With the spike in gas prices airplane tickets have spiked as well. While this may turn people away from vacationing, it shouldn't. There is so much to see, all you need is a car and a bit of patience. Although it may seem costly to keep refilling your tank, it is much cheeper than flying. Many people are not fond of long driving trips, but I may have the solution. Leave the night before. Set a time in which you want to arrive at your destination, then find out the approximate travel time to find out when you should leave. Leaving at night allows the passengers to sleep, which means less bathroom breaks, which means you will arrive to your destination faster. Plus leaving at night will allow you to avoid daytime traffic. Avoiding daytime traffic helps conserve gas! Leaving at night gives you an extra full day at your destination rather than using that day driving. There are two options for the driver. Switching off drivers every few hours allows everyone to get some sleep. Another option is for the driver straight through, lucky for me on all of our trips our driver (aka my mom) loves driving and can stay up for long hours. Driving through the night has another benefit as well! Lets face it sitting in a cramped car for a few hours can cause tension between the occupants. Since you are driving at night everyone will be sleeping, so tensions are harder to be created. You can make these trips a weekend long to a few weeks long! Many people have the same problem of not being able to sleep in cars, I used to be one of them. The U-shaped neck pillows are an amazing invention that help car sleeping to be a bit more do-able. It is a manner of pros and cons. Yes, it may be a tad uncomfortable for one night, but the experience you will be obtaining on your trip will be memorable and exciting so it will out weigh the discomfort. Driving home is not limited to nighttime driving. It will probably take a bit longer to get home if you drive during the day between traffic and bathroom breaks. This summer I went on a week long road trip and hit Birmingham Alabama, Gulfport Mississippi, New Orleans Louisiana, and Gatlinburg Tennessee!
Who said camping was just for Girl Scouts and Boy Scouts? Why not camp during your travels? Now I know what you're thinking, camping is gross, but it can be fun! Camping brings people together and creates memories that will last forever. On top of that, it is cheap! "The camping fee for state or national park campgrounds is from $5 to $10. For private campgrounds it varies from $10 to $40 " (rv-coach.com) A hotel in the Orlando area for the weekend of June 24th-26th, for two adults and two children, three stars, with a swimming pool, and free parking would range from $50-over $200. 
