This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Ebates. All opinions are 100% mine.
People may choose not to travel for a variety of reasons, but one of the most common reasons is money. I recently posted what I figured to be what the average vacation costs a family of four for one week…$4000. That’s a pretty big chunk of money for most people. So, I wanted to post some thoughts on how to save for a vacation. Use my travel budget vacation cost worksheet to estimate what your trip will cost.
SAVE MORE MONEY
Here are some of my best tips for how we save more money for vacations. These ideas will help you stash away money so you can enjoy your vacation without stressing over the cost.
52 Week Savings Challenge
Have you guys heard of the 52 week money savings challenge? The idea is that you save up $1,378 after one year of putting away money each week. They recommend starting with Week 1 at $1; Week 2 is $2… I actually like the idea of doing it in reverse because Christmas is always an expensive time of the year for us. So, save $52 week 1, $51 week 2…
Sell Stuff
Sell, sell, sell! We’ve had some great luck adding to our income by selling stuff we would have donated or no longer use. Just this month we sold a winter coat and a box of girls’ clothing for $60. Have you upgraded any electronics and the old ones are just sitting there? Sell them! We love using eBay, Facebook Buy/Sell Groups, and Craigslist to get things out of our home and money into our pockets!
Get Deals When You Shop
One of my favorite ways to save money is using Ebates to get cashback on stuff I’m already buying. I’m doing some back to school shopping and just earned $6 cashback when I bought shoes for Lizzy. I have the installed as an extension so I’m automatically shown when I can be earning cashback and if there are coupons available. There are cashback offers for so many popular stores and even travel brands like Expedia, Marriott, and Alamo. I’ve been using Ebates since 2011 and I’ve saved over $1,000 from using it, on stuff I was buying already. It truly is a way to save more!
Side Jobs
Do you have a talent that you can “offer” friends or family? This could be a way to have a second job but on your own terms. Offer up your talents and see if anyone needs some helping hands. You can even explain that you’re saving for a vacation. Just make sure you don’t spend money to make money unless it’s guaranteed. This can be a great way for kids to save for treats and souvenirs on vacation!
LOWER YOUR COSTS
One of the easiest steps for how to save for a vacation is to lower the cost of your trip. If you need less money for the vacation, you’ll need to save up less. Obvious, I know.
Driving vs Flying
Driving typically costs less than flying, check out my post on how to decide to fly or drive. Remember, driving long distances means an increase in car wear, more stops (i.e. more places to spend money), and possible hotel stopovers.
Hotels or Rentals
Vacation rentals are a great option for many families. They often cost less than a hotel and provide more space. You can also save by preparing your own food, and you won’t have extra charges for things like parking, high speed internet, tipping, or resort fees. If you are booking hotels, you can get 10% cash back when booking accommodations on Thursdays through Travel Thursdays.
Food & Dining
Food is one area that we like to save money. During travels, consider packing your own snacks & food so you’re not tempted to buy en route. We like to find hotels that offer complimentary breakfast so we remove that expense for each day of our trip. We’ve also packed in our own water and snacks to most attractions (be mindful of attraction policies).
Pick Activities with Care
Look for free or low cost activities. Don’t go to an attraction every day, and find ways to experience the city/destination for free. We love driving to a local park or beach on our trips. We also typically spend a day at the hotel enjoying the pool or walking around.
Trip Length
Shorten your trip length. If you stay less than a week, you can reduce the accommodation and food costs for your trip. Hotel and food costs are where we spend a lot, so shortening your trip means lowering those costs.
LOWER YOUR EXPENSES
In order to save for vacation, lowering what you’re spending during daily life can make a big impact. Save for your vacation by thinking carefully about what you’re spending money on. That money can be put towards vacation savings.
Cut the Cable
Have you heard how many people are getting rid of cable and or phone lines to save on their monthly bills? It’s not that much of a stretch anymore because of things like cell phones, Netflix, Hulu, and live streaming. You could save around $80 a month, which adds up to $960 after a year.
Shop Smarter
We recently had our insurance policies reviewed and it saved us about $200. We also like to check eBay and Amazon for purchasing our household products. Things like light bulbs, water filters, batteries, cat litter, even toilet paper, are typically cheaper online. Also, consider the DIY approach to maintenance. Paul recently fixed our washing machine thanks to a YouTube video instead of calling Sears for service.
Eat at Home
Eating out can cost a family a lot. We rarely leave a restaurant without paying $40+. Even fast food can cost our family $20+. If you’re a family who likes to eat out, just taking out one of these a week can save about $120 a month. That’s a cool $1,440.
