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As every working parent knows, summer camp expenses can take a bite out of the family budget. But if you don’t have other reliable daycare options, summer camps are likely your best alternative for keeping the kids busy – and allowing you to continue working uninterrupted.

Unfortunately, most summer camps don’t come cheap, and from Boston to Beirut, prices for summer camps are on the rise.

According to the American Camp Association, the price for weekly summer camps in the U.S. can range anywhere from less than $100 to more than $800, depending on the type of camp, its location and the activities offered.

And whether you choose to use a summer camp, daycare facility or an in-home babysitter/nanny, 90% of the financial burden of yearly child-care costs in the U.S. falls on the shoulders of individual families, according to the NACCRRA, the National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies.

That’s one big reason why family requests for low-cost summer camps have nearly doubled in recent years, according to a report from ComPsych Work-Life Services, which offers employer assistance programs. Requests for financial aid for summer camp are up, too.

The good news, for those of us shelling out money for summer camp, is that you can lower the cost of summer camp in several ways. Read the rest of Lynnette’s article on WalletPop.

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