Travel on the cheap during holiday shoulder season

More and more families are choosing to spend their holidays in leisure destinations rather than taking the traditional trip to visit relatives, according to The Wall Street Journal columnist Scott McCartney. In fact, McCartney says the most popular travel destination for Thanksgiving weekend is Las Vegas.

Maybe all of these travelers are on to something. Why not take your family on vacation when you already have the time off for the holidays? Just remember your first lesson from Econ 101—with a rise in demand comes a rise in prices.

In order to make that holiday trip more friendly on your wallet, consider traveling during the “holiday shoulder season,” which is the time between Thanksgiving and mid-December when most people stay home to finish their holiday shopping and to prepare for guests and parties. I found flights from New York to Orlando during the week after Thanksgiving for as little as $118 (not including additional taxes and fees). During that same week, hotels in the Orlando area are available for $32 per night, and rooms at Disney resorts can be had for $82 per night.

So why not take a little break from the hustle-and-bustle of the holiday season with a post-Thanksgiving trip this year? You may even be able to check a few people off your gift list with exotic wares from your travels.

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