Think You Don't Have Money to Travel? You CAN Travel With These Tips!
Many people dream of Christmas is Paris. Or summer Holiday in the Caribbean. But a common excuse is "I can't afford it yet" and "but travel is so expensive."
Is traveling truly a dream of yours? Do you picture yourself in your destination, happy and content? If travel is something you want to do, money cannot stop you.
If you choose to make traveling a priority, it will become a reality.
I grew up traveling. It's true- you don't remember what you got for your 9th birthday but you will never forget any of the summer holidays your family took you on!
When I got out on my own I followed the typical American Dream- get a degree, get a job, turn it into a career, get married, buy a house, have children, grow them on Elm St. with 2 cars and a dog and a white picket fence. Mortgage. Credit Cards. Debt. Traffic.
But as I lived that lifestyle, I felt there was something missing. I had the wanderlust but didn't realize it for a while.
I love to travel! I live for experiencing new places and immersing myself in cultures different from mine. I firmly believe travel is the best education, hands down.
Travel is the highball for my soul.
So I took at my life and made a plan to take back my life and live how I would be happy.
Follow this advice and soon you'll be on a cruise to Jamaica mon ;)
Look at Your Life
You have to start with becoming financially aware.
We have all heard how to, but have you actually ever tracked your every expense? Money management and financial awareness- I choose this word over "responsibility" because it makes you feel more empowered. Responsibility feels like you are being preached at.
You have chosen to make a serious long term commitment. You will find that sometimes it's going to be hard to stick to. Saving money for travel, or anything really, is tough at times and demands sacrifice. That is the main reason people do not succeed. The correct mindset is important.
When you see that pair of shoes that would look so good with your favorite outfit, think- you have a pair of shoes that match already. You won't remember those shoes in a few years- but the memories of your trip will last your lifetime.
This is your dream, how much do you want it?
Managing money is a learned skill. It takes time and effort. But your dreams are worth it! Plus, this is a skill you will use your entire life.
Get To it Already!
Alright, you are ready! This weekend, get a bottle of wine (you're gonna need it) and sit down and really get to know your finances. You're going to examine deep down to the dollar. We all have been told time and again how important this is, but have you ever actually done it? Regularly- every month? Writing down your expenses is important. Tracking will help you know what you can cut back on and even eliminate.
You will be amazed at how much money you throw away every month on junk you don't even need! (or remember-which brings me back to the point- you will remember your vacation!)
Write it all down-
Food, groceries, restaurants, snacks, bottled water, coffees, alcohol, cigarettes.
Entertainment- movies, books, magazines, video games, sports fees and events, dates, music, netflix.
Bills- Rent, mortgage, car lease and insurance, gas, parking, student loans, phone, cable, medical/life insurance, gym membership...
Misc- Pet food and toys, clothes, etc.
Now have a sip of your wine, and step back without judgement and take an objective look at your spending. You will be surprised. The little things really add up. This is not the easiest thing to do, so be gentle on yourself. This is why you leave your emotions out of it- this is simply about awareness. Acknowledge where you are at and realize where you need to be.
Budget
Now don't go all crazy and eliminate everything but the absolute bare necessities yet. It'll be too much of a shock on your system, and a recipe for failure.
This is the fun part to reward yourself for the difficult task you just tackled. Decide where your first trip will be, look at the hotel costs, food prices in the area, tours and fun outings costs, etc, and determine how much you will be spending on your holiday. Keep in mind that depending on where you go and what you do you can travel on less than $50 a day. I will be covering budget travel tips in future posts, including how to find super inexpensive flights, killer deals on rooms, etc.
Now, create a budget and assign strict numbers- and stick to it! Post photos of your favorite travel destinations around your house to keep reminding your subconscious. And wrap your credit and debit card in a laminated photo of your vacation spot- it helps! Every time you reach for those digits you'll have to consider if it's worth trading your vacation for!
