I’ve written several blog posts that can help you save money during your vacations. And I think it’s important to remember that no matter how little or how much money you have, just like everything else in life, it’s always good a good idea to spend wisely and budget for your travels. This is also the case especially when it comes to traveling since expenses can add up quite quickly, especially if you’re going to a more expensive location! Travel in itself has a wide variety of costs associated, depending on the type of traveler you are and the type of travel that you’re embarking on. You may care more about one thing than another such as spending more on food and experiences, and less on accommodations or vice versa. It all comes down to you and your personal preferences.
I always say, don’t spend what you don’t have epecially if want to live a more luxurious style, so here are some tips that may help you fulfill your adventurous soul and how to spend wisely and budget for your travels.
1 – Research Ahead Of Time And Make Estimates
Researching ahead of your trip is the best way to prepare and it helps with your planning process. I personally like to plan all the trips I’m going to take the year before so I can space out the time and gauge the amounts I’ll be spending on my vacations. Here are 8 Reasons Why You Should Book Your Trips Earlier. Of course, there will be random weekend trips, road trips, or quick getaways that pop up as well.
Researching ahead of time also helps you budget for your travels since you have time to book earlier at better prices with more availability and it provides you with enough time to save for it if needed. As you do research, you can also start estimating the costs associated with all the activities you’ll be doing during your vacation. That can include everything ranging from travel visas, transportation and accommodations to excursions and shopping. Then at the end, you can compare your budget with your actual vacation costs which helps you with an overall travel budget for the next year.
Don’t forget to use The Ultimate Guide To Planning Your Trip Abroad to help you with your research and planning phase.
2 – Flights And Hotels Are Usually The Most Expensive Part Of A Trip
Knowing that flights and hotels take up a hefty portion of a vacation budget, it’s important to find out what location you want to be in, if there’s a particular accommodation you want and book them as early as you can. If you’re looking to take it a step further and really budget for your travels and spend wisely, it might be a good idea to book a place that has a kitchen area that allows you to make your own meals if that’s something that you prefer. Not only can you try fresh, local groceries that way, but it can also be more convenient to make your own breakfast or have a late-night snack without having to look for food and be able to head out and explore right away.
And, if you avoid peak season travel, you can use less of your vacation budget towards flights and hotels and avoid tourists!
Here are some blog posts that can help you with saving money on your flights and hotels:
Best Ways To Save Money On Flights For Your Next Vacation
Best Times To Book Your Flights For The Best Prices
Top Websites To Get The Best Flight Deals
Best Ways To Save Money On Hotels For Your Next Vacation
3 – Take Into Consideration Exchange Rates
It’s always good to do research prior to heading to your destination on whether it’s better to exchange money at your local banks or currency exchange or at your destination location. Sometimes it’s also better to use your debit card over a credit card and vice versa, even at an ATM.. Either way, it’s always good to know how you can get the most out of your money and be prepared for the type of payment method that may or may not be available to you abroad.
4 – Make The Most Of Statutory Holidays
One of the most exciting things I look forward to every year is knowing when my statutory holidays are in my province. Why? Because I love tacking them on to my paid time off days to extend my vacation days for longer without having to take any additional time off – and I’ve been doing this for over 10 years now! This can come in handy especially if you don’t get enough paid time off days or if you work on a contract and don’t actually get paid time off days. Because you can request less time off which technically allows you to have more money to budget for your travels.
Feel free to check out my Instagram reel on how to maximize your vacation days with the use of statutory holidays. I will plan to create one of these yearly since the days they fall on change every year!
5 – Use Travel Rewards Credit Cards
I love taking advantage of credit cards and opt for those that either provide me travel rewards or cashback. I find that the United States has many better options in terms of travel rewards credit cards and every couple of years I always look for better travel credit cards that come out in Canada. Here is What To Look For In Travel Credit Cards and my recommendations on which to get.
