When you are preparing a budget for a family vacation to a national park you will want to keep control over hidden costs.
There are many times when you think you might have thought of every cost on your trip, but some things you can't plan for.
The first thing that you will want to remember is that some parks will charge an entry fee to get into it.
Don't fret though; they are no where near what you would pay for an amusement park.
Usually, you will only need to pay anywhere from $10 to $20 dollars to get in and this is for a whole week.
This is more than reasonable.
If you are planning to stay at a hotel, then make sure that you pay attention to all of the taxes that you will be hit with for staying at the hotel.
Many states and cities will all charge a tax for staying at a hotel.
Some hotels will also charge for parking overnight, so be sure to watch out for that.
Tipping is also something that you might not take into account.
When you take your family out to restaurants it's customary to tip your server.
The general rule is that 15% is for average service, 20% for great service and 10% for bad service.
Don't forget that the money that you tip servers is what they use to make a living.
However, servers aren't the only people you should tip.
There are quite a few different people who you might want to tip.
If you have a guide that takes care of you and shows you the lay of the land, then it is a good idea to tip them if they show you some really cool things at the parks.
Not to mention that they help keep you safe while you are out.
The people who clean out your room or the bell man that helps you carry your bags to your room are also people who you should tip.
When tipping the bell man, it is generally customary to tip 1 dollar per bag.
The other thing that you might not take into account is shopping.
You might think that there won't be any places to shop at a national park but this couldn't be further from the truth.
There will be shirts to buy and stuffed animals to get for the children.
There are also pictures that you might want to buy to remind you of the trip you took.