Here's how we traveled on $200 a day—and we did cool stuff like go to the Andy Warhol Museum

We visited the Andy Warhol Museum on a Friday night when admission was half-off.

This summer our family spent nine days driving the length of the Ohio River from Pittsburgh, Pa., to Cairo, Ill., and we spent $1,674.45 on food, gas and lodging—that's less than $200 a day. No, we weren't pitching tents. We ate well and stayed in comfortable hotels every night.

Looking to plan a similar budget trip? Here are some penny-pinching tips:

1) Leave the SUV at home. We drove an economy compact car (Ford Focus) that got 35 miles to the gallon. If we had taken an SUV, we would have spent about $100 more on gas.

2) Lighten your load. We packed light--bringing only a few changes of clothes and doing wash along the way. Carrying 100 pounds in the trunk reduces a typical car's fuel efficiency by 1 to 2 percent. If you do have cargo to haul, use the trunk instead of a roof rack or carrier, as using these can decrease mileage by as much as 5 percent.

3) Water only. No iced tea, no apple juice, no beers, no way! At restaurants we stuck with water. Well, actually we made a few exceptions. In Louisville, we couldn't resist the Mint Juleps and beers at the German Hoffbrauhaus in Cincinnati.

4) Split entrées. We always started by ordering one entree for two adults and one children's meal for two kids. If we ate everything and were still hungry, we ordered more. We never wasted food.

5) Carry refillable water bottles. A family of four can easily spend $20 a day buying water in plastic bottles. We purchased eco-friendly Klean Kanteens, which don't leach chemicals, toxins, or funky flavors. We refilled them at hotels, restaurants, and public restrooms.

6) Find free and cheap fun. We visited went to the Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh on a Friday night when admission was half-off and spent an afternoon at the Cincinnati Art Museum, which doesn't charge admission. We also spent a lot of time hiking around state parks.

7) Go for hotel freebies. Bed down at places that offer great value: free breakfast, Wi-Fi, and parking. For example, you’ll receive free Internet access at all Best Western hotels (bestwestern.com).

8) Dive into the hotel pool. Take a break from the amusement parks and shopping malls, and hang out at the pool, where you don't have to pay admission. Ninety percent of Best Western properties have swimming pools.

9) Load your iPhone with apps. We used CheapGas to pinpoint the lowest priced gas stations and AAA Discounts to alert us of money-saving opportunities. You can download both applications for free on iTunes.