Everyone deserves a vacation. Taking a vacation has great health benefits as well creating the core memories that will last you a lifetime. Here are a few tips I recommend while planning your vacation that won’t hurt all the hard work you’ve been doing saving for retirement.
Put a little a way each month for your vacation
Every month you should already be having a part of your check go to a 401k, IRA and Emergency Fund. But try adding a vacation savings account to that list. Every month put a small portion of your check. I would aim for $50.00-100.00 to start and you can increase or decrease as needed. For example, most people take a yearly vacation, if you saved 100.00 per check/twice per month(most people get a bi-monthly check) that’s $2400.00 a year, or $4800.00 every two years. You should never take money out of your investment accounts to fund a vacation!
Find Savings and Discounts while planning your vacation.
Often, people get excited while planning a vacation that they forget to price shop! There are many websites that offer discounts for travel and activities. Make sure to check different airliners, travel sites, credit card points you may have accumulated (remember to pay off your credit card every month or it’s counter-intuitive. Companies are competing for your business, so take some time and find the best deal for you!
Tip: Check Groupon for activities, I recently went wine tasting at multiple wineries at around $8.00-$15.00 per winery for a flight and appetizers, almost half off!
Travel during the off-season and avoid weekends
Another cost-saving method while planning a vacation is to aim for dates in the off-season and during the week:
- Flights and hotels are cheaper
- Less Crowds, which will let you see more in less time
- Restaurants are a little cheaper
- More authentic experience, instead of feeling like a tourist
Save while Eating out
Did you know that you can typically find better quality food and a cheaper price with a more authentic experience, eating away from the main attraction to your vacation spot. Vacation destinations are profit machines, prices are 20%-50% higher with typically less attention to customer and the meals they prepare. Travel a little further to a smaller city and you’ll find some amazing food and a reasonable price.
Public Transportation
Depending on where you are traveling to and if you feel safe enough to do so. I would recommend taking public transportation. Not only will this save you a lot on car rentals but you can get a true sense of feeling like you’re among the locals. Also you can see a lot more of the city if you’re taking the bus. A lot of bus stops are on popular streets and in most cases in front of tourist attractions and restaurants.
Find a hotel/vacation residence with a kitchen
Without having a kitchen, you are going to be eating out for every meal. Breakfast, lunch, Dinner and snacks! Most of your money will be going to eating out. Wouldn’t you rather spend more money on interesting once in a life time activities? You can always find similar food at home. By eating some (not all! of course) at the hotel, you will save tons of money! Also by doing this, when you do decide to eat out on vacation you can opt for a little fancier meal as you been saving a
Always carry snacks with you.
A lot of people tend to overeat while being extremely hungry. And when you are very hungry, people will tend to order 50% more food than they really can enjoy. Restaurants want you to order all your food at once so your bill is more expensive. Let’s look at it this way, if you got full after your appetizer, would you order a big main dish? Probably not.
By carrying snacks with you. You can eat throughout the day and not be starving by the time you go out to eat. This will save you a lot of money. Trust me, this was one trap I always fell for. I would always get full after snacking on appetizers and barely eat anything off the main dish.
Bottom Line:
Yes, take your vacation. Create those memories that you can look back on. However that doesn’t mean splurging. Looks for as much savings as you can while planning your vacation.