Give them a small allowance and make it perfectly clear that:

1. You (the parent) are not an ATM. Once this money is gone, it will NOT be replenished (at least, by the parents).

2. This is all the money that will be given to him/her.

3. This is their money to spend as they wish provided that what they purchase is not illegal, unsafe, or illicit (you kids know what I'm referring to). And of course, items must be consumed on location or easily packed into baggage when returning home.

4. Anything that they absolutely must have or they'll die, will require money from their own savings or piggybank. Of course Rule 3 still applies.

I would suggest $20-$50 depending on destination and age of child. Can't really get into too much trouble with this amount of money. But it's enough for them to get a few souvenirs and treasures.

Hopefully, this will make you feel less like a cash machine and the kids will have a bit of "freedom" and fun.

Posted By Anna Silverman on September 3, 2008, 4:46 PM

I make my 7 year old son bank half his allowance every week. As holidays approach, we decide how much money is appropriate for the length of the trip and allow him to bring that amount on vacation. Mom or dad have veto rights on the purchase and once the money is spent, it is not being replenished. It seems to work well and he has to really think how he wants to spend his money without pestering us to death asking for money every five minutes.

Posted By Lleona on September 4, 2008, 12:34 PM

When we go on vacations, we always give the kids a little bit of spending money. With 6 kids it sure does help with constantly having to say no. We give a certain amount to each child depending on age and put the money in an envelope. A pre-paid card would work too, but we find with the envelope they can see exactly how much money they have left. There have been times when they have decided against buying an item because it would take all their money. Doing it this way also helps them with their math skills. They are told upfront that the money in the envelope is all they have and once it is gone, it's gone. I have been surprised at how well this works. Even with our younger children Hope this is helpful to someone.

Posted By Tammy H on September 4, 2008, 12:37 PM

On our last year's summer vacation my four kids were given a set amount of money to spend per person. The way I worked it was I am not a 'change' spender but tend to accumulate bowls here and bowls there. In early June I have the kids round up all the change and then we go about rolling the coins. This takes days as we do it by hand. It is a great math exercise and actually rather relaxing and rewarding when the $$ are adding up. I told the kids that whatever the total was that they could split it as their spending money but each has to help roll it and count it. Well, when they saw that we had like $200.00 they were very impressed. We took it to the bank and the bank teller gave them each their share in little envelopes. On vacation I use that trick of saying look around and then on the last day or on the way out we will buy whatever they want with their money but they spend their money and when it is gone oh well. Using both of these strategies has helped as they have time to really think over the purchase and really decide if it is something they really want to spend THEIR $ on. They were so happy with this system that this June they said they needed to start rolling change again as we recently spent 2+ weeks in southern CA. Again, they ended up with like 5-60 each. It does probably sound like a lot of money, but trust me they buy their own t-shirts now which like uses up 1/2 of that anyway!

Posted By Carol J on September 4, 2008, 12:43 PM

We took 5 grandchildren to Willimsburg Va. this last summer and had aball. We gave each child a certain amount of money and stated "This is it Kid" except for one main meal aday (which most of the time was at the resort) They were great!! Only one ran out before the end ofthe trip but I found the other sisters helped her out... which is "OK" too. great idea and we would do it again...

Posted By Marilyn on September 4, 2008, 1:05 PM

We've traveled quite a bit with our kids, ages 13, 10, and 5. I find that it's good to give them each a small amount in each city we visit. $5-10 gets them something small and usually tacky, but makes them very happy (and keeps them engaged as we shop). However, on each trip, I also help them pick out a t-shirt or sweatshirt--wearable trinkets that do double-duty at home...clothe them and remind them of our fabulous travel memories! We're not an allowance family--everyone just chips in on chores, and when they need cash for something legitimate, we give it to them--but if we were, I like the idea of them saving for the trip in advance.

Posted By Lisa Bergren on September 4, 2008, 1:06 PM

When my children were 10 and 12, we went to NY. I made them "earn" their spending money.....meaning, if they were good, didn't fight with each other and did pretty much what I asked....they would receive money as "payment". It worked really well.

Posted By April on September 4, 2008, 1:28 PM

Since we don't give our kids regular allowances, when we go on vacation for 2 1/2 weeks each summer we give each of our children $100 to spend as they wish. Then at the end of the trip any money left is there's to take home. I find this to be very effective because if it is something they truly want they'll buy it but surprisingly I find they take lots home to use for that special purchase they have been saving for. Giving them their own money makes them put more thought into their purchases.

Posted By Machell on September 4, 2008, 1:44 PM

I give each of my children an envelope at the beginning of the vacation with a $5 bill for each day of the vacation (if we are there for 10 days they get $50) They can spend it on whatever they want or save it. My 15 year old daughter likes to buy 1 bigger item, while my 10 year old son buys trinkets at every almost place. They are allowed to keep whatever they don't spend so this summer they each brought home over $20 buck to buy something they are saving for. I have been using this system for about 4 years and I have noticed that they really think before they buy.

Posted By Elizabeth on September 4, 2008, 2:26 PM

The idea that worked best for us was a garage sale. The kids cleaned their rooms and playroom and put toys, books and clothes that were not longer used in a pile for a garage sale. They helped the day of the sale. At the end of the day, the proceeds were split between the three children with the instruction that it had to last the whole trip. It worked very well-the kids were motivated to clean because they would make more money and it took stress off me during the vacation.

