Its time to plan your next Florida Beach Vacation now before all the best beach rentals are all booked.

Smart travelers are already aware that booking a beach front rental will save them hundreds of dollars versus staying in a hotel, we have also found a great place to save on your other high cost item – Food. Part of a fantastic vacation is taking the whole family out to great dinners at fabulous local eating establishments.

Well just like your accommodations, there is no need to pay full price for food!

If you are staying anywhere on the Gulf Coast of Florida or in the Disney/Orlando Area you should definitely make a stop at Restaurant.com for discounts on meals for the whole family.

How can a company offer $25 gift certificates to restaurants and only charge you $10 (or less if a coupon is involved) and actually be a deal that is for real?

We purchased our gift certificate for $25 for a mere $4 because they happened to be running a great sale on the gift certificates. When we typed in our zip code, there are a over 70 restaurants in our area along the Tampa Beaches.

I purchased the gift certificate for one particular restaurant and a copy of the gift certificate was emailed to me as well as available immediately for printing. You have the ability at this time to make a reservation through the website. This is not required, but I thought it might make the process go smoother and alert the restaurant that I was using one of these certificates Within a minute of placing the reservation I received an automated call from Restaurant.com to thank me for placing my reservation and that they were confirming it.

We went to dinner that night and had two entrees and two glasses of wine. The total bill was over the amount needed for us to use the certificate so meeting a $35 minimum purchase at the restaurant was not a problem at all! When we received the bill, we tucked the certificate inside and when the waiter came out with our bill revised with the $25 removed from the total tab. Now we could let the excitement really begin because it was the real deal! Our evening, including our tip and the $4 purchase price) was about the cost of one entrée at the restaurant – you reaLLY CAN’T BEAT THIS DEAL.

Now why in the world would a restaurant be open to doing this? Well, if it is a small mom and pop shop, this is a great way to get new faces in the door and let them know about your restaurant. For example, the place we went to was so great that I now want to go there for my birthday. Mission accomplished by the restaurant to get me to be a reoccurring customer. This is also a great way for a new restaurant to get their name out there. The places that were offered were great and they probably know that they are great. They know that they are so great that they can give you food (practically free) and know that you will probably come back and pay top dollar for the same entrée.