It is finally official, I have now caught the travel bug!
I am just coming home from an amazing honeymoon with my wife where we went to Los Angeles, Mexico and New York.
There were so many highlights I could write another article telling you about the amazing things we did and the cultures we experienced.
The biggest highlight for me was seeing Chichen Itza in Mexico.
I was never a fan of history in school, but I was always fascinated about the Mayan culture and their precision and love of numbers.
They created a clock around 1,200 BC which to this day is only 15 seconds out – incredible!
To be able to see one of the Seven Wonders of the World and something that to this day looks absolutely incredible has inspired me to travel more.
My wife and I now have a bucket list of places we want to travel and we are structuring our budget and income to enable us to travel more (which is one of the reasons I started Master Your Money Now).
But if you want to travel on a regular basis, then you need to be smart about it.
Unfortunately, I have seen a lot of people who have been to all four corners of the globe and have two things to show for it – stamps on the passport and maxed out credit card statements in the mailbox!
If you want to enjoy your next overseas holiday without sacrificing your other financial goals such as owning a home, I have six thoughts that I want to share with you to help.
Note this article got so big, I have split it into two and the first three points are presented here.
1. Create a budget and set a weekly goal
As my gym trainer (who used to be in the army) says, “prior planning prevents poor performance” (apparently the army uses a few more colourful adjectives in order to describe this).
If you want to ensure that you are able to reach all of your financial goals, then you need to have a plan, which will form part of your budget.
When you create your budget, do you list down holidays?
I find that most people don’t, which means there is no money set aside for luxuries such as nice clothes, new cars or holidays.
If your finances are all over the place and you are struggling to make ends meet, then your budget should be firstly ensuring that you are able to afford what you need.
But there is a next level which I think a lot of people miss.
As your financial planner, I don’t want you to simply have what you need, I want you to have what you want as well.
Life is too short just to have our basic needs met.
Therefore, once you have your finances sorted and are able to comfortably afford what you need, then you can start focusing on what you want.
This is why when we speak to clients we focus on ways to increase your income, so you can afford the things that you want, not just need.
If you want to travel, then factor this into your budget and set aside money each and every week for travel.
So when you need a holiday, you have the money there for this purpose.
2. Know how you travel
How much you should be setting aside ultimately depends on how you travel and where you want to go.
I know some clients who are happy to drive to the Murray river and camp out for a week. Therefore, they don’t need to set aside as much money for travelling.
On the other extreme, I know of clients who spend over $100,000 per year on travel. They want to go overseas travelling first class and stay exclusively in five star resorts.
Personally, I am somewhere in the middle. I hate camping with a passion, but I can also handle being in “cattle class” when travelling overseas (just!).
I am not telling you how to travel, as long as you can afford it (the clients spending $100,000 per year can rarely afford it!). But know how you travel and set aside money accordingly based on that.
If you want to travel overseas or on a cruise, research how much that will cost, allow for spending money (be generous with this, I always find you spend more than what you originally think) and when you want to travel.
From there, you can set aside the money in order to make this happen.
3. Avoid school holidays
I have a lot of clients who are school teachers.
They work hard raising the next generation of leaders, doctors, and entrepreneurs.
They deserve their supposed “11 weeks off” (even though with the paperwork and professional development they do, they effectively get the standard four weeks off like everyone else).
Unfortunately, when it comes to holidays, school teachers get screwed over because, generally speaking they can only travel when school holidays are on.
When it comes to travelling, school holidays are the worse time to travel
As a result of basic economics, school holidays are the worst time to travel. There is far more demand and consequently everyone involved with the travel industry puts their prices up.
But if you are able to avoid school holidays, you are able to get some great deals on airlines and hotels
They will lower their prices quite substantially to ensure seats are filled and rooms are being used. You can use this to your advantage.
Not to mention you can enjoy some great resorts effectively by yourself – winning!
Make sure you read Part Two of Six Ideas To Enjoy Your Next Overseas Holiday Without Going Broke here.
If this is a topic that you would like to discuss in more detail, please go to www.MasterYourMoneyNow.com.au/getstarted to book in your complimentary 30 minute strategy session.
If you want to know more about Master Your Money Now, go to www.masteryourmoneynow.com.au and follow Master Your Money Now on:
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Disclaimer: This information is general information only. You should consider the appropriateness of this information with regards to your objectives, financial situation and needs. Past performance does not guarantee future returns.
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