I was blessed (#blessed.. sorry, I hate when people say that, but it's valid) as a kid to have parents that loved to travel. I was exposed to travel at a young age and was very fortunate to usually be away at least once a year for most of my life. Because of this, it was always something I enjoyed so I knew in my adult life that this would be something I would want to continue and make a priority! 

 

I have this conversation with people all the time, "You're so lucky - I wish I could travel." and I always say the exact same thing... "Well.. why can't you?" 

 

To me, it's simple. I have a travel savings account that is a regular bill payment as soon as I get paid every two weeks. Because, for me it's an absolute must. I don't have a brand new car, I don't go shopping every weekend and I keep my social spend to a minimum. I'd rather save my money and put it towards a trip than use it on dinner and a couple of beers. 

But...

That's.

Just.

me. 

 

Not everyone needs to follow the same regimen. For others, going out and spending money socially is more of a priority, and that's absolutely fine. That's just how I manage my finances. 

 

Travel saving tips: 

1) I have yet to travel alone, I'm always traveling in groups. This helps to cut down on accommodation costs significantly. You can split the costs between the people that you're traveling with! 

2) Pick destinations with lower travel costs: ex. Thailand and other South East Asian countries are incredibly inexpensive to visit. Find places where the flight will be the most expensive part of your trip. Hopefully years down the road this won't be necessary, as I'll start to have more disposable income. However, for the remainder of my twenties, this will be how I travel! 

3) Set up an automated bill payment bi-weekly. This is such a big help. I don't even see the money that gets put away. I put 6% of my pay away bi-weekly and it accumulates so fast!! 

4) Travel with a large lead time - (unless you're heading down south to an all-inclusive) This will allow that savings to grow while you wait for your departure date! I've been kind of using half of the years savings for the flight, and then the other half of the years savings for the costs when I'm there and that's been working swimmingly. 

5) Maintain frugal when you're there. Yes, this is a vacation but if you're on a tight budget, like moi, remember that you still have a budget when you're there. 

6) Convert most of your money when you arrive at your destination. I will convert a small emergency amount before leaving, just for a cab from the airport or an emergency. Then convert the rest of your money in increments when you get there. I won't convert everything all at once, because If you don't end up spending everything you're losing that conversion cost if you need to convert it back to Canadian.

7) Pay attention to the dollar conversion. Always think about costs in conversions from your own country. Just because something looks like a good deal in Euro's, try to factor in the conversion back to your home currency before you make that purchase. You'd be surprised how much of a difference that can make. 

8) Find free things to do! Not every day needs to be jam packed with guided tours etc. There's so much beauty in just walking around a new city for absolutely free. 

 

 

I hope you enjoy content like this! 

I'm really going to work towards putting out more travel related content. It's such a big part of my life, I couldn't imagine leaving it out of this blog. 

Talk soon!

Ashleigh

@ShortStoutStyle