Family Fun Too Expensive

This past weekend my oldest daughter attended a birthday party at a local bowling alley. So instead of sitting around waiting for her to be done, my hubby, the kids and I decided to play too.

We walked up to the counter and were told it would cost $14 per person for 2 hours of bowling and shoe rental. Whoa! That's $56 for the four of us. I haven't been bowling in over a year and that seemed a bit pricey to me. Especially since one child bowled free with her friends.

We did have a really fun time for those 2 hours and I highly recommend getting out and having a variety of experiences.  However, it made me think - is this really expensive in comparison to similar activities in my area?

An evening at the movies can be just as expensive in my area with tickets costing $10.50 per person for adults (age 12 and up) and $7.50 per kid.  After taxes it costs our family of 5 just under $50.

Roller skating is also about the same in our area. It only costs $6.00 per person and skates are $4.00 to rent for a total of $10 per person. A family of 5 costs $50.

This was a rare treat for us. We do activities like this once or twice a year - making them more special and memorable for us.