Save More, Travel More with a Travel Budget
This post will not only help you increase your travel budget, but save money for virtually anything you want in life!
How cool is that? Travel budget AND life tips. We like that.
How often have you made this excuse?
“I don’t have enough money to travel.”
Have you asked this?
“How do they have enough money to travel to all these amazing places??”
These are questions Shelby and I used to ask!
You don’t need to be born into a rich family or have an exuberant salary to see the world!
What you need is information, motivation, and willpower. To save money for what matters most to you.
In this case a travel budget for traveling!
People spend money everyday, day in and day out. Some money spent is necessary for survival and much of our money spent is on habits and adapted lifestyle. Saving money for what you want most is like a game of chess, but less complicated. It requires strategy. Allow me to explain in more simple terms using an example.
As we earn our money we spend it to satisfy our lifestyle. More often than not, our lifestyles revolve around purchasing habits. These purchasing habits are your chess pieces and it’s up to you to make the right moves.
Ask yourself this:
How often do I eat out in a week?
How often do I buy coffee from coffee shops?
How much do I spend at the bar in a night?
How much do I spend on material items I don’t need?
How many times have I made purchases based on the influences of other people?
Sometimes in social settings we’ll buy one, because they bought one. They’re getting coffee, I’ll get coffee. They’re having a beer, I’ll have a beer.
To save money and increase your travel budget it will require a shift in your purchasing habits and ultimately a shift in your lifestyle.
Change Your Perspective
$5 latte a day is $150 a month for travel.
$10 meal out a day is $300 a month for a future plane ticket.
$50 Night out at the bar once a week is $200 towards that weekend vacation you talk about, but never do.
While coffee at home is as little as $3 a month.
Yet meal prepping and cooking is just $60 a month.
While your $9 Whiskey and Cola is only $1 at home.
As a result, we’re talking HUGE savings by making a few lifestyle changes here and there. Changing your purchasing habits and lifestyle will dramatically increase your travel budget.
So, We’re Human.
You’re probably saying to yourself: “Seems like a lot of work and several uncomfortable changes.”
We know it’s not realistic for most to give up so many routines and traditions we’ve created for ourselves to get through a week. But taking the time to realize what we actually spend our money on is extremely important. It gives you the power to decide whether or not you’re happy with where your hard earned cash is going.
Maybe cutting back on lattes a couple times a week and skipping out on the drinks this Saturday is worth a weekend of travel.
See that? Your travel budget has always been there. It’s just been spread out among other purchasing habits.
Know Your Spending, Control Your Spending
One of the most effective ways to see how your money is spent is to save every single receipt for purchases you’ve made over the course of one month. For 30 days record EXACTLY where your money went and how much. It will paint an impressive picture of your spending habits.
Some may surprise you! Some habits you’ll be quick to stop, while others you’ll rightfully justify.
Again, it is up to YOU how your money is spent and what is most important to you.
For some a weekly night out at the bar with friends isn’t worth giving up, but limiting eating out and daily lattes is manageable. As a result, enough money can now be saved to go on week long trip by the end of the month.
It’s all perception and priorities. Making small changes in otherwise mindless or habitual purchases can mean a LOT of money for you to travel!
How We Save Money For Travel
For Shelby and I, we’ve cut down costs immensely by regulating purchases while we’re out.
Brewing coffee at home, ordering water when at restaurants, cooking majority of our meals at home, filling up on gas at our cheapest local gas station, choosing to sleep in cheaper rooms with less amenities knowing we could use the money for a lengthier stay, cutting down on material consumerism (the shoes are cute, but I already have 4 pairs), using WiFi on our phones over data whenever it is available, and much more.
Being mindful of your purchasing habits will not only improve your travel budget, but your life in general. Habits like this will help you make smarter purchasing decisions, avoid debt and self actualize how much is spent on things that don’t actually matter to you.
To be in control of your finances and life is very empowering and will provide you with a new definition of what it means to be wealthy.
In Summation,
Know what you’re spending your money on.
Evaluate if your spending habits suit your most important goals.
Make adjustments until you’re satisfied with where your hard earned cash is being spent. In this case, increasing your travel budget!
