Managing Money while Travelling

*This post is in collaboration with CashLady*

Hey Owlets,

One of the biggest struggles with travelling is managing your money - personally I hate talking about money because it’s a huge source of stress for me, but it’s one of those things that needs to be done. 

Whenever I’m not travelling I’m really careful with money because I know it’s going towards something I really want to do, but as soon as you arrive on holiday it’s easy to say “sod it” because this is everything you’ve saved for, and a lot of the times it’s really easy to spend more than you thought. If you’re looking to go away without breaking the bank, here’s a few tips on how to keep your money in check.

Do Your Research

When trying to work out how much money you need the most important thing is to do your research, and it doesn’t need to be difficult. If you’re going abroad just google “is (insert country) expensive?” and you’ll be flooded with articles offering advice on how much things cost in the area you’re visiting. One of my favourite websites at the moment is Budget Your Trip - all you have to do is put in the country you’re visiting and your preferred travel style (budget, midrange or luxury) and it will list average prices.

Set a Daily Budget

Now you know how expensive it is to visit the country you can set a daily budget; when setting your budget make sure you take into account travel costs (bus, train, taxi etc), accommodation if you’ve not paid in advance, food, drinks and what you’d like to do each day (i.e. buying museum tickets/entrance to visitor attractions) as well as a little spending money just in case you end up doing something you didn’t expect.


Use Cash

So you’ve worked out your daily budget, great, but now you actually have to stick to it. On the whole I’m definitely a lover of modern technology but contactless cards are not your friend if you’re on a budget. It’s so easy to tap your card at the till without even thinking and it doesn’t feel like you’re spending anything so you spend more. If you really want to stick to the budget then give yourself cash everyday - having a visual reminder of your daily allowance makes you much more conscious of how and where you spend your money meaning you’re more likely to stick to the amount you’ve given yourself.

Watch Where you Spend

One of the biggest reasons I hear for people not travelling is that they can’t afford it, but the truth is that they could if they spent their money in a smarter way. You’re on holiday, so what does it matter if you spend €10 on coffee and a snack in the touristy part of town? And you’re tired so just call an Uber instead of walking or taking the metro. Okay they’ll make you feel better at the time when you’re tired or hungry, but that’s €25 that could’ve been better spent. I know you’re tired, but take the metro - it’s probably only a few streets away, just like two streets away is a tiny independent coffee shop that no one knows about that’s way cheaper than a trip to Starbucks.


Emergencies Happen

You can research, plan and prep all you like but sometimes things just happen that you never could’ve expected. Maybe your hotel cancelled last minute, you’re stuck and need to take an expensive taxi to get home or you’ve missed your flight and have to pay to rebook. We’ve all been there at some point and honestly it’s not worth ruining your trip with the stress of everything. If you can’t cover it yourself or borrow money from friends or family, then borrowing from a short-term lender like CashLady could be your best bet to get out of a sticky situation. Yes, the interest rates are higher, but sometimes you just have to be prepared to accept the consequences to get out of difficulty, and it’s worth it to make sure you’re safe.

Staying on budget when travelling is never easy, but I’d always rather spend less and go on more trips, than spend more but travel less. What are your best tips for travel? Let me know in the comments below or on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.

Love and Feathers, 
 The Owlet πŸ’œ 
You can find me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram & Pinterest

1 comment:

  1. Hey Becky!
    Yes this is definitely something I am guilty of....i use my contactless card all the time without thinking about it! I need to stop and just get cash out like you suggested! πŸ™ŠπŸ’ΈπŸ’³
    Thanks so much for these tips I will put them into practice for my next trip! πŸš‡
    Sarah aka sunshinesarahxo
    www.sunshinesarahxo.com

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