There are plenty that leave from Long Beach or San Diego.
 

jmdeathsquad

Senior member
Feb 23, 2006
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i live in tampa, you can crash on my couch (its a fold out futon) for the low fee of... beer. 20 minutes or so to the beach... and beer for me!!
 

altonb1

Diamond Member
Feb 5, 2002
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Originally posted by: jmdeathsquad
i live in tampa, you can crash on my couch (its a fold out futon) for the low fee of... beer. 20 minutes or so to the beach... and beer for me!!

The nice thing about Orlando is you'll have a nice resort to stay in and relax, you can do the tourist stuff if you want, go to theme parks, Pleasure Island or Citywalk, etc, plus you can day-trip to some of the best beaches in the country. Clearwater and some of the other beacjes on the Guld are really nice and not completely over-run with tourist traps. You also have mutliple beaches on the Atlantic coast to choose from as well, including Cocoa Beach, Daytona, etc.

AND...airfare to Orlando should be very reasonable considering the competitiveness of travel into MCO. I did a quick search on Orbitz and Travelocity and it looks like DEN to MCO would cost in the neighborhood of $380-$450 round trip per person, depending on flights. The rental car, for a mid-size car from Thrifty (also found by Orbitz) would be about $160 with unlimited miles. That leaves you ~$1000 for lodging and spending money. Orlando will give you a lot of variety for a nice vacation.
 

Mill

Lifer
Oct 10, 1999
28,558
3
81
Originally posted by: altonb1
Originally posted by: jmdeathsquad
i live in tampa, you can crash on my couch (its a fold out futon) for the low fee of... beer. 20 minutes or so to the beach... and beer for me!!

The nice thing about Orlando is you'll have a nice resort to stay in and relax, you can do the tourist stuff if you want, go to theme parks, Pleasure Island or Citywalk, etc, plus you can day-trip to some of the best beaches in the country. Clearwater and some of the other beacjes on the Guld are really nice and not completely over-run with tourist traps. You also have mutliple beaches on the Atlantic coast to choose from as well, including Cocoa Beach, Daytona, etc.

AND...airfare to Orlando should be very reasonable considering the competitiveness of travel into MCO. I did a quick search on Orbitz and Travelocity and it looks like DEN to MCO would cost in the neighborhood of $380-$450 round trip per person, depending on flights. The rental car, for a mid-size car from Thrifty (also found by Orbitz) would be about $160 with unlimited miles. That leaves you ~$1000 for lodging and spending money. Orlando will give you a lot of variety for a nice vacation.

Yet Orlando is not on the ocean. No offense, to you altonb, but I don't think the OP should go to Orlando. Orlando is cool if you want to do something decidely American and touristy, but I thought he was looking for a relaxing outdoor/beach type of thing. I'd suggest the Panhandle before I'd say Central Florida.
 

AUMM

Diamond Member
Mar 13, 2001
3,029
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Originally posted by: vi_edit
2 grand for two plane tickets, and 8 nights?

Uhhh good luck.

naah, i got a deal last summer to go to Cancun at an all-inclusive resort for 7 nights, 2 people was a bout 1800 including everything.
 

jagec

Lifer
Apr 30, 2004
24,442
6
81
Originally posted by: kyzen
We're fine staying anywhere - a tent, a Motel 6, a Hilton, whatever.

So... anybody know of some really fun places to go, perhaps places that not many other folks know about?

EDIT: We're in Coolorado, and would prefer to stay somewhere within the United States.

Well, your edit totally killed any of MY suggestions...
 

Mill

Lifer
Oct 10, 1999
28,558
3
81
Originally posted by: AUMM
Originally posted by: vi_edit
2 grand for two plane tickets, and 8 nights?

Uhhh good luck.

naah, i got a deal last summer to go to Cancun at an all-inclusive resort for 7 nights, 2 people was a bout 1800 including everything.

What was the name of the resort?
 

Scarpozzi

Lifer
Jun 13, 2000
26,391
1,780
126
Buy my timeshare.... Linked in my sig....it's a great place to visit and you won't have to worry about a thing when you get there...I just need 30 days notice to make sure they have an available room.
 

mrchan

Diamond Member
May 18, 2000
3,123
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0
An Alaskan cruise should be somewhere around $1000/each and be 7-8 days.
 

Pixelated

Senior member
May 15, 2002
264
0
0
You can always do a California Coast Trip anywhere from San Diego all the way up to Mendocino. You can narrow it down to maybe between Santa Barbara and Monterey, hitting places like San Luis Obispo, San Simeon (Hearst Castle), Carmel and Big Sur.

You can always try to find a deal to Hawaii, maybe going to Kauai or Maui as it's not as "touristy" as Oahu. Always had fun going to Cancun - a lot of people trying to sell you timeshares, but they're easily avoided. I'm not sure what you like to do as far as activities, but I would get bored on Catalina for 8 days.