Your trip to Europe was supposed to be the trip of a lifetime, and you’ve been counting down the days until you leave for months now. 7 Tips For Sticking To A Travel Budget
You don’t want to spend your time in Paris or Rome worrying about money, though, so you’ve put together a travel budget that will allow you to have fun without breaking the bank on things like meals and souvenirs. Here are seven tips to help you stick to your travel budget from start to finish!
Dangers of Don’t Worry About Money (just-travel)
Never Travel Abroad Without Insurance
Plan Your Trip
Every traveler has to start somewhere, and that often means looking up what you want to do and where you want to go. You’ll need some kind of itinerary, so it’s a good idea to sit down and plan out your trip early on. This will save you time, keep you organized, and help you stick to your budget.
Plus, planning ahead can help make sure you get to see everything you want while still sticking to your budget. Start by researching your destination and deciding which places are must-sees for you.
Create a Savings Account
One of the easiest ways to stick to a travel budget is by creating a savings account with your bank. Ideally, you’ll want enough in your account to cover 6 months of expenses. Then, every time you get paid deposit half of your paycheck into that account.
Every time you swipe your credit card or buy a latte, ask yourself if it is going towards something for work or for fun.
Find Cheap Flights
When you’re going on a long trip, especially to a foreign country, it can be very easy to get caught up in exploring and sightseeing and spending money. The best way to avoid blowing your budget is to set aside a few hours at home before you leave and do some research.
Compare prices at different airlines, take advantage of reward programs, check flight deals on travel sites—and then start booking!
Book in Advance
While it may be nice to book a last-minute trip, keep in mind that doing so will almost always lead to higher airfare. And unless you’re booking a hotel or flight on a travel portal (like Priceline), there’s no way to guarantee you’ll get such great deals.
The best advice is to plan ahead and book as far in advance as possible. This will give you time to save up for your trip and avoid paying more than necessary for flights, hotels, etc.
Book Directly from Hotel Sites
Hotels have direct relationships with major online travel sites like Expedia and TripAdvisor, and can often offer much better rates on their own site. These deals aren’t always listed on third-party sites so it’s important to know where to look.
When booking a hotel room, check directly with the hotel’s website first before heading over to an aggregator site like Expedia or Kayak. The same goes for flights—if you want to save money, book directly through airlines instead of going through a middleman service.
You may not be able to find every deal directly from an airline (especially if they don’t list their prices publicly), but you will get access to some special offers that you won’t find anywhere else.
Focus on Accommodation Price and Location
Sure, you want to experience as much of your destination as possible, but make sure that your primary goal is to save money on accommodation.
It’s better to do one big thing per day and save on accommodations than do three small things each day (like a city tour) and stay in an expensive hotel. Research hotel prices thoroughly before booking a room—and if you must reserve ahead of time, only book rooms for three or four nights at most.
Enjoy Small Things
When we travel, it’s easy to get wrapped up in excitement and see expensive, luxurious locations as a kind of reward.
But traveling doesn’t have to be all five-star hotels and extravagant meals. You can get just as much out of your vacation by enjoying some of life’s simple pleasures—and they don’t cost much at all.