Family Vacation on a Budget: How One Family of 5 Saved $2,400 in Maui

When Carlos and Maria Martinez told their three kids they were finally going to Hawaii, the excitement was immediate. The budget anxiety? That came right after.

"We'd been talking about Hawaii for years," Carlos explains. "But every time we priced it out, it just seemed impossible for a family of five. Hotels alone were going to be $400+ per night for rooms big enough to fit us all."

That changed when a coworker told Carlos about travel club membership pricing. Skeptical but curious, he decided to try a free trial and see if the savings were real.

Here's their complete breakdown:

The Challenge: Maui for 5 on a Real-World Budget

The Martinez family isn't wealthy. Carlos works in IT, Maria is a part-time teacher. With three kids ages 8, 12, and 15, they needed:

- A 2-bedroom condo (hotel rooms for 5 are nearly impossible to find)

- Kitchen facilities to save on dining costs

- 7 nights during summer break

- Beach access (obviously - it's Hawaii!)

"We started by pricing everything on the sites we normally use," Maria says. "Expedia, VRBO, Hotels.com. The numbers were depressing."

Retail Pricing: The Initial Quote

For a 2-bedroom oceanview condo at a well-known Maui resort during summer, here's what the Martinez family found on retail booking sites:

Accommodation (7 nights): $3,850

($550/night average on Expedia)

Resort fee: $245

($35/night)

Total retail accommodation cost: $4,095

"That's just the room," Carlos notes. "Add flights, food, activities, and rental car - we were looking at an $8,000+ vacation. That's our entire vacation budget for the year, gone in one week."

The Travel Club Difference

During his free trial, Carlos searched for the same property, same dates, same unit type through the member portal.