How To Afford Travel

This is something I’m currently struggling with myself. Even though I have all the time in the world, my money is the thing holding me back from taking any trips. Bills are pilling up and there’s no money in the budget to even afford gas to get out of town for a weekend trip.

Here are some tips on how to save money and get out there!

Cut Down On Your Commute

I know lots of us have the pleasure to work from home these days, but some of us unfortunately don’t. For those who go, most of us opt to drive our cars to work, but obviously that uses gas.

Think about alternative means of transportation. Can you carpool? Or better yet, ride a bike to work? It not only helps your health, but helps the world, and you’re saving the gas money you’d otherwise be spending.

Invest After Your Purchases

The money for trips may actually be in your budget – you might just not be in the habit of saving it. I know I’m a bit of an impulsive spender so it’s rare that I put spare cash away for… anything.

There’s apps that you can get which round up your purchases on everything you buy and invests/saves the rounded portion. Say I was buying something that was $5.50 the app would make the total purchase $6 and save that extra $.50 for me.

Might not sound like a lot but it can add up quick and after a month you might have enough extra cash sitting in an account for a trip.

Take A Trip Closer

While driving a few hours to a national park sounds like a great trip, it can be unaffordable. Are there spots that you’ve looked at closer?

Lots of national forests have campgrounds, or dispersed camping. For most cities I’ve lived in, you can reach a national forest in around an hour and with only one refill for your tank of gas. The camping also will be cheaper or sometimes even free.

Another good idea is looking for BLM land. It will always be free camping and you can get more remote if you're into that sort of thing.

Pick Up More Hours

This is one that no one wants to hear but if you really are trying to save up some extra cash you’ve gotta be making extra cash! Just try to think about it in a more positive light. The hours that you’re working now will translate into much more fun hours a couple weeks from now.

Stop Eating Out

This is a big one for me. I’m lazy. I’d much rather just pick up some overpriced fast food than bother cooking anything in the kitchen at all. But I’ve realized I just have to suck it up. If I want to be doing more fun things with my time (that require money), I have to stop spending it on things I can easily do myself.

Even if you go to Trader Joes and pick up some frozen dinners, those will end up saving you some cash compared to eating out for every other meal. Your microwave can be your chef.

The More The Merrier

If you bring along extra people they can help pay for expenses like gas and campground fees. Camping with other people is almost always better anyways. It pays off to have friends!

Sell Some Extra Stuff

Humans accumulate a lot. Like my old PS4 I haven’t turned on in months. Why do I still have it?

There’s probably a lot of extra things in your home that you really just don’t need. It’s always a decent idea to consider selling these things. While you may not be able to get a lot for them, every bit helps and what’s even better is it cleans up your house in the process. It’s a win-win.

Now Get Out There!

Hopefully a few of these tips are helpful in helping you finance your own trip. Remember, any trip is a good one! We all need to get out of the house right now one way or another.