Budget wisely and plan so you can travel (Credit: Flickr)
Saving money on travel
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Everyone needs a summer vacation and some time to get away from it all. However, with an economic recession, high unemployment, and people struggling financially, vacations and travel plans may not be a big priority.
Vacations don't have to be expensive nor do you have to go far to get away. So if you are looking for a family vacation or just a long weekend, here are some tips on how to save money for your next trip.
1. Decide on your next vacation - You can't start saving for your next trip if you don't know where you are going. Find a place, set a date, and strive towards it. "Vacation" is what you define it to be.
2. Track your expenses - Spend the next month writing down where you spend your money. At the end of the month, total it up by category. Note any trends in your spending habits.
3. Create a budget - Saving money is nearly impossible if you don't know where it is going. So start a budget to track your expenses every month. Need a guide on how to budget? Check out how this post on how to create a budget spreadsheet - budgeting 101.
4. Pick one item per week and eliminate it- Do you go out to lunch every day? Do you buy coffee every morning at Starbucks? Do you splurge by shopping online for clothes or buying the newest gadgets? Eliminate one or more of these things once a week or once a month and put that money aside.
5. Pay yourself - No matter how little it is, set aside money each month to pay yourself for that trip. It cant be as little as $5 or $10 but reaching your goal means taking action, even with little steps or small amounts. Set that money aside in an account or a place where it will not be spent.
6. Staying within your budget? Pay yourself more! - Did you spend $20 less on groceries this month than you expected? Did you not spend as much on gas as you expected? Rather than spend it, take the extra money that you budgeted but didn't spend for each category and save it for your trip as well. Put it in that savings account so you won't spend it.
As the trip gets closer, here are ways to save when planning your trip:
7. Research your trip - As the vacation draws closer, begin to plan a few months in advance. Where do you want to stay? When do you want to leave (Tuesday, Wednesday, and Saturday have the cheapest airfares)? Choose a budget option for hotels to save money. Look for package deals. Travel offseason. Know when to buy your airfares (Tuesday afternoons have the best deals). Know when peak travel days are.
8. Create a budget for your trip - Just like home, plan a budget for your trip. Decide how much you want to spend each day on meals, sights, souvenirs, and plan in advance. You might save money by eating picnic lunches from food at the grocery store rather than eating at a restaurant. Budgeting your trip lets you save money before you even leave.
9. Sign up for Twitter and on social media sites - Sites like Twitter and Facebook are great at finding deals. Some airlines have even announced airfare sales on Twitter only. Connecting with others on Twitter and Facebook can help you plan your trip as well - saving you money.
10. Plan and track your trip online - If you want to put together an itinerary online, you can do that. If you want to track prices of flights and hotels after you book, you can do that as well. Follow these tips on how to get money back when you travel.
11. Packing for your trip - Packing light can be a great way to save on airline fees. If you're traveling by car, fewer bags means better gas mileage.
As we look ahead, there is a lot of speculation on what is going to happen in travel. Will there be great travel deals in the Fall? There is a lot of uncertainty on what will happen next.
Will the recession in our economy continue? Will things begin to recover? These are questions and concerns many of us have. However, you don't have to wait for these questions to be answered to start planning and saving for your next vacation.
Cheap airfares and travel deals can be found if you budget and plan ahead. Set the goal, take the next steps, budget at home and for your trip, and make smart decisions when planning that next vacation or getaway. We all need to travel and enjoy time in the places we love with the people that mean the most to us.
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Comments
Great suggestions!
Great tips...although I admit to pretty much only following a few of them. We are spontaneous travelers, which sometimes results in good deals and other times, we pay a lot more. We do try to budget for big trips though.
Great tips! I am attempting to save for Disneyland in 2011 and one thing I am doing is having a couple of yard sales between now and then and earmarking all money from those sales for the trip. Only 1 of my 3 kids has been to Disney, so it is something we really want to so for the other two.
Your budget reminders are terrific!
There are some really great saving tips here Jeremy. I think anyone who always thinks they can't afford travel will think differently when they see just how easy it is to do. It's all about cutting back on the little things that just waste so much money. The cost of one starbucks coffee is equivalent to one night's accommodation in some countries
That's a great point Caz. It's a matter of priorities. And I think one of the first thing you need to do is see on paper where you money actually goes. If you want to go somewhere and set a goal to do it, then you will take the steps needed to save up for it. You may not be able to go right now but it's not as hard as you think if you just cut spending in one place and set a goal to travel.
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