Here are a few of the top tips I have to save up enough to get to your
dream vacation. Whether it is just a weekend trip or a full
fledged 3 month trip somewhere exotic, this post is for you!
1. Turn it into a game
I really think this one is the most important when it comes to saving. Have you ever tried to go on a diet and told yourself "I am not going to eat (insert a crazy list of very specific things)"? Because as soon as I do that I tend to want those specific things more than anything. And the same thing goes for a budget. When you tell yourself all the things that you can't buy, that immediately makes you want to buy those things or others.
Instead what I have found works is to create a game out of it. Try to find the best deals that you possibly can. Look for the better grocery store to buy each of your normal every week items. Challenge people around you to find the best deals on date nights. But make it fun. if it's something that you enjoy, then it's something that you will try to keep up with more.
2. Check the bills
When we think about travelling we think about these big expenses in comparison. Maybe you think "this year we won't buy a new car and instead will go to Hawaii." While that does work, there are things that can add up to save you just as much without giving up big things in your life. We are constantly looking around to see if there are better deals on phone plans, cable plans, and any other bill. If you think you could get a lower price on internet somewhere else, call your internet company and tell them that. Most of the time these providers will work with you to lower your monthly bills.
3. Stop eating out
I can hear some of my friends telling me right now that eating out doesn't cost any more than cooking for yourself. I am going to tell you right now that's wrong. It just isn't true. If you are meal planning, you will always spend less on food than at a restaurant. So pick up your journal, make some plans for the week, and go grocery shopping, because I promise you it will save you lots in the long run.
4. Opt Outside
There are a few parts to this one. Raise your hand if you have an expensive gym membership? Keep your hand raised if you use it regularly. I figure most of you do not get your money worth of that gym membership. Remember what I said earlier about when you tell yourself that you have to do something? Well the same thing happens with exercise. So save yourself some money on that front, and trick yourself into exercising. Go outside, walk around a park, hike up some trails, borrow some kayaks, or something else outside.
Now the other part of it. Being active takes away from money you might be spending instead of outdoor dates and activities. Trade a coffee shop visit ($5/person) for a walk around the neighborhood. Instead of driving to work every day save some gas money by riding your bike. Switch out a movie night at the theater ($10/person) for a quick hike!
While not all of those things are feasible, even just a few switches can save you money in the long run.
5. Love the planet
This one might seem counter intuitive, but hear me out. The plastic and waste in general that accompanies our consumerism is not sustainable. Whether you want to acknowledge it as a personal problem is up to you, but I promise that a little bit of awareness saves a lot of money. When you start noticing how much waste we create, you stop buying things you don't need. New clothing that supports fast fashion becomes a problem, so we replace it with thrift stores and second use. We realize how much food waste we go through, so we adjust our meal plans and grocery lists and spend less at the store weekly. We become bothered by the amount of litter around us and start spending time outside cleaning up our planet instead of paying for date nights.
Not everything about going green is financially a plus, but there are lots of little things that you can adopt into your life that do help save money.
6. Prioritize
There are things that we spend money on every month that are not necessities. And let me clarify, anything that is not shelter, clothes, food, and water is not a necessity. When we think about our trips and our plans, we need to prioritize our expenses. The biggest way to save the money you need for a trip is to just cut monthly expenses that you don't need.
When we decided we wanted to travel we went through our monthly budget and picked out things that were dispensable. For us, we wanted to keep Spotify, Audible, and some other little things. But we knew that we did not need cable and that we could cut out a huge chunk of our entertainment budget. We also opted for older phones and a less expensive TV, because neither were as important to us as getting to experience new places.
It really comes down to what you can and can't do without. The only way to travel is to make some sacrifices.
7. Plan, Plan, Plan
This applies to so many things. With a little bit of planning, travel can be a lot easier.
First, plan when it comes to the actual trip. Make sure that you are planning to go during a time that is not as busy and therefore cheaper. If you do a little research you can find the sweet spot, where it is fun to be in the location you are going to, but there won't be as many tourists. Also, many places give you discounts for booking in advance. The earlier you plan your trip the easier it is to get discounted prices.
Second, plan out your life to save money in your budget. If you are meal planning and planning out a grocery list, you are going to save money on food. If you are planning out your date nights and looking for days of the week that are cheaper to go to the hot springs you have wanted to go to or when happy hour is at the cute brewery you wanted to sit down at you are going to save money in the long run. You don't need to spend a lot of time planning in order to save money either. Just a little bit of time here and there goes a long way.
8. Do it yourself - everything
Whether it's fixing your car or making your own butter, DIY saves money in a lot of cases. Whatever you can do on your own, start doing. Instead of buying new clothes, find a YouTube video on how to mend things. Instead of buying brand new furniture, ask someone who knows how to refurbish to teach you some small tips. These little skills save a lot in the long run.
9. Be Flexible
If you have your heart set on a vacation at a specific time it makes the travelling a lot more expensive. When you can be flexible it ends up making a trip that seems impossible, within reach. When you start planning, don't rule out the quirky tent camping experience if it saves you a lot on boarding expenses. Maybe you can't imagine staying in a tent, but you could see yourself in a smaller motel instead of a huge name brand hotel. Read the reviews, keep distance and travel cost in mind, and go for it! By being flexible, you can save a lot of money on some bigger parts of your trip.
10. Be intentional - pennies count
This is the last one, but it is the most important. While it might seem like little things don't get you to Hawaii or Jamaica, they do. Every day we make decisions on how to save or spend our money and those things add up in the long run. While we have been saving, so many people have teased us about our decisions to save money in small places. All year we would wait until Tuesdays if we needed to see a movie in theater, because movies are $5 instead of $12 on Tuesdays. While that $7 might seem trivial, if you think that each time Jon and I go to the movies that is $14 saved, it would only take a movie a month to save over $100 a year. And that's just one little switch. If you think about those small things all together, eventually it adds up to be a vacation!
Those are my tips to get you jumped started saving to travel. Leave a comment if you have anything else that you do!
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