9 Super Easy Tips to Save Money for Travel

One of the hardest parts about traveling is finding the money to do so. It’s a huge mountain to climb, but it really doesn’t have to be too difficult if you don’t let it. These super simple tips are the things I’ve been doing for a really long time and they have really helped me set the money aside I’ve needed for my travels.

Set Your Dream

The first of my tips for saving money is to remember why you’re doing this and to remind yourself every day. If you’re like me, you have your favourite travel photos framed around your home and a globe flagged with the places you’ve been already. These are little reminders of how much I’ve accomplished so far and all that I wish to accomplish in the not so distant future.

Share Your Dream

Make it clear to your family, friends, and boss that your passion is seeing the world. Don’t see it as a quality you should hide. Most people admire this quality!

Simplify Your Life

I rode the bus for more than half my life even though it tested my patience beyond belief.  I saved an incredible amount that way for my travels. Now that I do own a car, I needed to find ways to further simplify my life to accommodate these car payments. I cook my own meals and can’t remember the last time I’ve shopped just to shop. When I was younger I used to take frequent trips to the mall and would basically go on a huge shopping spree, just for fun. It didn’t seem like that much at the time, but once added up over the course of the year, the dollar amount was shocking. I’ve learned long since then that I’d much rather spend my money on experiences, rather than things.

Cut Back on Your Lunch

Always “brown bag” your lunch as much as you can. This will be both healthier and of course less costly. The savings will truly add up. I know you know all this, too. But try it! At my work some people are going out to eat lunch every single day. If a single lunch costs about 8 dollars a pop, over the course of the year that is almost 2, 000 dollars. That could be your flight to the other side of the world and back!

Cut Back on Coffee

No need to eliminate coffee from your life, but just stop buying the expensive coffee and specialty drinks. I see so many Instagrams of people holding every new hot drink Starbucks has to offer. Did you know there have been over 29,000 tweets that have featured the hash tag: #pumpkinspice since August of 2012? So much so, that I went out to Starbucks (which I never do) and bought a Pumpkin Spice Latte because of it’s acclaimed deliciousness. “Oh my gosh everyone . . . it’s back!!! #omg #DELICIOUS #autumnbeauty #obsessed #gottalove it.” Well, it sucked! It wasn’t remotely enjoyable and tasted like nothing but a mere slosh of cheap syrup and tasteless froth. There’s 7 bucks I`ll never see again.

Earn Some Extra Income

Do you have any other passions you can try and make a little side business from? Photography? Teaching guitar or yoga? I`m venturing in a few of these myself at the moment. See for yourself here :)

Give up the Booze

Easy for those like me who aren’t remotely the party type. I haven’t really had to “give up” alcohol as I never went to the liquor store to drop 100 dollars on drinks to bring to parties or to entertain people with. But I know not having had that a part of my life has saved me lots of money.

Make It a True Priority

Make it happen. Book the flight. There. You’re going.

Assess Your Expenditures

Make a list of your daily slash monthly expenses. Organize them into two columns: “Needs” and “Wants.” Slowly eliminate all the “wants” from your list of purchased items. You’ll be surprised to learn how much you can truly cut back and save, as you will discover how little you really need.