July is summer vacation month. The time when families are hitting the beach, trekking the mountain path and singing along on road trips. And with a few weeks remaining befor suitcases are replaced with book bags, there is still time to take everyone on a last minute get away.

A road trip is a great option – it is fuel and budget friendly compared to airfare for a family of four.   AAA offers a great search engine to find gas prices in all 50 states it is Fuel Price Finder. And my personal favorite is Gasbuddy.com  – find stations and gas prices for regular, premium and diesel.

A little adventure can be fun with a wrong turn here or there, but having clear directions is important!  Sorting out streets, roads and boulevards in an unknown city can be daunting to say the least. You will want and need assistance.

My favorite app is Google Maps. Type in the address and click the drive or walk icon and the directions and navigation begins right away. A pleasant voice guides you along your way – and information is correct too!

We are looking for a deal each time we travel. Groupon always has us covered.  Type in the name of your destination for hotels, entertainment and food options. There is sure to be a discount listed.

Car rentals are a great choice for a road trip. Your car can stay home and rest before the slew of  school activities starting soon. When looking for car rental deals check out Autoslash.com for discounts, coupons and deals for your favorite car rental company.

Not all rental companies are listed on Auto Slash, so check for deals on kayak.com and carrental.com   A great site for discounts and coupons for your trip is promocodes.com. Great for car rentals and other parts of your trip too.

Tip:  when booking on sites other than the car rental company’s website, opt out of the insurance offered. This insurance does not give you the coverage you will need if something happens to the rental car. You will be responsible to the car rental company for the repairs or replacement.  Afterwards you can settle with the online insurance  and your personal insurance. This could take months. Purchase the insurance  from the car rental company which covers all damage, repairs and replacement of the vehicle without involving your insurance company.

When you arrive in your destination, you may be ready to park the car and travel using the local transportation. Wanderu.com helps you find your routing by plugging in your city and clicking search.

Have fun and create more summer memories before the school bells ring.