Buy Less
Avoid impulse buys. Do you like to pick up things while you’re shopping that weren’t on your list and aren’t really needed? For example, that cute purse or that great toy that’s half off? Even spending $50 a month on non-essentials adds up to $600 in a year. Remember, no matter what percentage off the item is you can always choose to save 100%! Also, if you’re saving for a special trip, consider putting a photo in your wallet or with your credit card/cash so you remember when you pull out the money, it could be going towards that vacation.
There’s my list of ideas for how to save for vacation! Hope these tips can help you figure out how you can save more money and stress less about paying for a vacation. Do you have any ideas I didn’t mention? I’d love to hear them!
Yes, please! I need a vacation now!!
Hope you can go on one soon Whitney! :)
Great tips, Kimberly! Pinning this one now! We also try to pack some food to save on eating out. It’s crazy how fast costs rise as soon as we have to eat out!
Thanks for pinning Carrie! That’s one of the tips we use the most. Especially if we stay at a “suite” hotel with a kitchenette and free breakfast.
One thing I do is save $5 bills and my change. I put them in my bank account on December 31st. I usually save $600-$1000.
That’s a great tip Dionne. I bet it can really add up and surprise you!
I love these tips! We have been having a hard time saving since we are expecting a baby. Thanks!
Glad you liked the tips. Baby expenses have a way of sucking up all excess cash! It kind of continues as they get older, just in different forms! Best wishes for happy and healthy pregnancy and baby!
UMM bookmarking your site! What a clever idea! And so useful! I love this!
xx Caitlin
Thank you Caitlyn! It’s so nice to hear about new readers!
Great tips. We found using airbnb last summer a real money saver vs. staying in hotel rooms
Absolutely Nicola. I mentioned using vacation rentals and airbnb is one of the main ones. It really can save some money, especially if you can make your own meals!
Great tips. Thanks for sharing! I am the worst at buying spur of the moment items. The idea about keeping a photo in my wallet is perfect!
Thanks Angela! Those little extras do add up! I also find that if I want something I like to walk around the store a bit before going right to purchase it. Many times I decide I don’t need it. Also, I’ve found using the hand basket at Target really helps keep me from buying extra stuff!
These are great tips! I am definitely trying it this year. We go on vacation in June, so I am doing it in 6 months, so I am adding double the amount each week. And, I am keeping the money at my IL’s, so we aren’t tempted to spend it!
Good job Jennifer! So exciting — I hope you have a fabulous trip!
You have some very good points here. I used many of these when I was younger with children. Something I have done since before children, even when I was making a salary that was lower than you would even believe (it was that long ago). I put 10 dollars a week, later 25 dollars a week, in a savings account. I did it before anything else was spent. I felt I would probably spend it somewhere else and probably on something I really didn’t need. I continued that practice all my life, upping the amount as the years went on and my income increased. That money meant we were able to travel often once we had children. It works!
Jodee, that is such a great tip. It’s a great practice to pay into your savings right away. We have a set amount that gets auto-deposited from paychecks directly into savings. That way we don’t even see the money.
This is such a great list. I am actually planning our first family vacation in a many many years. I’m going to try the 52 week money challenge, but I agree it would be easier in reverse for sure.
Great Stephanie! Glad it gave you some ideas! Best wishes in your planning. Feel free to contact me if you have a question!
Love these tips! I’ve seen the 52-week challenge; maybe I’ll actually get around to doing it this year!!
Hi Lauren! So glad you like the tips. I found that a SITS member posted a free 52 week challenge printable, so perhaps that will help!
It’s been so cold lately. I’m already dreaming of a nice summer vacation. These are great tips. I’d never heard of the 52-week money saving challenge. Sounds doable.
The 52 week challenge became really popular last year on Pinterest, but I don’t know who originally wrote/sourced it. A SITS member posted a free printable (I linked to it in one of these comment threads) so you could use that to stay on track. Thanks for stopping by!
Nice post. I like the 52 week savings challenge idea. :)
Thank you Julie! I heard of the idea last year on Pinterest, but couldn’t figure out who the original source was. It’s a great idea, and one I think many people could do!
These are some great tips Kimberly – I’m especially interested in the 52 weeks of saving :D Looking forward to putting these tips to good use as I’m in the mood for some California! -Iva
Hi Iva! I hope you can make it to CA soon! I certainly start longing for some sunshine this time of year in Seattle. I pinned a free 52 week printable on my pinterest family finances board.
Great tips! We save tons of money by using vacation rentals, cooking at the rental, and bring our own, well, everything! I’ve never heard of the 52 week savings challenge, but what a great idea.
Being such an avid traveler, I’m sure you’ve figured out quite a few things Chamisa! I pinned a free 52 week printable on my pinterest family finances board.
Another way to lower your cost: groupon. We took advantage of one to Vermont (we live near). I complimented the manager on how excellent our stay was, mentioned the groupon, and he said they would give us the groupon rate during the off season if we called directly.
