The days of loading up the old Wagon Queen Family Truckster and hitting the open road are over. With pressure to keep up with the Joneses on Facebook, families are spending thousands on lavish vacations.
Catherine Banks at Dallas' Legacy Travel says one family recently spent 60-grand on a trip to Iceland.
"Did everything top notch; had private guides and, of course, business class air and very nice hotels."
Banks says most of us can't spend that much, but social media is influential.
"You are more exposed to the thought of 'well, maybe I could take my family to Hawaii or maybe I could do that -- so and so did that' so it's not out of the realm of possibility."
For many parents, a family vacation is worth saving for ten months. Banks is obviously a bit biased, but she says it's worth it to dine out less and forego buying a new car.
"You may not have that many memorable moments sitting at a restaurant table or inhaling that new car smell, as pleasant as that is, but you will absolutely hold on to the experiences that you have with your family when you travel."
A recent study found, on average, parents are putting an average of $416 into their dream vacation fund each month.