Unlike some people, before I embark on any trip, I plan a budget. I never plan a trip travel without a specific realistic budget. I always find a way to save money for trips.
It is my ultimate goal to travel to all the 50 states in the United States, however sometimes due to the cost, I postpone. To accomplish my ultimate goal, I plan everything strategically and spend as minimum as possible.
When my husband and I decided to embark on the cross country road trip, it took about 3 months to develop a real plan; a plan that we can stick to. In the beginning, we wanted to fly but we quickly realized that would not be cost-efficient. Also, another advantage of driving instead of flying is the ability to enjoy the time together. Driving became part of our vacation as we planned stops along the path.
Since I was in a residency program and my husband was in a fellowship program at the time, we didn’t have enough money to spend on the trip. Therefore, we decided to take the following steps to save our budget of less than $2000 for the trip.
Make a Budget
Creating a budget and sticking to it is the most important step because it provides you a goal. Once you have a realistic budget, you will then know where in your daily routine to save.
Avoid Eating Out
A typical night for dinner and or a movie for two costs between 70-110 dollars. On average, we have date-night twice a month which accounts for 140-220 per month. We reduced our monthly spending attributed to this reason until we met our goal.
Sell Items Online
We sold many unneeded items online. I’m fortunate to have my husband because the minute he notices an item we do not need in our household, he immediately lists it on sites such as Facebook marketplace, eBay and offer-up. An advantage of selling unneeded items is the ability to get rid of clutter. It also helps to earn extra income that was unaccounted for.
Cut the Cable
At the time of planning, my then-boyfriend had his apartment where he paid 80 dollars a month for cable/internet. We decided the cable was unnecessary. He called to cancel and to this day we do not have cable service.
By the way, this is our mindset for almost everything we plan and not just to save money for trips. We always plan and stick to a specific budget. Sometimes, to do that require us to sell some items and also limit our monthly outing and spending.
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This topic is important. While it is important to “live your best life” we should be mindful of how we spend if we have a goal in mind. Thank you for sharing.
Absolutely! Extremely important
Great tips!! Although it might be hard to motivate ourselves when these smaller actions have smaller returns, but by doing all of these tips, it really adds up fast! Thanks for sharing
You’re welcome. It really adds up for sure!
These are one of the easiest ways to save money, although I can’t hold myself back from eating out unfortunately. Guilty pleasures are hard to fight.
Guilty pleasures are definitely hard to fight! I cant even argue
These are such great tips. I love travelling and cutting cost on different things has helped me as well. Money are easily spent but hard to make. One of the mistakes we do is not having a realistic budget. Thanks for the advice I will apply them.
Darina
http://daramiblog.com
Thanks for this, I’m definitely going to use some of these tips I’m terrible with money especially the eating out or takeaways we really need to stop lol. X
Thank you 🙂 It’s okay to eat out once in a while 🙂
Great insight. I am currently planning a trip and will definitely use these tips!
Glad you found the tips helpful 🙂
Eating out is a money pit. Dinner for two at a restaurant could be a week’s worth of groceries! It’s mind-blowing. It’s nice to see you taking positive steps towards your financial goals. Oh, and, happy travels!
Thank you 🙂 It really adds up if you are doing it consistently. Just having a general awareness can save you a lot of money
I love this post! I’ve always wanted to travel, but because of poor planning I end up postponing. These are great tips to follow if I really want to travel. These are really creative ways to save money so I can travel. 👍🏽
Great tips! Cut the cable is a big one. I got rid of mine a few years ago and don’t miss it at all. So many commercials. Thanks for the tips!