How to Vacation on a Budget
We get it – it’s the second winter of the pandemic and you, like many of us, are dreaming of being on a beach somewhere. Things are still a little uncertain when it comes to travel, but if you’re set on taking an amazing trip when the time is right, now is the time to start planning!
We’ve got a few tips that’ll help you out both in the planning stages of a vacation and to use for when you’re actually there. Happy travels!
Set your budget before you choose the destination
You don’t need thousands to go on a camping trip, but you probably won’t make it The Maldives with just $1000.
This is a major mistake that people make too often. By visualizing your dream trip before you’ve even set your budget, you can get your hopes up and start rationalizing the extra costs involved to get you there. This can quickly push you outside of your budget before you’ve even left home!
Instead, set a budget and then decide what destination is within your price range. If your dream vacation is out of your price range for now, that’s OK! It’s not worth going into debt over. Instead, determine how much that trip will cost and starting saving for it while you plan a trip to a more affordable destination.
Do your research!
It isn’t actually that hard to pull a trip together in a short amount of time – secure your flight, book a hotel room and you’re more or less set! However, there’s a big caveat here: it’s only easy if you have carte blanche with your budget. If you’ve got to stick within a budget, planning in advance is your friend.
As you book accommodation, transportation, activities and more, do your best to learn as much as you can about where you’re headed. Read reviews and travel blogs, look into multiple options, ask friends who have been for their thoughts or put out a message to your social media following for tips on that destination. This isn’t to say you should let organization ruin the fun of a vacation, but the more you know about where you’re headed, the more you’ll be able to save.
Consider all the extras
The spending you’ll do on vacation is not the only set of purchases you need to consider. What other costs do you need to cover to make this trip happen?
Expenses in this category will vary between households, but might include pet or child care, house sitting or services while you’re away, a long-distance add-on for your phone plan and so on. Do you need a visa to enter the country of your choice, or specific travel vaccinations or medicines? Without considering these extras, you aren’t getting a true idea for how much money you need until you’ve already done the spending. Be sure to think critically about what you need before you head out.
Start a QUBER Travel Challenge
If you’ve been focused on taking the trip of a lifetime when things settle down, we designed the QUBER Travel Challenge for you. We’ll challenge you to save $2000 over 12 months - by this time next year, you’ll have a well-tended travel fund you can use to cover most or all of the costs of an amazing trip. You may not even need to rely on your credit card!
✈️ If you’re looking to download QUBER and get started with your first Travel Challenge (or you want to take a look through our list of other targeted Challenges), click here.
Look into local restaurants
When you arrive in your destination, take a few minutes to ask a concierge or a local where the best spots to eat in the area are. Restaurants that are geared towards tourists tend to be much more expensive than local spots and you aren’t likely to be getting the most authentic (or most delicious) experience. Instead, by stepping a little off the beaten path, you can save yourself some money and eat some amazing food throughout your trip.
Alternatively, if you have a kitchen where you’re staying, consider cooking a few of your own meals. You don’t need to go out for dinner every night, and buying a few breakfast and lunch staples can save you some money as long you remember to use them.
Choose activities over accommodation
Once you’ve finally arrived in your destination, it’s natural to want to get out and take advantage of everything it has to offer.
With this in mind, consider taking a downgrade on your accommodations to put some or all of that extra money towards the activities you’ll be doing each day. It’s easy to get tempted by the luxury of an upscale hotel, but you aren’t likely to be spending all day in the room. The activities are what you and those you travel with will enjoy the most on your trip and will be what you remember when you get home. As such, even if it doesn’t save you a ton of money, a splurge on a day trip or some other activity is likely to offer you more value in a way that an expensive hotel room just can’t.
Try to abstain from souvenirs
It’s tough to say no to buying souvenirs on vacation as in many cases, you know you won’t be back soon to pick them up if you change your mind. It’s also nice to have a few reminders of your trip to take home with you. However, this can become a huge money pit if unchecked. Few people track their expenses while they’re on vacation – they tend to add it all up when they get home and then realize they’ve gone too far.
Instead, if you can, think of something you want before you get there (for example, a picture frame or a home décor accent) and shun the rest. You can’t predict what you’ll see when you get there, but you can cut down on a ton of unnecessary spending if you put on blinders and focus on finding the item you really want or need.
Be cautious about using your credit card
When you’re on vacation, it can be tempting (or even necessary) for you to bring a credit card with you everywhere. However, if you’re travelling to a country that has a different currency than your own, you’ll need to be wary of the extra cost you’ll incur in exchange fees.
When credit card companies process a transaction between two currencies, they automatically tack on their own service fee by increasing the exchange rate slightly above the real rate and keeping the difference. In this way, it’s easy to forget that you’re being charged extra – there won’t be a clear line item for the fee separate from the purchase you made.
Leaving your credit card at the hotel and using cash instead can work as a great remedy to this situation. Inevitably, you’ll still have to pay some type of exchange rate to obtain foreign currency, but being mindful about it can make a difference over time!
Travel during the off season
This won’t work for everyone, but if you can take time off during any part of the year, consider travelling during your destination’s off-season. Sure, you might not get to enjoy the best weather of the year or special events that happen during the high season, but you’ll save a ton of money on flights and accommodations and you’ll likely get to enjoy the destination without running into crowds wherever you go. It’s a trade-off, but if being budget friendly is your goal, this tip will take you far.
