How to save money for travel in five somewhat easy steps |ADDICTED

The thought of going travelling can be daunting when we don’t have a large pot of money to fall back on, and as we know, it can be hard to save money for anything, let alone vacation. However, the benefits of travelling can help grow our independence and boost our self-esteem and take us to some fantastic places. While most of us won’t be rich any time soon, money shouldn’t hold us back. I like to think with a bit of hard work, and we could be well on our way to making our travel dreams come true.

Here are our five somewhat easy steps to saving enough money to take you almost wherever you want to go.

Set a budget

You need to sit down early in your saving journey and figure out how much money you will need to make, so your travel dreams come true. Having a number in mind will give you a goal to work towards. Then you can start working out a budget for all of your spending and saving. After that, you should allot yourself a regular figure that you can save. There is plenty of advice laying out the steps to creating a budget if you need it.

Keep your travel money separate

You need to keep any money that you have saved for your travels separate. This way, you won’t be tempted to dip into the money when something unexpected happens, and you will also be able to watch your funds grow. Investing the money that you have saved could be an excellent way to help it grow even quicker. Why not read our article on investment diversification to see if it could be for you?

Short term, pop your money into a high earning savings account, long term, you should always look to diversify in simple terms.

Cancel or negotiate your monthly direct debits

Have a look through your regular direct debits to see if there are any that you could get rid of. Some regular payments, such as mobile phone contracts or broadband packages, can often be negotiated down if you contact your provider. Usually, you have to threaten to cancel their service, but they often offer to make the service cheaper to prevent you from going. You could also use Money Expert’s energy comparison tool to see if you can save money on your gas and electricity bills.

Check all your subscriptions, regular bills and ask: Do I need this? If not, get rid of it, and if you need to keep it, you should try and see if you can get a discount.

You’d be surprised with a bit of effort for much money you can shave off your monthly bills.

Sell your unwanted belongings

Selling items that you no longer use can give your savings account an instant boost. It’s a great way to get started on your savings journey because you will have some funds that you can put into your account immediately, and it can give you the impetus to keep going. There is a lot of advice around online if you are not sure where to start with selling your old possessions.

Tip: Facebook Marketplace works well in most major centres. Just make sure when selling your truthful, provide as much information as possible and be open to some buyers falling through before you sell your items.

Pick up extra shifts at work

It can be worth working just that little bit harder to grow your savings even quicker. We realize that it will make life more challenging, but you will be grateful that you did it when you set off on your travels. Plus, the more you work, the less opportunity you will have to spend your hard-earned money. See if you can pick up extra shifts at work or maybe even get yourself a second job so that you can grow those savings quicker.

If that’s not an option, maybe you can pick up a side job to make a little extra cash on the side, just don’t work all the time, remember, life is also about balance and timing some time to relax.

Hopefully, these suggestions help you either stay on track or help to point you in the right direction and remember, saving is a slow and steady run, not a quick sprint.