Are you tired of coming home from a fabulous vacation only to face the bills that you now have to pay off? Keep reading if you want to learn how to pay cash for vacation and avoid debt completely!
Did you know that in 2017, 74% of consumers went into debt for vacation? And of those 74%, the average balance to be repaid was $1108? If this statistic still stands (and I imagine it could be more now!), then it’s safe to say that the majority of people put their vacations on credit.
I can’t think of anything much worse than coming home from a great vacation and having to face the credit card bills. What a slap back into reality!!
The good news is that even though using credit for vacation is common, it doesn’t have to be! Just because everyone else does it doesn’t mean that you have to. Dare to be different and enjoy your next vacation debt-free. You won’t regret it!
HOW TO PAY CASH FOR VACATION
1. Make a plan
Vacations don’t just happen. Most of us can’t just wake up one day and decide to take a vacation immediately. It requires booking housing, planning for travel, taking off time from work, etc.
Not only do the logistics have to be planned, but you need a financial plan in order to pay cash for vacation. Start the planning by brainstorming, or even dreaming a bit.
Think about where you’d like to go, when you’d like to go, and how long you’d like to be gone. This may sound obvious to some of you, but you must make a plan or it won’t happen.
2. Estimate the cost
Once you have a general plan in mind, then it’s time to estimate the costs involved. Vacations can be more expensive than you might think at first glance, so make your estimates as detailed as you possibly can.
I’d even recommend you estimate very conservatively. Give yourself some wiggle room even if you think that you might be able to find some good deals. It’s better to over estimate and not need the money than to under estimate and end up in a pinch and be tempted to put some of the vacation on credit.
3. Be honest with yourself
Once you have an estimate of cost, then it’s time to be realistic with yourself. Can you actually pull it off in the time that you have to save? You may want to take the trip, but can you really afford it?
We had to be honest with ourselves a few months ago when my husband’s family asked us if we were interested in joining them on a vacation to Orlando. We had already planned a trip in August, so this vacation was a surprise and we weren’t sure we would have the money in time.
After some number crunching and knowing that we’d have extra money coming in this summer, we felt like we could afford it. Some years, we’ve had to say no.
If you are working on paying off debt, then I’d recommend you delay any vacations until you are debt-free. (You didn’t ask for my opinion on that one, but I’m giving it anyway). 😉
If you can take a vacation now, but those numbers you just estimated aren’t going to work, then think about a less expensive option. Perhaps your Disney trip will need to wait, but a more affordable beach trip would still be lovely! It’s okay to revise your original vacation plan after a reality check.
4. Start saving now
Once you decide that you have a realistic plan, it’s time to start saving! Now is the time to start putting money aside so that you will have the money saved up by the time you take your vacation.
Even if your vacation is months and months away, don’t wait to save. Every month you delay saving, the less time you’ll have to save up and the more of a burden it puts on your monthly budget.
5. Add vacation savings to your budget
It’s going to be hard to save and pay cash for vacation if you don’t have a budget. At this point, I’m assuming you already budget each month. If not, then start now! My favorite budgeting app is EveryDollar.
When you sit down to create your monthly budget, make sure to include your vacation savings as a line item. Take the estimated cost of your vacation, divide it by the number of months you have to save, and this is what you’ll need to save each month.
That is the amount to you’ll need to include in your monthly budget. It’s pretty simple math, but it doesn’t happen without being intentional!
6. Don’t book until you have the cash
One of the reasons I hate debt is because it increases risk. I hate risk. Even with the best of plans in place, you never know what can happen.
You may have a plan to save for vacation, but what happens if your plan is derailed by some unforeseen event or emergency? Whenever I make plans before I have the cash in hand, I almost always get burned.
Last summer, we committed to a beach vacation before I had all the money saved. Wouldn’t you know that we ended up needing $2000 of plumbing work done?
It turned out okay since we had some extra income coming in and we also have an emergency fund, but it was a huge reminder that making plans before you have cash increases risk.
7. Use cash (or your debit card) when you go
Once you have saved, you are ready to enjoy your cash vacation! You’ve done such a great job saving, but it’s still possible to mess it all up. Don’t let that hard work go to waste.
The best way to make sure you don’t spend more than you budgeted on your vacation is to take cash. I know cash makes some people very nervous. All I can really say is that I’ve never had a problem with it and we’ve been doing it for years.
Sometimes hubby and I split the cash between each of us so that we aren’t out all the money if there was ever a theft issue. We are also very careful to only take the amount of money we think we’ll need while we are out and about.
If you can’t get over the thought of carrying all cash, then using your debit card is a completely acceptable option as well! Despite what credit card companies tell you, they are very safe. In fact, my debit card has Visa on it and it has the same policy about unauthorized charges as a Visa credit card.
8. Track your spending
Using cash while on vacation makes tracking your spending very simple. This is another reason why I prefer to use mostly cash on vacation. A quick peek at our cash and I know how we are doing.
If you use your debit card, you’ll still need some sort of tracking method to make sure you aren’t spending more than you saved for your trip. There are a couple of different methods that might work for you – pen & paper, a Google spreadsheet, or a budgeting app (EveryDollar is currently my favorite!).
You may have worked hard to save the cash for vacation, but it’s possible to blow it if you don’t keep track of it. Commit to your vacation budget and be intentional about managing it well.
Y’all, vacations are a priority for our family. In fact, we just got back from the family vacation in Orlando, FL this past week!
We love to take time to get away and make memories with our family and friends. But, I can’t enjoy a vacation if I know I can’t afford it.
Keep your vacations simple if you have to, but don’t go into debt for them! Paying for vacation with cash is 100% possible with some planning and it makes vacation so much more enjoyable.
Dare to be different, friends! I know you can do it!
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Do you like to pay cash for vacation?
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