The number one question I get is “how are you able to travel so often?” I love my job and it’s a huge part of my life, so I don’t travel full time. Plus I need to make money somehow! Instead, my husband and I travel at any chance we get.
A lot of my travel is made possible through my job. I travel a lot and try to extend my trips whenever possible. I know this isn’t the case for everyone, so here are my top 5 tips to travel more!
Tip #1: Rethink your definition of travel
I used to think that travel meant hopping on a plane for a week long vacation. The more I’ve explored, I’ve learned this is just not the case and is hard to fit into most people’s lifestyles. If you’ve followed along with me you’ll notice that a big part of my travel consists of exploring my own backyard: Minnesota!
For me, travel is exploring. Whether that’s a small town in Minnesota or somewhere overseas. Some of our favorite travels were exploring an area in the midwest for a weekend that we’ve never been to!
If you plan to travel, you should consider accessories like a travel pillow to avoid having jet lag, as well as a essentials like a water bottle, portable charger and packing cubes. Many used to think that travel meant hopping on a plane for a week-long vacation. However, the more people explore, the more they learn that this is often not the case and can be hard to fit into most lifestyles. Many memorable experiences come from exploring new places for just a weekend, proving that even short getaways can lead to unforgettable adventures.
Takeaway: Define what travel means to you. If you want to start making more room for travel in your life, I highly recommend starting local.
Tip #2: Work it into your finances
So, my day job is working in financial services marketing. One of the best things Cole and I ever did was start working with a financial advisor. There is a myth out there that you only start working with an advisor once you have enough money to invest, but that is NOT the case! Start working with one NOW so that you can start investing and saving NOW! The sooner you do this the better.
Anyways, Cole and I now have a built-in budget for travel every month. We prioritized our goals with our advisor and being travel is important to us, we put it towards the top of our list. We can now use this money to plan our last minute getaways or exploration days around Minnesota while still having the peace of mind that we’re still on track for our long term financial goals.
Takeaway: Talk to a financial advisor. Seriously. Do it. If you want help finding one shoot me a message.
Tip #3: Prioritize travel in your life
You can’t do it all. At least I can’t – especially at this stage in life. I can’t travel when I want while also having a fancy car, a big house, the newest clothes, and the latest tech gadgets. Sorry if you thought this post would give you an easy way to find extra money! It’s kind of boring actually. If you plan and prioritize, you’re able to live the life doing what’s most important to you.
Here’s my reality: Cole and I don’t have kids, live in a tiny one bedroom apartment, and negotiated a good deal with our landlord. We drove my 2000 grand am that I had since high school until we got in a car accident last year and bought another used car. Not pretty but it got us from point a to point b! My girlfriend cuts my hair, so I don’t go to a salon to get my hair cut and colored, I don’t get my nails done, and I buy drug store makeup. Believe me…I love all these things and wish I could prioritize them all, but when it comes down to what’s most important for me personally, travel is at the top of the list.
Overall, we live very minimally and spend our money on doing things rather than on things themselves. Before travel was a priority a few years ago, paying off our student loans was our priority. We both did this in 4 years after graduating and then travel took the top of the list!
Takeaway: Think about how you can prioritize travel in your life and what you can de-prioritize to make room for it. Then stick to that plan!
Tip #4: Be flexible with travel dates
Instead of planning one extravagant vacation once a year, be flexible with your travel dates and start with smaller trips that aren’t planned as far in advance. This is where you can get the best deals! We book the majority of our flights using Thrifty Traveler. Thrifty Traveler is based out of MSP, but try to find a similar service if you have a different home airport.
Another option are sites like Airfare Watchdog where you enter your home airport and then deals are sent to your email each day! This is especially great if you have a less-flexible job like a teacher and know you only have certain days off each year. You can enter your travel destinations and it will send you an email when the prices drop!
Another tool I use when trying to find good deals is Kayak Explore. Kayak Explore shows a map view of all the flights from your home airport. This is a great way to find good deals to cities that might not be top of mind! We use this to find the cheapest possible price to a city we want to visit and then plan our trip around those dates. We’ve also used this the last few times we’ve gone to Europe. We basically wanted to get the cheapest flight to Europe we could find, booked that, and then took trains to the cities we wanted to visit from there!
Takeaway: Use the technology out there to help you find a good deal! Sign up for flight alerts in your area.
Tip #5: Travel with like-minded people
One of the best ways to travel more is to travel with people who also appreciate and have prioritized travel in their life. If you travel with people who only go once every few years and want to splurge, you will be temped to splurge, too. If you travel with others who are like-minded you are more apt to have a good experience. And you can notify each other of good deals!
When Cole and I went to Europe last summer, we went with two of our best friends who are also married. We shared Air BnBs which made our lodging MUCH cheaper per night when it was split across 4 people vs. 2.
If traveling with others isn’t your style, I highly recommend traveling on your own. The opportunity to meet new people is so much higher, and you can easily stay in cheap places, like renting an extra AirBnB room. Plus, you get to do exactly what you want on your trip, being there’s no one else to please!
Takeaway: Talk to your friends and family about exploring with you! Or go out on a limb and try it on your own for cheap!
Now get out there and get exploring!