Travel Savings – Practical Ideas

How I Save for Travel

Regardless of popular belief, traveling is not only for the rich. The rest of us just need to think outside of the box in order to save for travel. Here are some of the ways I started saving.

Always pay yourself first.  

Find Your Free Money.

Calculate your budget and determine how much of your paycheck is available each pay period.  This doesn’t have to be a large amount.  If you have $50.00 free, then consider putting aside a minimum amount of $20.00 each pay period into your travel savings account.  I realize this doesn’t seem like much, but we must start somewhere.  If you can afford a bit more, then use that amount.  

Do an audit of your financial status.  Are there other places in your life where you can earn money to save? Maybe there are extra financial benefits through your employer.  Look into job opportunities that offer profit sharing for their employees.  This is a wonderful benefit to receive with no risk involved.  You simply do your job and support the company in that capacity.  The profit-sharing bonuses can be dispersed quarterly, biannually, or annually.  This money has not been calculated into your budget, so once you have received your benefits, you may choose to deposit the full amount into your travel savings account.

In addition, have you been managing your lifestyle on your current income?  If so, this could be a good time to start planning for your next raise.  Once your payment has increased, you can deposit the equivalent into your travel savings account.  There will be no need for extra income in your daily life.  

Look for the Rewards.

Another idea is to review your credit card accounts.  Do you have any that offer rewards?  These rewards can be in the form of airline miles, hotels, or even simply cash-back offers.  Log into your account online and click around, to find out what benefits are available to you.  A credit card that offers cash back, is an easy way to earn money.  Find out how much you need to spend to gain funds.  It is important to note that this is not actual cash back, but usually in the form of statement credits.  But still, this is free money for travel savings.  

This method does require a lot of discipline, without that you could be stuck in a mountain of debt and interest charges.  Pay attention if you decide you are up for the challenge.  This method does require a lot of discipline, without that you could be stuck in a mountain of debt and interest charges.  Pay attention if you decide you are up for the challenge. 

Put the Rewards to Use

Use the credit card for all your regular spending.  This can include groceries, gas, and other monthly expenses.  You should have the funds already available for all purchases and you can pay the balance in full each week or at the end of each month. With online banking, this might be as simple as a bank transfer. This will allow you to earn rewards for things you are already planning to spend money on.  As a bonus, extra activity and payments on your credit card account might help your credit score as well.  Once you have accumulated the requirements, redeem your cash back.  When I tried this method earlier this year, I was able to get it done just after my stay at a resort in Texas.  That made my 4 night stay free!

Even Target Can Help your Travel Saving.

My last idea for today is to consider utilizing the Target Red Card for your travel savings.  The Target Red Card allows you to save 5% off each specialty gift card purchase.  The specialty gift cards include a few airlines, Air Bnb, and even Uber.  Once you’ve planned your trip, start buying these gift cards with the 5% discount and put them aside for your traveling.

Travel Funds Only

The important thing to remember is to ignore your travel saving funds on other days.  There should be no reason to use it other than for travel. It isn’t much, but if you plan, every bit of savings will help. Saving your free money will not be easy. Once you commit to a plan, I’m confident that you will find your way. Be sure to check out my travel blog series for other ideas to get you traveling!