Getting to the point where you can save for travel can be a bit daunting.
save
1 /seɪv/ Show Spelled [seyv] Show IPA verb,saved, sav·ing, noun
–verb (used with object)
6. to set aside, reserve, or lay by: to save money.
–verb (used without object)
12. to lay up money as the result of economy or thrift.
13. to be economical in expenditure.
This is the hardest part for my husband and I during our preliminary trip plans, especially when sometimes I have to bite the bullet and be the annoying responsible one.
Shaun likes to see me happy. He also likes to see me in new shoes and outfits. It makes him feel good. So when I am “window shopping” he can be a really bad influence on me and tempts me with thoughts of delicate high heels and soft flowy dresses. I am a girl! I can only push those thoughts so far out of my head!
Right now we are trying to get a general budget for how much it would cost to keep two people afloat in South America for 6 months to a year. Since this can vary wildly, I am at such a loss with where to start. The hardest thing for us right now is the initial investment (i.e. good backpacks, a new wide angle lens, hiking shoes, sandals, packing cubes, visas, vaccinations, general clothing, insurance, etc.). Once we get there I’m thinking we’ll be alright – but again… getting to the starting point is so overwhelming.
Right now we have approximately 10% of our preliminary budget in savings. This may not appear to be much, but for me, it is my starting point. We have stayed home. We watch Netflix to keep our theatre costs down. We make sandwiches every day for lunch and I cook dinner. The hardest part for me is going out to eat. Living in Austin, Texas is sooooo hard to save money – There is always something to do, somewhere to eat, some band to see.
What do you guys do to save money? What budget do you suggest we start out with? I need advice!
Help!
P.S. Hubby is offering his services (mechanic work) in the Austin area – whatever you can spare or think is fair for the work. If you need a diagnosis, general maintenance or repairs, hit me up.
How do you save for travel? What tips and tricks do you have?
This may seem like the opposite of the advice you’re wanting, but I think it may help you save and still enjoy stuff around here.
Something that Jon and I try to do is take a collection/hobby that either of us enjoys (him, new games; me, makeup stuffs) and make a monthly budget of that. Basically a rule of “I can’t spend more than $50.00 on new makeup each month”, and that budget does not roll over.
So, if you track and limit say… cute shoes/dresses, then you can still get new things (or new to you things), but still save money too. If you spend 40 bucks instead of 50, then you just saved 10 dollars on top of what you saved by actively limiting your purchases.
It is bloody hard! We’ve only got 4 months to go now and I am having quite a tough time saving. I’m working full time but living like a student. I have just started giving myself pocket money which I’m allowed to spend each week and not a penny more. There are so many things I want to buy though, about 500 cd’s, I stopped myself buying them over a year ago as I was buying a few a week and it adds up so fast, I love cycling and always want something new for the road bike and then there is tattoo’s, I’ve had so many ideas but I know its money I don’t need to spend.
I just miss being able to spend freely but I know that once we hit the road it will all be worth it and we’ll have the time of our lives, just need to keep at it.
The tattoos are another thing that kills me! I finished my chest piece and told myself that it would be it for a while.. but then that thing at the back of your mind starts nagging. When we go grocery shopping, its gotten to the point where I but JUST what is needed. No fringe. Nothing. Granted, buying for two people is another story….
I’m just so glad to hear someone else that understands my situation. 🙂 Thank you for commenting!
It can be really tough to budget at home. But think of the payoff when you get to South America! Money goes fast, even when you are on the road so you do need to think about your budget. You want to have enough of a slush fun to make sure that you have a good time while you are away. I would hate to penny pinch on my dream vacation.
Eating in is the biggest money saver for Dave and I. I know that it is easier said than done, but eating out kills the budget.
The best thing to do is figure out a daily budget for while you are away so that you are just not putting money away blindly. You need to have a solid figure of how much you will need. That will make saving easier too. If you have a specific goal, you will probably do a better job.