Posted By JanZ on September 4, 2008, 3:20 PM

We go to Disney World every year. This summer we were there for 15 days!!! It can get expensive and annoying hearing constant whining for this and that. We have a marble system, the children earn marbles for helping around the house and doing good things, practicing instruments, reading chapter books, and for A's on tests and report cards. They lose them for bad behavior, bad grades, messy rooms, etc. When we get ready to go on vacation each marble equals $1.00. That is their money to spend on vacation and when it's gone it's gone! It worked wonderfully and our 7 year old even came home with some money!

Posted By Vickie on September 4, 2008, 3:23 PM

For both sets of ages of children, I do believe the parents are responsible for all their food and drink and cost of the trip for vacation. They, the children, should be encouraged to start saving their allowances and money earned throughout the year to spend as they want on vacation. For their purchases of t-shirts or trinkets as mementos they should use their own money. This gives them responsibility they need in their future endeavors. I also think they will appreciate their purchases much more if it's something they bought with their own earned money.

Posted By G. Hammett on September 4, 2008, 3:32 PM

We took our two granddaughters age 8 & 13 to London this summer. We gave them each 10 pounds (about $20)daily. London is very expensive. This was theirs to spend on whatever they liked or save. The 8 year old at first was always spending on ice cream, candy, trinkets etc, the 13 yr old saved most of hers till she saw clothes and shoes she liked. They even bought souvenirs for their friends with this money. The last few pences were spent at the airport on chocolate bars for the trip home. This worked really well and the girls liked it also.

Posted By Janice on September 4, 2008, 4:02 PM

On a recent trip to DisneyWorld our 12 & 8 year olds were each given $20 a day to spend on anything they wanted. They could chose to spend it all in one place, spend a little in several places, or save it and add it to the next day's amount. There was no whining, no begging, and it reinforced the lesson to "spend wisely and well".

Posted By R J on September 4, 2008, 4:03 PM

When my fiancee and I told his 8 year old daughter we were going to Disney a years ago, we told her that if she wanted to buy stuff, she would need to save her money. (She has five sets of granparents, so she always has a little money to spend....)

We also told her that whatever amount of money she saved, we would match. We figured she would only save about $20 or $30. To our surprise, she saved $100! So she ended up with $200 spending money, which was almost as much as we had allowed for ourselves, so it was kinda funny. She still had to think about what she spent it on, though, because we had made it clear that she wasn't getting any more from us. And suprisingly, she did not spend it all.

Posted By AK on September 4, 2008, 6:22 PM

When my parents took my sisters and me on long car trips, we were given $1 each day (not bad money in the '60s). However, if any child asked "how long 'til we get there?" or "when do we get there?" or any variant of that awful question, she would be fined 10 cents. The idea was to encourage the kids to learn navigation and how to figure distance and time. I could ask for the map, I could ask how fast we were going, I could see from the road signs how far we were from the destination, I could check my watch for the time -- but asking "when do we get there?" would cost me money I wanted to spend at the next Stuckey's.

Posted By Marmorgan on September 4, 2008, 7:33 PM

Because we live in a culture of yes-parenting, saying no to children especially when they want to buy something, is difficult. All the suggestions thus far encourage children to think before they buy be it with your money or their earned money. The real test is a parent's ability to refuse when the amount needed to complete a purchase is small and you can easily supply it. Giving in and handing over the dollars defeats the entire purpose of a travel allowance. The goal is to teach budgeting and smart purchasing decisions. With younger children, strongly suggesting that they wait, that they may see something they want more, will help them develop a keener eye. If a travel allowance accomplishes these things, it's a good idea.

Posted By Susan Newman, Ph.D. on September 4, 2008, 9:29 PM

When I was a kid my parents kept a giant change jar where they put loose change at the end of the day. Before we left for a trip we went to the bank to have the money counted. My brother and I always got to split whatever was in the jar as our spending money for the trip! I always looked forward to it!

Anne

Posted By Prêt à Voyager on September 5, 2008, 12:00 PM

We plan our family vacations a year in advance. What we found works great is once we plan where we are going to take a trip i.e Hawaii, I will go to a craft store and buy a large clear plastic container with a lid for each child. I then go to the sticker isle of the store and buy tons of stickers that go with the type of location we are visiting. So, with Hawaii, I would be buying stickers of Hawaii, fish, luaus, flowers and then we have a party of decorating each of our jars...and yes...I get one too. Each week, I give the kids a set amount of money to place into their jar and by the time the trip arrives, everyone has quite a nice little stash of spending money. As the kids have gotten older, the more fun it has become.

Posted By Barbara Patrouch on September 5, 2008, 4:38 PM

At the time when we went to Disney our daughter was earning an allowance and she saved her money. Before the trip we took what she had saved and matched it then placed that on a "visa" card for her to use on whatever she wanted while we were there. The only two things we bought for her were her Ears and a t-shirt as we had made that stipulation before we left. She was 7 at the time and totally loved the idea that she had her own "credit card" and could sign for her purchases. She even kept track of how much she spent and kept a running list of things she saw and wanted to buy so that she could get as many things on her list as possible.

Posted By Amy J on September 9, 2008, 12:52 PM

The only rule we have is that our children can't buy the first thing they see/want. Only once have they regretted NOT buying something as opposed to having buyer's remorse at spending their money on the first trinket. This rule has also taught them to comparison shop & think over purchases.

Posted By Jennie on September 13, 2008, 10:39 PM