(ARA) – The term “holiday cheer” is often lost in the endless logistics of drafting to-do lists, coordinating family schedules and cooking festive holiday meals. Despite extra vacation time, we still find ourselves wishing there were 25 hours in a day. Demanding gift lists often leave us longing for ways to get back a few dollars.

“Realistically, there is no way to completely avoid holiday demands,” says AOL Consumer Advisor Regina Lewis. “However, by taking advantage of some insider tips, you can easily get back money and time while enjoying the holiday season.”

Below are some tips from Lewis to help you stay on track this holiday season:

1. Prepay baggage costs online: Save money by pre-paying your baggage costs online. According to AOL Travel, checking your bags in advance online can save between $3 and $5 per bag. Check to see if your airline offers this service.

2. Holiday kid swap: You’ve heard of the holiday cookie swap … but what about the holiday kid swap? Gain kid-free time to make your way through your holiday to-do list by coordinating an exchange with family, friends or neighbors.

3. Reward yourself and earn cash back while spending: Unlike other cards that make you jump through hoops to earn your rewards, the BankAmericard Cash Rewards credit card is refreshingly simple. You’ll earn 1 percent cash back on all purchases and there is no limit to how much cash back you can earn.

4. Wrap it up: Socialize and wrap up your holiday duties by inviting your friends over to chat, nosh and yes, wrap gifts. Everyone brings a roll of wrapping paper, ribbons and other decorative elements to share with the group.

5. Road trip rules: Seasoned holiday road-travelers live by three simple rules: Invest in a quick pass to whiz past hour-long lines at the tolls, plot out where to get the cheapest gas along the way by going to the “gas prices” feature on MapQuest, and pre-pack energy-boosting snacks and beverages to avoid crowded rest stops and fast-food joints.

6. Save a trip: Don’t worry about making an extra stop to the bank during all of your holiday shopping. Keep track of your spending by using Bank of America’s Online and Mobile banking. It’s easy to set Alerts, check balances, transfer money, pay bills and locate ATMs. Also, sign up for Text Banking to get account balances quickly before you swipe your card.

7. When gifting, go green: Go green and get back some green with your gift-wrapping by reusing paper products you may already have around the house, like newspaper and even left-over wallpaper. According to the Clean Air Council, in the U.S. alone, four million tons of waste is generated during the holidays from wrapping paper and shopping bags.

8. “Check in” before you checkout: Consider splitting your bulk purchases with a friend by “checking in” before you checkout, using location-based cell phone apps like FourSquare and Facebook Places. With the real-time location check-in, you will know when a friend is nearby to take advantage of those warehouse savings and special offers with you.

Learn how to get back money, time and peace of mind this holiday season at bankofamerica.com/solutions.