Money saving tips to get you through the school holidays?
Thu, 02/07/2009 - 14:37
We often take the kids to see at least a couple of the big summer blockbuster films at our local Cineworld multiplex in Eastbourne. Even with a family ticket it can work out very expensive.
We discovered that if you collect Tesco clubcard points you can exchange £3 of points for an adult Cineworld cinema ticket and £2 of points gets you one for a kid.
You can exchange your points for cinema tokens at the Tesco Rewards website http://www.tesco.com/clubcard/deals/
They send you your tokens within five days so its worth planning in advance.
We have also made use of Orange's "Orange Wednesday" promotion where you can get 2 for 1 tickets by getting a code sent to your phone by texting "FILM" to 241 on your Orange mobile. Obviously that deals only available on Wednesdays as implied by the name.
Fri, 03/07/2009 - 13:53
Last year i took the kids to Liverpool to visit all the museums, which were absolutely FREE. We made sandwiches and sat on the park opposite the Liverpool world museum. We had a great day out. I only paid for the train fare which was around £7 return for all of us back to Wigan. Kids are happy enough to just go to the local park and have fun together. Take a tennis racket,cricket equipment or ball along with sandwiches and they'll have a fab time.
Tue, 07/07/2009 - 12:03
depends on what you like to do but as my godchildren are a bit older (ones at university not school) we all like to go out for meals together rather than fight the crowds and compromise on our different tastes. I receive emails from voucher websites and have already taken advantage of all the italian chains offering discounts on meals. Pizza express, Zizi and Strada all seem to have two for the price of one at the moment. Also seen discounts for La tasca cafe uno, and the Slug and LEttuce chain of pubs. Hope that helps, tuck it!!!!
Tue, 07/07/2009 - 13:27
I agree! My children are just as happy going to different parks in and around the area where we live with a picnic, most of these are free and you only pay for the bus fare or car parking.
We also do a lot of swimming together, we are members of a gym so we dont pay any extra to use the pool, but its quite inexpensive anyway.
We do have some days out planned using tesco clubcard vouchers, i have ordered some cinema tickets, some theme park tickets and some days out vouchers (not sure what to do with these yet)
Wed, 08/07/2009 - 12:37
I agree swimming is really good fun and here in Wigan it's totally FREE after you pay £1.50 (per year) each for a link card you can go as many times as you like without costing you a penny. I know not every town has this but hey if your reading this and you live in Wigan "Get a Link Card". It also gives you discounted sport activities too.
Fri, 10/07/2009 - 09:17
Stuffing your kids with crisps might not be the healthiest idea, but if you buy these anyhow then it's worth knowing that Walkers crisps is offering discounts off family days out this summer – including Thorpe Park, Chessington World of Adventures, Legoland and Sea Life. There are ‘bank points’ on special packs of crisps, which you can then exchange for discounts on the Walker website. You can also use these points to bid for VIP trips to sporting events, film premieres and music festivals via a live 'auction', again on its website.
Fri, 10/07/2009 - 20:27
Persil Liquid detergents currently have an offer on the bottle that allows you 2 for 1 at some attractions including Alton Towers
Thu, 23/07/2009 - 11:44
Until 28 July, Tesco is crediting customers with an extra 1,000 Clubcard points when they buy any TV, laptop, cooker or white good (for over £400) either in store or on Tesco Direct.
The nice thing about Tesco Clubcard points is that they don't just have to be used in store - you can also exchange them for rewards tokens to spend in selected departments (with every £5 worth of Clubcard vouchers exchanged for a £10 double up rewards token) or you can swap them for partner rewards tokens that can be redeemed on meals out or theme park passes.
Sun, 26/07/2009 - 13:08
And don't just think about activities that have entry charges. There are lots of inventive things to do at home or in your local neighbourhood - they may just take a bit more time to hunt out though!
have a look here for some more inspiration.
http://happyfrugalyear.blogspot.com/search/label/school%20holidays
Wed, 29/07/2009 - 15:45
Gourmet Burger Kitchen is running a special offer with charity Help a London Child and Capital FM - all you need to go is download a voucher from this website - you can then buy any two burgers or main course salads from GBK and get the cheapest one free as long as you make a donation of £1 to Help a London Child.
The offer runs from 27 July to 6 September.
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The approaching school holidays send many parents into a panic: "How on earth are we going to entertain the kids during the six week break and how much is it going to cost?"
One silver lining of the credit crunch cloud is the number of special offers and discounts floating about.
For example, GMTV is offering Chessington World of Adventures for a family of four for £49, valid until September (you need to call 08444 990 990 to book, but remember this is not a free telephone number).
If you've seen or taken advantage of any other great discounts that could help other families out this summer or beyond, share them below in the Moneywise forum.