Some expenses are flexible- like food and entertainment, but some are rigid- like rent (however you may consider a cheaper apartment.) Budgeting may seem scary. On the contrary- once you know where every dollar is going and you have complete control of your earnings- it's actually quite freeing and liberating. In turn- your confidence will strengthen and you will find it easier to save even more for your goal.
Reduce Unnecessary Spending
On a sheet of paper write NEEDS on the left and WANTS on the right, with a line down the middle. Every thing you spend money on will go in one of these columns.
Be honest- do you really need that latte you always stop for before work? How about getting a keurig specialty coffee pot? It'll pay for itself in a month. How about that monthly trip to the mall with your friends- do you really need new clothes that often?
Using the numbers you wrote down earlier, write down the cost of each item beside it in the Wants section. Add that up and that's how much you can start saving every month for your dream vacation!
I'm not going to lie, it's harder than it sounds to eliminate everything, so that's why you are going to remove a few at a time, so you can get used to it. Take control of your finances! You control your money, not the other way around.
You got this!
Money Saving Habits
Think of little things you can do, such as taking a bus to work instead of your car. Take cooking classes so you can enjoy gourmet meals and socialize too! Then you can cook for your friends at home sometimes ($6-$9 as opposed to $50 a plate at a diner)- they bring the refreshments and you save even more!
Consider purchases carefully- buy well made, good quality items that are made to last. Therefore you do not have to replace often. Choose clothing that packs well, and has more than one purpose- convertible pants for instance, just unzip near the knee and you have shorts!
The first thing they did was decide they would never buy a house. Instead, they chose to be lifelong renters. They chose a meager but quaint two bedroom apartment (the second bedroom is for guests when they are stateside) in a decent neighborhood. This would eliminated the high costs of home ownership- mortgage rates, repairs, etc, and it would not tie them down in case they found a more desirable place to call home-base during their travels.
Sell Unnecessaries
Determined to be a lifelong traveler? Sell your house and car and get an apartment near the bus line. You'll save on car lease, gas, repairs, insurance, homeowners insurance, etc.
Sell the stuff you don't need. You probably have acquired a lot of useless junk! Why not get rid of it to fund your travels?
Make More Dollars!
Keep building your Steemit blog. Yes, it takes time, but if you keep at it it eventually will help support your wanderlust!
Do you have any other skills? Web development, dog walking, teaching ESL, music lessons, personal organizing, housecleaning, home repair? Put them to use and make them make you money!
You can also use Steemit, and any of those things I mentioned (and more) to fund your travels while you travel! Depending on how your vacation looks, and how long you wish to travel, you could set yourself up for a lifetime of wandering the world :)
Now that you know what to do, just stay on the path. Live below your means and save. Yes, there will be roadblocks, but there's roadblocks on trips, too. Being able to not stress and just find a way around them is the key to saving money, traveling, and living life in general.
Enjoy the journey, keep your eyes on the destination, but enjoy the scenery on the way :)
Images via Pixabay and Giphy
I appreciate your support :)
If you feel this post is undervalued, tips are appreciated
arbitrary-kitten bitshares address- 1QBofdLaCckmiHoY1wXg4KF63zzPw7WRd9
❤
More by @ArbitraryKitten you might love :)
How to Practice Authentic Self Promotion
~
Reactions and Impressions of the Written Exchange
~
Finding Your Steemit Niche
~
Perfection is Holding You Back
~
Steemit is Like Marriage, and Most Marriages Fail. Do This to Keep Your Blog (and Marriage) Alive!
~
The 11 Commandments for Relationships
~
Kittens House of Random
~
The Cancer in You Right Now
~
The Day Kitten Went on Strike
~
Reflections on 9-11 and the Meaning of Home
~
Which Side of the Window do You Choose to be on?
❤
Hi! This is a really great post! I often hear from people that it is too expensive to travel but it really does not have to be that expensive. Depending on where you are traveling of course. Another great tip is to volunteer working on farms, and live and eat for free! That way one can travel for much longer periods of time and experience the nature and local lifestyle. A good page for farm volunteering is wwoof :) Keep up the good work!
