fbpx

Part III: How To Stick To A Budget

You created a budget that you are comfortable and now you are ready to go on your trip.  Here are some ideas on how to stay within that budget. 
Dennis pushing cart
Dennis grocery shopping in Aruba

1. Go Grocery Shopping. Most of us spend a lot of money dining out or even picking up fast food. It is a convenience. When Dennis and I traveled and looked at our spending, we realized after airfare, our second largest expense was dining out. We like a big nice breakfast every once in a while. We live in New Jersey so we love diner breakfast food. And even though breakfast is relatively inexpensive, it’s still an expense. We are also love to snack. What we have gotten into the habit of, is grocery shopping when we arrive to our destination, 90% of our travel is at a timeshare so we have a full kitchen where we can toast bagels or waffles, scramble eggs, and make turkey bacon. If we are away for more than 4 nights, most likely we will cook a couple of dinners while we are there to save money. We also pick up ingredients to make a quick meal like spaghetti, or a pizza, or anything that has no more than 5 ingredients and can take less than 30 minutes to cook. IF you normally spend $30 per person on dinner, you can probably spend $70 on grocery shopping that will last several days. When looking a where you will stay on vacation, try finding a place with a full kitchen. You can look to renting out an Air BNB, or go to VRBO, or even a timeshare for rent on Redweek.

2. Purchase alcoholic beverages at a store (or duty free if you are traveling internationally).

 A friend gave me this idea. Not the idea of cutting back on the alcoholic drinks, but to buy from duty free. When we travel internationally we purchase a bottle that lasts us for a full week. By the last day we are still kicking them back because you just can't waste alcohol! If you are not able to purchase duty free, maybe you are traveling within the country, you can always look at going to a local liquor store where you could even purchase a smaller bottle and get more of a variety.

3. Use an app to track your spending and review it at least in the morning and evening. If see that your shopping expenses are creeping up towards your budget and you are only on day 3 of a 7 day vacation, you may want to start cutting back on your spending. There are a lot of great apps out there. Currently I am using a paid app called Travel Spend.
4. Get recommendations on where the locals eat. Most vacation spots tend to price their meals a little higher because they know people are on vacation to relax and cost is not a factor. However, the people that live in these cities and towns probably get just as a delicious meal but maybe not right in the touristy areas. I recall years ago a good friend was in Singapore with me and we went to Indonesia for dinner. It was this place along a remote residential road but the atmosphere and the food was unbelievable. Ask the concierge of a great place to eat that the locals go to and the best method of getting there. Dennis and I went to a jazz club in San Francisco. The food and the music were fabulous. However, the neighborhood was seedy and though we were safe, we probably should have taken an uber there.

5. Save the big splurge day for a special day – maybe you are celebrating a birthday or anniversary. This would be the day you would splurge and be very frugal the other days so if you have cash, put that aside.

groupon logo
6. Look for deals such as groupons for activities. The good thing about Groupon is they have deals just about everywhere. If you are looking for a certain type of activity (like Segway) check out Groupon to see if there is a deal. Also, visit the hotel’s concierge as they often get many coupons to entice their guests to visit the different attractions in the area. 
7. Don’t purchase souvenirs in touristy locations. Go off a few blocks and look for unique local items. Your friends will appreciate those more. I have a friend that would prefer that I purchase her an item that is ingenious to that location. It forces me to go out of the rows of gift shops by the hotels and seek other neighborhoods which is where I have always found prices are a lot less for the same items I saw in the gift shops by the hotel, and depending on the city, like Chinatown in San Francisco, you can bargain. 

8. Use public transportation, or better yet, walk if it’s possible. Dennis does not like to do public transportation (and I still don’t know why), so we walk a lot. It’s not bad, we also eat a lot so we burn off our food. It’s so easy to get an Uber or Lyft with a tap of a button, that before you know it, you have racked up a lot in charges and tips. On a cautionary note, check out the route before taking either to ensure the route to your destination is safe for a non-local.

9. Bring your own snacks from home. I started doing this, not because of cutting back on spending, but since I am allergic to eggs and dairy, AND at the time was a pescatarian, it was difficult to find something to eat on the plane. Therefore I started carrying my own snacks. I would take what I had in the house and put in little ziploc bags. I would usually pack so much, that I would still have some while in the hotel and would never need to visit a convenience store or vending machine when I craved sweet or salty!

10. Pay attention to currency conversion rates. If you use a credit card, make sure you don’t get charged for foreign transactions.  Many locations that have a large population of American visitors will take US dollars, but are you getting the most out of your US Dollar. Check the conversion rate before you leave home to get you a idea of what the conversion rate is and when you get to your destination convert some cash where you see favorable rates and reasonable transaction fees.

Sign up for the Always A Honeymoon newsletter for more great tips.