If you’re stressed because you feel you will never save enough for that luxurious 8 day vacation to Hawaii, don’t be! This means you can save for other types of travel which may better fit your lifestyle. Take a day trip, maybe a weekend long trip, or even a road trip!
Give yourself a pat on the back. You’re putting in the time and effort to do the things that others are too afraid to do. Realize. Actualize. Enjoy!
Like this? Pin it!
I don’t drink coffee just so I can have that $150/month extra to increase my travel budget! I’m always a sucker for other people getting a beer and then me buying one (or a few) too. These are great tips but hard to follow.
Ha yes we agree these can be hard to follow! Beer and alcohol are always such money suckers but in moderation I guess. All we can do is try! 😉
these are awesome idea to help put a few more pennies in the piggybank! Thanks for sharing!
Of course! Simple first steps to saving those few extra dollars. 🙂
Great informations – its the same I always talking about. People asking me often – how can you afford your travels – I also safe money with avoiding to go out to much or buy unnecessary stuff….
Have a nice day, Martina
Thank you! Yes most are unaware how much we spend on the daily on normal things like food, drinks, gas, etc. Once you add it all up and try to cut back on some of the amenities it adds up a lot! Wishing you a great day as well!
You are 100% correct. You do not have to be rich to travel. If you are on a budget, you do however have to be mindful with your money and make smart travel planning decisions. There are tons of travel hacks out there that make travel easier – just have to be aware of them and put in the hard work to take advantage of them.
Glad you agree! It’s all about putting that money somewhere else rather than that expensive dinner or going out for drinks. It’s tough and you may seem like a cheap skate but hey, travel has always been worth it!
You are spot on! I am as poor as f*** and I still travel the world! 😀 Well, not poor but enough to do it and fulfill my wildest dreams. My one piece of advice is to stick to the budget you got. (but doesnt always happen with me..he he) Great post guys 🙂
Ha thank you! Yes we come off as “poor” to many of our peers, but really we are just trying to save for more important things. Travel for us comes first and any way we can save is great! Thanks for stopping by!
You’re so right, so many people don’t travel or think that those who travel must be rich. I wish more could follow your tips to save and travel more: saving little by little is the best way to go!
The absolute best way and definitely the first step anyone should make. Little by little savings will start to accumulate!
All so true!! Before embarking on our 6 month trip in Asia we did almost all of these and were able to save for this. It took us a while, and we cut back on a lot, but it’s been very worth it since now we are enjoying it.
That’s great! It is always hard and weird to cut back at first because we grow so used to these amenities. Once we get in the swing of it and then see how much we save its so rewarding! Happy you were able to establish this before your trip!
These are some great tips and examples, many of which I do myself! I always take a packed lunch to work and make my own coffee, saving a trip to a coffee shop as a nice payday treat – I’ve saved buckets of money this way which has meant I can travel the world and still have some change left over!
That’s great that you are already doing this things! It’s incredible how much we save just by cutting back on some of our daily purchases.
You are spot on!! It’s just about prioritizing. When I’m saving for a trip, I certainly eat out less when I’m home and it helps a LOT.
Eating out is one of biggest money pits. We all gotta eat, but eating at home saves us loads of money! Maybe on the weekends we treat ourselves a bit, but try to hold back most during the week. I don’t think we could afford travel if we ate out every day!
Great tips! We always stay in AirBNBs so we have a kitchen to cook in – saves $$ on lodging *and* food. I used to be super nitpicky about the AirBNBs we stayed in (SuperHosts, nice areas, etc…) and it was still cost-effective. But as we use them more, I’m slowly backing off that even, and picking sparser places, new listings (occasionally, if we have a good fall-back plan), and even asking for discounts (like – waiving the fee for extra people), and it helps us save even more!
Exactly! We love AirBnb’s for that reason! Cooking your own foods helps save a tremendous amount of money in the long run! Plus we have so much more fun cooking a meal together rather than going out for food. I never thought to ask about waiving extra fees though! It’s true, it doesn’t hurt to ask. The experiences we have at AirBnb’s vs normal hotels/motels is always a much more rewarding experience. Thanks for stopping by!