Yup. I taught English at a Buddhist orphanage.
But beware of the ones that make you pay to place you in an assignment!!! You're volunteering! The right organization is free!
Oh that sounds really nice, I bet you had a very meaningful time!
You are right there are many sites trying to make money out of volunteers... But there are also many that don't. On Wwoof you pay a bit to be able to apply to all the farms in a specific country, but it still ends up being waaaay cheaper than a hotel and restaurant food :)
I love the emphasis here on awareness vs. responsibility. One way I remain constantly aware of my spending is by using the Mint app. You hook it up to your bank and credit card accounts and then your transactions are automatically downloaded, where you can categorize them and see at a glance where your money is going each month. You can set budgets, monitor your credit score, get notifications about when bills are due--it's really helped me track unnecessary spending. Great post!
Mint App? Very cool, sounds extremely helpful and time saving! I am going to take a look at it- thank you for sharing!
Sure thing! I've been using it for three years. Sometimes it takes a day or two for your recent transactions to show but otherwise, it's a great app.
Nicely written, for travelling you just need to put your step forward other things can be manageable. I think I have seen is to use public transport when you are going somewhere, which is much cheaper than the private transport.
Absolutely. And it may take you a bit longer, not much tho, and you'll see even more!
Couldn't agree more. I was lucky to grew up traveling and I'm sure not going to stop traveling!
Good for you! Never going to stop!
sometimes i do wonder how do these people that travel for months even do it, I definitely want to travel soon, thanks for this post
You can work online and travel your whole life! Writing, web design, steemit, tutoring, etc. There's a lot you can do :)
Congratulations! This post has been upvoted from the communal account, @minnowsupport, by ArbitraryKitten from the Minnow Support Project. It's a witness project run by aggroed, ausbitbank, teamsteem, theprophet0, someguy123, neoxian, followbtcnews/crimsonclad, and netuoso. The goal is to help Steemit grow by supporting Minnows and creating a social network. Please find us in the Peace, Abundance, and Liberty Network (PALnet) Discord Channel. It's a completely public and open space to all members of the Steemit community who voluntarily choose to be there.
Really good, positive post.
People get bogged down with stuff, and it becomes a millstone, not an asset.
Live light and travel!
Yes!
And don't just live light on the possessions- live light in your soul.
I find getting rid of the first bit - the second bit happens all by itself !
Good point!
This post has been ranked within the top 80 most undervalued posts in the first half of Sep 12. We estimate that this post is undervalued by $9.99 as compared to a scenario in which every voter had an equal say.
See the full rankings and details in The Daily Tribune: Sep 12 - Part I. You can also read about some of our methodology, data analysis and technical details in our initial post.
If you are the author and would prefer not to receive these comments, simply reply "Stop" to this comment.
Great post, @arbitrarykitten! I just got back this morning from Albania, where I was talking with a friend exactly about this. Him and his girlfriend LOVE to travel and they go to all sorts of crazy places (Albania was their idea) and see wonderful, unknown things. And he was telling us how money isn't really real anyway and aside from necessary expenses, such as bills and so, and they prefer to put their money into making memories. :)
I also love traveling and plan to devote all my available resources to it. I want to see the world. This year, I worked as a babysitter and got money to go see my favorite band play in Milan :) Have to say I was very proud of myself...
Thanks for the wonderful write-up.
Milano is my neck of the woods! You know Padova?
Your friends are people after my own heart <3
Yes, I do! I love Italy so much <3 I plan to move there some day....The times I went, I felt so at home...
It's truly a "homey" place. So welcoming. And, with how Italians cook- if you go hungry in Italy, you're doing it wrong! LOL!
Hahaha! So true, I have an Italian appetite; wherever I go, whatever country, whatever restaurant, the first thing I want is pasta or pizza (usually both!)
Perhaps you are of Latin descent? lol