How To Afford A Vacation Without Going Into Debt

You can read this full post on my new personal finance site From Leah’s View.

An article I read recently said that the savings goal of 24% of Americans this year is to save for a vacation.

Related read: 15+ Ways You Can Save Money This Year

I can relate because as I've gotten older I've made saving for vacations more of a priority. Mostly because I decided I want to see more of the world and it takes some money to do that.

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With all of the other financial priorities and goals we have, how can we save for a vacation? And a nice one at that without going into debt. It all starts with having a goal.

Before you can start saving determine where you’d like to vacation and then find out much it would cost. This would include things like transportation to the vacation spot, transportation at the vacation spot, lodging, food, and any sightseeing costs. Once you know what that total number is you can set your savings goal.

Now that you have a goal you'll want to make sure you're tracking towards it. You can do this in a myriad of ways such as

• Set up a savings account: You can have a savings account specifically for your vacation savings that you make regular deposits to.

• Use a financial tool: Such as Personal Capital which is an online tool that can help you track your spending and savings goals. You can set a goal within Personal Capital and then track your progress against it.

Related read: 6 Ways To Save Money When Flying

After you’ve set your goal and found a way to track your progress, it’s time to start saving. Here are a few ideas for saving up for that dream vacation

1. Use your points or miles

If you have rewards cards that provide you with cash bonuses or miles those can be used towards your vacation costs.

2. Flip items

You can make some extra money by buying items cheaply or getting them free off of Craigslist, cleaning them up, and reselling them for a small profit either online or by having a big yard sale.

3. Sell old or unused items

You may have some unused items lying around the house that others may be interested in. Sell them online via Facebook Marketplace, eBay, or Offerup. Some items you may even be able to sell your local consignment shop or thrift store.

Related read: Resetting Your Personal Budget For The New Year

4. Use your work bonus

Many companies are handing out bonuses this year. You could put that amount towards your vacation.

5. Look online for discounts

A great way to save for your vacation is to pay less for it. Searching online for discounts for lodging or airfare can help lower the overall cost of your vacation. Also using sites like Rakuten can give you cash back on your booking. When using online sites though be careful that the ones you’re using are
reputable ones.

6. Set up a sinking fund

A sinking fund is when you regularly set aside a specific amount of money for a short or long-term purchase such as a vacation. You can create a specific bank account for this and every month set aside some money until you've saved the amount you need.

Share in the comments below and let me know what you’re saving for this year.