Currently, I love using Brim Financial’s credit card because there is no annual fee and there is no foreign transaction fee so it’s perfect for when I travel since it helps me save a bit of money. One thing I definitely recommend when it comes to travel credit cards is to look for one that offers no foreign transaction fees. You can save at least 2.5% on every purchase you make and that will eventually add up!
Plus, one of the greatest perks of having travel reward credit cards is that you can redeem free flights, free hotel stays, or even activities that you can do in your destination without having to pay much or any money out of your pocket at all. This really helps you spend wisely and budget for your travels much better since you can reduce some of your biggest expenses when traveling.
6 – Visit More Destinations In One Trip
If you’re a travel fiend like me, you’ll constantly want to visit new places and it excites you to be able to visit more cities on one planned vacation. Here is How To Visit More Destinations In One Trip – and it can actually help you budget for your travels better and save you money since you don’t have to take an additional plane to visit an extra destination if you have a layover or stopover to your intended destination, for example. Visiting more destinations in one trip I find is a more efficient way to travel especially if you plan to take multiple trips but can fit it all into one. Not only do you save money on transportation, but you save the additional time it takes to travel.
7 – Take Free Tours And Look At Free Things To Do
Like I mentioned in my Itinerary For 4 Days In New Orleans, Louisiana, take advantage of free tours that are offered in different cities. Free Tours By Foot is a great option and I also mention a few other ways how you can get free tours or stays when traveling. This can really help you budget well for your travels since you can now either spend less while on vacation or use that money you worked so hard for towards other things on your trip like a pampering spa session or even souvenirs.
A lot of cities also have museums, art galleries, self-guided tours, and more that offer free admission on which you can save quite a bit of money but still get to know your destination better and tour around as you intended.
Here are 10 Travel Hacks To Save Money While On Vacation.
8 – Consider Walking Or Using Public Transportation
There may be a few things you may see I occasionally repeat on my blog, but it’s worth mentioning again. I know it’s always more convenient to order a ride to get you around, but I personally like walking a majority of the time since I can see more of the city I’m visiting that way (and I can get some good exercise in). I like that I can easily stop and explore certain areas when I feel like it at my own leisure. Plus, it’s a good way to help you not unnecessarily spend.
Another option is to take public transportation – sometimes it’s as easy as a hop-on hop-off bus, a subway, or a bullet train. There’s also a good possibility that it’ll get you places faster than ordering a car since you can avoid traffic.
9 – Get A City Pass
If you really want to explore the most popular tourist destinations in the country you’re visiting, purchasing a City Pass gives you admission to multiple places at a largely discounted price. Why would you ever pay full price if you don’t need to? At this point in the blog post, I feel like we are doing a pretty good job at budgeting well for your travels and spending wisely!
10 – Have An Emergency Stash
If you’re really obsessed with traveling, having any amount of extra cash and saving it towards your vacation can come in handy. Think of it as a “piggy bank” and save all the random cash and loose coins to help increase the amount you can actually spend without actually taking from your accounts. This actually helps you budget for your travels quite well since if you start to plan early, that means you can save early and the amount you end up with when you’re ready to take off can add up to quite a bit, especially if you only save the larger amounts.
Bonus Reminder
Don’t Compete With How Others Are Doing
I’ve always said that I don’t need to compete with other people, but I compete with myself. I always want to do better than how I’ve done before and I think it’s a great way to stay happy and not have to compare yourself to others. Knowing you’re blessed already is a way to stay content with what you have. Trying to keep up with how others are doing only puts more pressure on yourself to book a better vacation, to spend more extravagantly when traveling, and to show it off on social media which doesn’t always help you in terms of saving and spending wisely in the long run. Generally, we all want to live a luxurious lifestyle and continue to do so – and that doesn’t mean you have to go all out or give up certain things. It’s about how comfortable you are with placing certain weights on things that mean a lot to you. And that’s why I find it important to spend wisely and budget for your travels, just like everything else in life!