In a recent survey, 52% of respondents cite money as the biggest stress related to travel. Once the decision is made to schedule a trip to the moment the final bill is paid, money is what stresses us out the most.
So the question is: Can you make exciting travel plans and without having to worry about being able to afford it?
The answer is – yes.
And that’s what we want to cover today. Keep reading as we lay out five smart ways to raise money for a trip without breaking the bank.
1. Save Money for Travel
The most logical way to raise travel money is to save for it. Determine how much money you’ll need for your vacation. Then you can break it down into monthly or weekly savings benchmarks that will pave the way for you to reach your savings goal.
If you want to save more money faster, you’ll need to be more aggressive. Consider staying with friends or family, rather than paying to live in your own place.
Don’t want to go that extreme? Consider selling items you no longer need to reduce your expenses and save even more.
Saving money takes time, but an exciting vacation provides the perfect motivation to keep saving.
2. Make Extra Money for Travel
One of the quickest ways to save money for traveling is to take a second job or side hustle.
Opportunities for extra money abound. For example, you can get a part-time job at Starbucks or Trader Joe’s. Have you ever noticed how happy the workers are in these stores? Sure, having two jobs is no walk in the park, but it can provide you with the travel funds you need to be stress-free on your dream trip.
Don’t want to be tied down by a schedule? Our sharing economy provides numerous opportunities to make your own hours, whether you’re driving your own car for Uber or Lyft or walking dogs for Rover.
3. Take Advantage of Travel Rewards Cards
Most people who travel often use travel rewards from their credit cards. Many travel cards, such as Surge credit card, Capital One Aspire Travel Platinum Mastercard and the American Express Platinum card, offer free airline miles or miles that can be redeemed for travel expenses, when you use their card.
Use your card to pay for things like groceries and gas to pile up rewards miles. Then pay off the card in full each month to avoid interest charges. Some cards even offer additional or greater points per dollar spent on certain purchases, so look for what those are, and use your card for those purchases verses cash or debit.
Look for credit cards with promotional sign-up offers. It’s not unusual to find travel cards offering 100,000 points or more to sign up, as long as you spend a certain amount within a few months. You can also refer others to sign up to earn additional points.
Regular card users can also score big on travel freebies and discounts things like travel insurance and rental car insurance.
Do your homework on travel cards and find the best cards to help fund your next trip.
4. Save Windfalls and Tax Returns
Your annual tax return is almost like an alternative savings plan. You can do your taxes ahead of time to gauge your return amount, and add it to your travel budget. Depending on how much you receive, you should be able to extend your trip or pay for fun extras.
The same goes for performance and holiday bonuses you may earn on the job. For instance, you may receive a payout you didn’t know you were entitled to, such as a class action settlement or a union grievance, and use that money for travel expenses.
5. Work While You Travel
One way to travel smart is to work while you travel and use the extra money to extend your trip. Working abroad gives you the opportunity to make local friends. The experience can give you a better feel for what it’s like to live in different locations around the world. For example, you could find a local job teaching English at an international school. Translating jobs are also a popular choice.
Many “digital nomads” earn more freelance writing or blogging. You can find writing opportunities on Fiverr, Upwork or FreelanceWriting. You can also find many remote job opportunities at FlexJobs to earn money while you travel.
The Final Word About Ways to Raise Money for a Trip
You don’t have to be rich in order to travel and you don’t need to stress about money. You just need to execute some of the different ways to raise money for a trip.
Here’s what you can do today to start funding your next trip. Prioritize saving money and create a budget that creates extra savings. Determine what extra job you would enjoy doing to raise travel money. And if you’re going to freelance on the road, start now so you can establish yourself ahead of time.
If you found this article helpful, please check out our guide to travel dating.