That’s a great tip Kim! Also nice that they were willing to give you the rate directly for a future visit. Good management on their part, as getting return customers is a challenge for companies on deal sites! :)
Stopping by from the Comment Love Tribe! I just recently started the 52 Week Savings Challenge! It makes it so much easier to save over time so that you don’t feel that constant need to put a lot of money in every time to get to a large result. I love this post though because one of the things I want to do is save up for a trip this coming summer, so thanks for the great trips!
Lauren
Glad the tips were helpful Lauren! Hope your planning and savings goes smoothly. Feel free to comment or contact me if you have any travel planning questions!
This is such a great post!! Our family is 5 total, so it’s not cheap by any means to do a nice vacay. We try to take advantage of a lot of the local attractions, but I’d really love to take my family on an actual vacation. Once we move, we are going to start saving and planning, and your post really helps a lot. #sitsblogging
Traveling with families of five can be tricky, but totally doable! Let me know if you have any questions, I’m happy to help!
I love this! I love the idea of saving $52 at week 1 and going backwards, that’s so smart!
Glad you liked it Ashley. Happy saving! :)
I just love all of the tips you have on your blog!! We started doing the Dave Ramsey- Total Money Makeover last year, so our vacation fund is EXTREMELY limited so we can pay off some debt. Which is particularly hard for us because all of our family lives out of town. I will definitely use these tips. Thanks for sharing!!
Thanks for stopping by Ali! Hope the post can give you some ideas — and good luck! I recently quit my job so I could focus on making this blog my career so our finances took a hit. As a result we skipped taking a trip last fall when we had been planning to. It’s worth it though to stay out of debt, and I know your vacation will feel even better when you’re not stressing about all the bills waiting at home.
I feel like such a doofus for not thinking of doing the 52 week challenge backwards! So simple, yet brilliant! Thank you!
Absolutely Gena! I think for many people doing it in reverse seems easier. :)
Great post! I have always dreamed of staying at a luxury bermuda hotel for a week or two, but never knew how to save enough to be able to afford it without breaking the bank. Love these tips!
This is a great picture. : ). I am glad you shared today on SITS wall. Thanks.
Thank you for stopping by! I loved how this article picture turned out.
Thanks for the great tips – we really should reevaluate cable, insurance policies and other “fixed” costs that we could bring down!
I hear you Cynthia! It’s easy to say, but do we really need one more task on our agenda?! :) Sometimes I feel like it’s a balance game between time value and monetary value!
Great tips! I’m going to San Antonio next month to do a one day art show. It’s a vacation that I can take it off my taxes, right?
Hi Annette, I have no idea about the taxes stuff with work trips. I think you’d have to research it or pay for an accountant to take care of it for you. :)
Hey there!! I love running into fellow bloggers on different forums!! Love the piggy bank! So cute!! And great tips!
Thanks Nadeen! I appreciate it. :)
Since my family is in Texas all of our vacation savings has been going to our trip at Thanksgiving this year. These are great tips for getting a real vacation!
Lots of good ideas. I am going to try to sell some things that we have – such a SCUBA gear that was never used and a pottery kiln.
Great Sherry! It really is nice to get rid of stuff you’re not using and enjoy the money instead!
Lots of really great idea’s on how to save money for a trip. Got rid of my TV and phone bill (land-line) over two years ago, just found other things replaced them.
Thanks so much Carol. Good for you making the leap so long ago! :) We’re still hooked on cable but I keep thinking we need to say goodbye, hubby wants to keep his sports and news though.
Love the idea of the 52 week challenge! Spring sounds like a good enough time as any to start.
Absolutely Janet! It’s never too late to start saving for a vacation! :)
I can’t believe the average weekly cost is $4,000. I’m currently planning a trip to Europe and wrote a few tips on how others can save when traveling to Europe. motherlyadventures.com/7-ways-i-saved-when-planning-my-first-family-trip-to-europe/
It is a lot of money, but there are definitely ways to lower the costs which are part of my tips post. Thanks for sharing your own ideas Tanya – it’s always nice to have ideas for saving, especially to Europe!
I signed up on my tablet and it is not connected to my printer, so when I went to the site on my desktop I could not find the link to this printable. You should know that I did get the ;ink on my tablet, but could not print.. Could you please send it to me….much appreciated
Sending over your way Tammy! I’m traveling so sorry for the slight delay!
Kimberly – thanks for the smart tipps ;-) i especially like the idea of selling stuff you don’t need anymore… i have created a tool for all travelers, where you can additionally save money with any travel booking… threestepsapp.com – might be tip number 13 in your list ;-) thanks a lot kimberly and greetings from vienna…
Once again, thanks for the 12
I could take that last tip to heart and start saving a lot more, but I can’t help it—I have a penchant for electronics ;-)