In 2018, a record 768 million vacation days were left unused by the American workforce. Do you use all of your vacation days each year? What is the culture like at your company for taking vacations or days off? Where would you go if you took a week off of work? Vacation time is a benefit at most companies, so planning a vacation and using your days should be a priority for you as an employee.
Vacations allow you to step away from work and enjoy a mental break in a new place. Keep reading to learn about how you can go on vacation without breaking the bank.
Start Saving
When you start planning, you also need to start saving. Putting small amounts of extra income that you have away for a trip can help the overall cost seem much less daunting. You can budget this into your finances so that a percentage of your income is set aside for this purpose every few weeks. Over the course of a few months, this can add up to pay for your trip without feeling like a big upfront cost. If you would like to buy everything in advance and pay it back on a monthly basis, you can look into Chicago loans. The personal loan options can allow you to borrow the amount that you need and make payments on it as you go.
Travel When Other People Aren’t
Off-season travel is the secret of expert travelers. Heading south during the spring break period will have you seeing dollar signs. Planning your travel in the non-peak times can prevent you from overpaying due to the demand. With two large airports in Chicago, you can fly almost anywhere in America or the world. Take advantage of this and wait to fly when everyone isn’t. Choosing the least busy travel days can help make flights more affordable as well.
This holds true for your lodging too. Staying at a hotel or resort from Monday to Friday will likely be more affordable than staying from Friday to Sunday. Researching the busy times and trying to avoid them can help the savings for your trip really add up.
Practice Flexibility
Flexibility is extremely important when it comes to vacations because rarely does everything go exactly how you planned it. Your flight might get delayed, your bags might get lost, your room may not be ready, the pool may be closed, the rental car you ordered may not be available, and so on.
With so much room for error, it is important to practice flexibility. This attitude can help you save money in several ways. First, you can book a more affordable flight that might have an extra layover. Moving to a room without an ocean view can lower the cost of your stay.
When there are opportunities to choose between saving and spending, being flexible will come to be very valuable.
Visit People You Know
Do you have friends and family that live in a different state or on the other side of the country? Not only could you plan a vacation to visit them but they could actually help you save money.
By staying with friends or family, you won’t have to pay for the cost of lodging. While buying groceries or treating them to dinner one night may be a fair exchange, it is still saving you from paying for a week at a resort.
Another benefit of visiting people that you know is that they are experts on the area. They’ll be the best free tour guide because they know all of the cool spots and can show you them. You get the chance to catch up and visit with them during your stay, making it a win-win for everyone involved.
Make Your Own Food
This is a pro traveler tip that can truly make the difference between an expensive vacation and an affordable one. Imagine if you went out for lunch, dinner, and drinks every single day of vacation. Regardless of where you are at, the cost is likely to add up quickly. You may end up spending more on food than you did on your plane tickets and lodging. When you look back, you probably won’t remember the sandwich you had for lunch on a Tuesday afternoon but you would remember the picnic that you had on the mountaintop.
Buying groceries and making your own food can be a huge savings because you are in control of the cost. You can still go out to dinner one night or lunch another day, you just aren’t making it the center of your vacation.
Now that you have read more about how to go on vacation without breaking the bank, you can start planning today. Saving up your extra cash and doing your research can get you your dream vacation at an affordable price.
