How to Save for a Vacation in 4 Easy Steps

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Want to learn how to save for a vacation? In this post, I’m sharing 4 steps to help you save for that vacation you are dreaming of so you can enjoy a debt free vacation!

We are about to take one of our bucket list vacations. In about a month, we are going to Hawaii! This is a huge trip for us, and we have been planning and saving strategically to make this trip happen.

It would be nice to just set sail wherever our hearts desired without any planning or saving, but that’s just not the world (or budget) we live in. Instead, we have been saving and managing our money well so we can make this trip happen.

Are you ready to take the vacation of your dreams, or heck just a vacation at all, without breaking your budget? These are the tips we have used to save for a vacation.

How to Save for a Vacation in 4 Easy Steps

Use the following tips to save for a vacation, get the best deals, and stress less while planning.

Open a vacation savings account

I’m a huge fan of having at least 4 bank accounts, and devoting a separate savings account just for vacations. By separating your money into separate accounts, you are telling your money where to go and giving it a specific purpose.

With a vacation savings account, any money that goes in that account is for vacation purposes.

Here are a couple ways to fund this account:

Decide how much of each paycheck you can afford to put into vacation savings.

Get a side job and put that money into the vacation savings account.

Watch your savings add up, and when you have enough in savings, you can plan your vacation.

You can either save until you have enough to go somewhere. Or, calculate the costs of a specific vacation then figure out how much you have to save each week to afford it.

Check out: Why You Need At Least 4 Bank Accounts
Hustle

Pick up a side job, or a few, and work hard to save as much money as you can.

When you know you are working for something fun, like a vacation instead of paying bills, you will be motivated to work more and save as much as you can!

Check out: 30 Side Job Ideas
Make a vacation budget

Knowing how much you plan to spend will help you figure out how much to save.

Research costs for the vacation you are planning: flights, rental car, a place to stay, attractions to visit, excursions, going out to eat, groceries, souvenirs, and anything else you plan to do during your vacation.

Once you know how much things will cost, you can start making your budget. This can be as simple or as detailed as you would like.

I prefer to just use a piece of computer paper, and write down each part of the budget. Then, you just divide the whole budget and give an amount to each category.
Make it happen!

Now that you know what your vacation will cost, it’s time to save, save, save!

Once you have your final budget set, divide that amount by the number of weeks until your trip (or until you need to make your final payments). That is the amount you need to set aside each week for your vacation.

You can make a visual to help you save, like a thermometer style chart or just a simple dry erase board with your savings goal.

Your goal should be to always come in under budget.

So, hunt for deals and do plenty of research to make sure you are getting the best deals you can. I wrote a whole post on budget travel tips, so be sure to check that out here to get the best deals!

Check out: 31 Budget Travel Tips