Budgeting for your next trip is quite possibly one of the most important elements when it comes to travelling, because let’s face it, without the right amount of funds you’re going to be quite limited to what travel expeditions you get up to. That’s not to say that travelling cannot be done without the mulla, however, be prepared that your options will be very limited!
Saving in general can be a difficult process, especially if you’re a bit of a shopaholic, or enjoy regular dinning experiences at the finest places in town, so I thought to help you make that dream trip come true I’d provide you guys with some of my tips for saving.
↠ Make a budget excel spreadsheet
This is probably one of the most helpful tools anyone has told me to do. These can vary from weekly, monthly or even yearly budgets to help keep your expenditure on track and as limited as possible. I personally have a monthly budget because most of my bills, ie. rent, phone bill etc, are charged monthly so it just makes it easier to keep track of for me.
Below is an example of my monthly budget spreadsheet. It includes a section to input how much income I receive for the month, a break down of where my expenditures are, as well as a section for my savings. At the beginning of the month I estimate a budget for each section, and as the month goes on I fill in the ‘actual’ section. It’s a great way to see how much over or under you’ve spent in certain sections and keep control of your spending.
I also have a separate spreadsheet for goals I am saving towards. This spreadsheet includes the date/time of year I aim to have the money saved by, how much money I should be putting aside per week/month in order to achieve the goal date and a formula to track how much money remains until I accomplish the given goal.
↠ Savings jars
Another great way to save your pennies is to have a specific savings jar where you can accumulate all your spare change. I have three savings jars at the moment, which can be a little hectic, I’d suggest starting with one. One of the jars is purely for my gold coins, the other is for my notes (I rarely have cash on me but when I do happen to take money out and have some spare I immediately put it in my notes jar and just let it gather) and the final jar is a shared adventure jar between myself and Jordan – our rules for this jar are simple, we only contribute our silver change and/or $5 notes, this way it allows us to save together but also be able to contribute to our own savings.
You’d be surprised by how much you can save by just putting your $5 notes away and not spending them. You don’t have to start out big by putting all your change in the savings jar, you can start by just contributing coins, or the smaller notes and work your way up for there. At the end of the day, the smallest contribution is better than no contribution.
This doesn’t have to be a boring way to save, make it fun by creating a cool savings jar or if you’re not the crafty type check out pre-made fund boxes like this one from Splosh.
↠ Savings account
Open a specific savings account that you can contribute to on a regular or semi-regular basis. This option is similar to having a savings jar however, this alternative enables you to earn interest on your savings.
If you’re goal is more of a long term goal, consider opening a savings account where there is a fee to withdraw money from it. This is a great way to stop you from dipping into those savings and working harder towards achieving your goals.
↠ Plan in advance
This way of saving ties into having a budget planner. If you plan your travels or adventures in advance it not only allows you to see/know how much money you’ll need but it can also kick start you into booking things, and everyone knows the earlier you book the cheaper things tend to be.
For example, if you are planning a trip to Bali sometime next year. Work out exactly what dates you want to go, and start sussing out flights – these are one of the main things that are cheaper the earlier you book. From there you can start planning outwards for things such as accomodation or activities you’ll want to get up to while there.
What are your favourite tips when it comes to savings for adventures? Let me know in the comments below↓
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