Lt. Col. Select Colleen Johnson is a reservist with the U.S. Air Force. The mother of three frequently buys heavily-discounted tickets for local theme parks.
"I just bought annual passes and I think I saved about $70 per pass, and I bought four of them, so that's a big savings for us," she said.
The Los Angeles Air Force Base, just south of Los Angeles International Airport, sells discount tickets to members of all branches of the military to theme parks like Disneyland, Knott's Berry Farm, Magic Mountain and Universal Studios.
They also have tickets to local movie theaters, and the savings can be substantial. For AMC theaters, the military tickets are just $7.50, a $5 savings off the regular evening admission price.
There's a whopping 45 percent savings at Pacific Theaters, and a $5 per ticket discount at Regal, UA and Edwards theaters.
Military members can also get big discounts at hotels like the Sheraton Universal, where they can shave about 1/3 off the price of a room.
The two biggest home improvement stores, Home Depot and Lowes, both offer a 10 percent military discount.
Banana Republic offers shoppers 15 percent off all regular-priced merchandise at the store. The major wireless carriers all offer special deals. Sprint gives you a 15 percent discount with a proof of a government military ID.
AT&T offers a flat 15 percent discount, Verizon offers discounts that vary for active and retired military and reservists.
If you're in the market for a new car, Chrysler offers a $500 cash bonus under its Military Incentive program. It applies to both purchases and leases on all new vehicles.
Ford offers a similar discount on its cars, trucks and SUVs. Toyota also gives a $500 rebate if you finance the vehicle through your dealer.
GM offers a wide range of discounts for active, reserve and retirees, depending on the model of the vehicle, in addition to other rebates.
Veterans of the armed forces may not qualify for all discounts, while retirees, active duty members, and reserve officers usually do, so always ask. In either case, you'll usually need to show a military ID card.