Thanks to surging gas prices and higher food costs, families are watching both their bank accounts and vacation options shrink.

Two popular options – long road trips and overseas travel are out of the question for many families.

“Europe is really expensive this year to travel to,” said Anne Banas, executive editor of SmarterTravel.com. “That is mostly because of gas prices (airline fuel), but also because the exchange rate is not very good right now.”

Banas said that in response to the high gas prices, hotels nationally and destinations overseas are fighting back with discounts and promotions.

“There is so much on sale right now for the summer. A lot of hotels are maybe not panicking, but they are definitely putting the summer promotions out there,” said Banas. “A lot of them knock a flat percentage off or give you a gas credit or gas card that you can use to offset the cost it will take for you to drive there.”

So what is a family to do that needs a little time away from home but doesn’t have the budget to jet off to the French Riviera? Here are a few suggestions:

Mountain Resorts

Banas suggests mountain resorts as a great option for families looking to have an affordable, fun vacation together.

“Mountain resorts, their high season is the winter, so the summer tends to be a little more affordable and they have tons of summer packages,” said Banas.

A mountain resort is within a few hours of most places in the country. Banas pointed to Smuggler’s Notch in Vermont, Shenandoah National Park in Virginia, Lake George in upstate New York, Breckenridge in Colorado and Mammoth Mountain in California as places that are offering a lot of deals for summer vacationers.

“You are going to be able to do a lot of things like hiking and mountain biking,” said Banas. “With a lot of these mountain resorts, there’s a lot more of a focus on adventure activities.”

Shenandoah National Park in Virginia is one of many mountain resorts that are offering great deals this summer.

“They are having a pretty big promotion right now where you get a discounted room rate plus the gas credit to use for traveling the skyline drive within the park,” said Banas. “There’s horseback riding, they have programs for stargazing and different wildlife tours that you can do to see the deer and the black bears and everything that is indigenous to the Blue Ridge Mountains.”

Amusement Parks

Another great mini-vacation idea that the kids will love is traveling to the local amusement park. With gas prices rising and families looking to stay closer to home, many amusement parks are expecting a rise in visitors this summer.

One of them is Cedar Fair Entertainment Company, which owns and operates 17 major amusement parks around the country, including Knott’s Berry Farm in Buena Park, Calif; Cedar Point in Sandusky, Ohio; and Valleyfair in Shakopee, Minn.

Rachel Onken, promotions and communications manager for Valleyfair, predicts a big summer for the park.

“In terms of this season, we do have good numbers already in terms of our bookings,” Onken said. “We do have a large portion of our business coming from our group sales department in which companies and groups will have events here at the park.”

Onken says that Valleyfair, like many of the other Cedar Fair parks, markets heavily to people who are local to the park. Season passes go for $89.95, and a day pass goes for $36.95.

“Our season pass holders have been growing, and I think that is because a lot of people want to stay in the metro area and get good value out of a pass that you can use an unlimited version of times,” said Onken.

Valleyfair does not have a hotel attached to it, but Onken said most other Cedar Fair parks do have hotels attached that offer deals and promotions.

Cities

Another cheap option is to travel to a large city and just spend a few days walking around. Places like Boston, Chicago and San Diego offer endless amounts of sights and attractions for families to explore.

“Cities can be a really good option this summer because a lot of the business travelers leave, so there could be some good opportunities to get more affordable hotels, even at some of the more luxurious properties,” said Banas.

There are also a lot of cooperative promotions between major attractions at cities that give families that are going to do a lot of sight seeing a cheaper option.

“A lot of cities have family activities passes,” said Banas. “You basically pay for the pass price and it gets into a lot of different locations. It only works if you are going to do a lot of touring. If you’re only going to see one or two things, but if you are planning on going to a lot of attractions you are going to save a bundle.”