Dave and I don’t have a problem shopping, so I can’t help you there. But do you really need that new dress and shoes before your trip? If you really want to go away and can’t afford both the clothes and the trip, you will have to give up something.
There is nothing worse than coming back from a trip of a lifetime to debt and a mountain of bills, so try to save everything that you need before you go.
Brian at http://www.nodebtworldtravel.com has excellent advice, you may want to check out his site. He even wrote an ebook to help people save money.
Good luck!
Deb
Thank you for giving me a starting point. I’ll start working on the daily budget and then give myself general overhead. You guys rock! Thanks a million again!
Great site. A lot of useful information here. I’m sending it to some friends!
Hi Erica,
It’s tough saving money but once you get in the flow it gets a lot easier – I PROMISE! You will quickly see how “cheap” you have become. It’s kind of funny really. Once you start cutting out stuff it will be hard to spend money on even the basics – like a good haircut. I am now a super cuts girl and really no one knows the difference.
This is my best rule of thumb when saving and here’s an example to go with it. There was this awesome yellow sundress at the mall a couple months ago. I REALLY wanted it and it looked great so I bought it. Then I had to buy a pair of yellow shoes to go with it. The whole outfit cost like $45 which really for a new outfit is pretty good. Anyway, I knew deep inside that I really didn’t need it and that I wasn’t bringing it on the trip and that I also had a ton of cute skirts for the summer from last year. It sat in my closet for 2 weeks and then I returned it. I kept looking at it and calculating how many days it would take me camping in Italy – which I think is probably 2 or 3. This is how I rationalize things – I say to myself “ok that is only $45 and I love it but it is also 2 days in Cambodia”. Everything I buy is rationalized that way. How many days in SEA? How many days in Bolivia is it worth to you?
The other thing is to write down every single dollar you spend for like a month. You will quickly see where your money leaks are and how you can fix it. Plus write down your savings and you will start to feel awesome about things and you will be proud of yourself, I guarantee.
Get your gear from someplace that has a lifetime return policy, like REI. It is 100% worth it. I can’t tell you how many backpacks I thought were great but then I had to return them because they just didn’t fit me right. You can return anything, at any point even if it is used. It will save you a ton of money in the long run. Also you can comb the good will stores for cheap equipment. My boyfriend gets a lot of really nice travel clothes that way.
Another good one is cut out anything that you would normally pay someone to do but you can do it yourself and deposit the money into your acct. I hate cutting my dog’s nails and I used to pay $20 to have someone file them down with a dremmel tool and it was awesome but it adds up. I had to cut that out a long time ago and I cut them myself. When I do it I immediately transfer $20 from my checking to my savings because that is what i saved by doing it myself.
Also when I first started saving I had to budget myself $40 a week for everything (food, gas, etc)! It was horrible for a while but it worked like a charm.
I’m not sure where you guys are heading but I would say you should consider $30 – $35/pp day in most areas in central america. Guatemala is dirt cheap and beautiful and would be a great stopping point. You could easily get away with much cheaper there depending on where you want to stay and how much you want to drink.
oh yeah, i added you to the blogroll too 🙂
Beth, you are amazing.
Thank you so much for your wonderful ideas and I really needed a good starting point for the South America trip in regards to $/pp day. Now I can get a solid number as to how long we can stay/how much we need to save.
As for the shopping thing, I do that every so often (this would buy 10% of a plane ticket, etc.) but I think I need to be a bit better in regards to it. This is our first budget backpacking trip so I don’t really realize how very little can go a long way. Thank you for putting that in perspective.
If you’re interested in some tips on saving money be sure to check out our post on “How We Saved Enough Money to Travel the World” here: http://su.pr/2x9PxA . This has been our most popular blog post to date! Everyone seems to love the “unplugging everything” tip.
Saving involves a lot of sacrificing! In the end, you’ll think back and realize how it was SO worth it!
I was actually talking to my hubby about the unplugging everything the other day. GREAT advice!