Going travelling this year?
Whether you’re planning to be away for a couple of weeks or several months, budgeting is one of the most important ways to prepare. Foreign travel involves multiple expenses, since you’ll need to cover your transportation, meals, accommodation, and more.
From using budgeting tools to staying sensible while you’re away, here’s how to monitor your spending and stay within your limits.
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Plan your budget
Start by outlining the expenses you expect. For most, these include:
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Accommodation
– hotels, hostels or self-catered apartments: no matter where you stay, you’ll need to pay for your bed.
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Transportation
– from your outbound flight and transfers to smaller journeys within your destination, travel costs add up.
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Meals
– even if you’ve paid for a board option at your hotel, you’ll need to factor in additional food costs. Think ice creams, cool drinks from the bar, and snacks on the go.
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Activities
– group tours, days out and cultural attractions all come at a price, which you should factor in generously.
If you’re struggling to allocate your spend, there are plenty of online tools to help. But you should also focus on researching your destination and the things you’ll be doing once you arrive.
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Spend in the right way
In recent decades, going abroad meant visiting your local exchange and taking out large amounts of cash in the local currency. But with increasing thefts in tourist destinations as they turn into pickpocketing hotspots, sometimes carrying cash isn’t worth the risk.
Luckily, there are plenty of other payment methods. Choosing appropriate financial tools can influence and even extend your budget.
Choose travel-friendly credit cards that offer favourable exchange rates and zero or minimal transaction fees. We also recommend considering prepaid travel cards as an alternative to carrying cash.
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Managing Money While Abroad
Once you’ve arrived at your destination, you should adopt some strategies to help you manage your money effectively. Use budgeting apps or a classic notebook and pen to manage your finances and adjust your budget.
It’s inevitable that you’ll need to send and transfer money while you’re away. Just remember that doing so could put your personal details at risk.
When you’re accessing online banking over public Wi-Fi networks, we recommend using a VPN to keep your data secure. Try to choose local currency transactions and be cautious of dynamic currency conversion, which can result in higher charges.
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Keep an emergency fund
Finally, don’t forget that the best way to guarantee peace of mind is to keep some money aside for emergencies. This should be in addition to your total travel budget and preferably stored in a separate account.
From serious illness to natural disasters, factors beyond your control could cut your holiday short or suddenly make it much more expensive! To make sure you’re never truly stuck, keep some money aside for the unexpected. It’s likely that you won’t need it, so you can save it for a rainy day once you’re home.
With careful organisation and a sensible approach to your spending, budgeting for travel couldn’t be simpler. It’s one of the most worthwhile tasks to complete before your trip, so don’t skip the financial planning!
