This spring break we took the most unforgettable road trip to Universal Studios Orlando. Best of all it was budget-friendly, or as budget-friendly as a theme park can get. We drove to help cut costs. Driving can save money plus you can see a lot more. With every road trip, we always look for fun places to stop and this road trip was no exception. We saw some pretty unforgettable places. Here is exactly what we did with a cost breakdown.
On this road trip, our family of 4 explored-
Natural Bridge State Resort Park
Cade’s Cove/Smoky Mountains
Savannah, GA
4 days at Universal Studios
Stephen’s Gap
Providence Canyon State Park
How much did our Universal Studios road trip cost us?
Please keep in mind that while I regularly update my articles as information changes, the cost of our trip will always stay the same. Unfortunately, inflation happens, but the only way I can update my trip cost is if I retake the exact same trip. Please use this as a guide on where and how to save money on this vacation.
Helpful Resources We Can’t Live Without
Accommodations- We love and swear by HiltonHonors, but when we want to stay someplace different, we use Hotels.com. You can search for deals on hotels, cabins, houses & more.
Getting There- Roadtripping with our car is how we prefer to travel. That being said, Skyscanner has great deals on flights and RVShare has deals on RV rentals.
Other Favorites-
Save money on gas- Upside
Find pit stops on your route- RoadTrippers
Deals on local food & attractions- Living Social
Explore top city attractions at a fraction of the price- CityPASS
Looking for gear? See the best deals on clothing & gear here, & best travel essentials here.
Looking for road trip food ideas? Check out food for road trips you’ll love.
Learn how to travel on a budget.
See the best hiking apps
DAY 1- Natural Bridge State Resort Park
We left in the morning and drove 7 hours from West Michigan to Natural Bridge State Resort Park in Kentucky.
Natural Bridge State Resort Park has a lot of trails to explore. We hiked to Natural Bridge, a large sandstone arch that you can walk under. We also hiked up on top of it, this was unique since we had never walked on top of an arch before. The views from the top were amazing.
We spent about 3 hours here and then drove to our hotel in Corbin, KY. That was a short 2-hour drive from the park.
Natural Bridge- FREE
Hampton Inn Corbin, KY- FREE (20K Hilton Honors points)
DAY 2 – Cade’s Cove/Great Smoky Mountains
It took about 2.5 hours to drive to Cade’s Cove in the Smoky Mountains.
We spent most of the day exploring Cade’s Cove and were really hoping to see a few bears. While we didn’t see any bears we did see a gang of elk and that was pretty cool.
When we were finished with Cade’s Cove we drove around the Smoky Mountains and stopped at a few lookout points.
We spent about 5 hours exploring the beauty of the Smoky’s and Cade’s Cove.
We drove another 6.5 hours to get to our hotel in Yemassee, SC.
Cade’s Cove/Great Smoky Mountains- FREE
Hampton Inn Yemassee, SC– FREE (20K Hilton Honors points)
DAY 3- Savannah, GA
After 45 minutes of driving, we arrived in Savannah, Georgia.
Here we walked around and explored Rousakis Plaza Echo Square (such a cool place) and the Historic District, Chippewa Square (Forrest Gump’s famous bench scene), Forsyth Park, Wormsloe Historic Site.
Then we finished our 4.5-hour drive to Orlando, FL.
Savannah, GA- $9 Parking
Cabana Bay Resort Universal Studios– explained below
DAY 4,5,6,7- Universal Studios Orlando
Universal was running a promotion that when you buy 2 days you get 2 free. Initially, we just wanted 3 days, one day for each park. When we saw the deal we jumped on it. It never hurts to have an extra day at the theme park, right?
We decided to splurge on 2 things at Universal Studios Orlando. Those items were park hopper tickets so we could ride Hogwarts Express and stay at a Universal Studios hotel. We wanted to stay onsite for easy access to theme parks and most importantly early park admission. We all agree the splurge was definitely worth it. You could save some money by staying offsite and omitting the park hopper tickets.
Our typical day at Universal Studios Orlando
-Get to the park just before it opens for early admission.
-Ride the rides that have the longest wait times during normal hours of operation or explore The Wizarding World of Harry Potter until ride wait times are over 35 minutes. (The longest we waited was 30 minutes and that was for the Incredible Hulk Coaster)
-Go back to the hotel and eat lunch. We brought our own food to save money. Then we would swim, nap, and explore until we noticed on the app that the ride wait times were dying down.
-Head back to Universal and ride the rides with small wait times and watch evening shows.
Repeat until your days at Universal Studios Orlando have come to an end.
Universal tickets w/park hopper & Cabana Bay stay- $2,391
(buy 3 days get 2 days FREE at Universal)
Cabana Bay parking fee- $90
Read our Ultimate Guide to Universal Orlando on a budget
DAY 8- Providence Canyon
We drove 5.5 hours to Providence Canyon from Orlando.
At Providence Canyon, we hiked down into the canyons and around the upper rim. We spent a couple of hours doing this.
Providence Canyon is also known as Georgia’s Little Grand Canyon.
Then we drove 3.5 hours to Noccalula Falls. This waterfall is just a few feet from the parking lot. We spent about 45 minutes here, mostly because the kids were having so much fun goofing around.
It was another 45-minute drive to our hotel.
Providence Canyon- $5 parking
Noccalula Falls- FREE
Hampton Inn Guntersville, AL– FREE (20K Hilton Honors Points)
Day 9- Stephens Gap Callahan Cave Preserve
We drove 40 minutes to the incredible Stephens Gap.
Stephens Gap is absolutely amazing. We spent a couple of hours exploring the cave and the waterfall.
*You need to get a permit in advance to be able to enter Stephens Gap. They only allow a certain number of people per day which keeps it from getting crowded. There were only 3 people there when we went, it was nice.
Once we finished there we drove 5.5 hours to the hotel.
Stephens Gap- FREE
Hampton Inn Seymour, IN– FREE (20K Hilton Honors Points)
Day 10- Home
That left us with a short drive home. This drive was bittersweet. We really wanted to be home but didn’t want to say goodbye to our vacation. While we all had a hard time picking our favorite destination, we can all agree that taking a road trip to Universal Studios Orlando was one of the best vacations we have taken. I can’t believe how much we got to see and do on this budget-conscious trip.
Pin for later: The Ultimate Road Trip to Universal
Hi, may I ask for meal recommendations for eating in a Cabana Bay Suite with that small fridge and only a microwave? We want to eat in to stay on budget. Thank you!
Hi. We did this and if I’m honest, our system wasn’t pretty or necessarily healthy. Breakfast – protein bars, oatmeal, cereal, carnation breakfast drinks, Bolthouse farm drinks, yogurt, bagels, muffins. Lunch/Dinner – sandwiches, pre-made salads, soups (soup at hand ), single-serve mac ‘n cheese, Hot Pockets, or any frozen microwaveable meal (frozen meals are usually ok in the fridge. They just require less time in the microwave.) We also always had cut up fresh fruit, oranges, bananas, and vegetables on hand. We basically allowed anyone to eat any breakfast, lunch, or dinner food for any meal. Our rule was that they had to eat fruits and vegetables with every meal. I think this helped with burnout from the food we had. Be mindful when buying your groceries. It is so easy to walk up and down the aisles and toss everything microwaveable or ready to eat in the cart. Not only does the cost add up fast but the mini-fridge doesn’t hold a lot. I highly recommend you make a meal plan in advance. This way you stay on budget and don’t overfill your fridge. Because we drove to Florida from Michigan, we had a cooler that we were able to bring in our room. It was so nice having extra room for cold food. I hope this helps and you enjoy your vacation.