There’s nothing quite like a Christmas vacation to reward yourself for working hard all year. You might even want to go all out and take that dream getaway you’ve been planning for months. But with all the obligatory bills and holiday expenses that add up over time, it can be difficult to set aside enough money to realize that amazing trip you have in mind. If you’re having trouble building up a travel fund, don’t lose hope just yet. Read on for some tips on how to make that dream vacation come true.
- Open a Separate Bank Account
If you keep your monthly budget and your savings in a single bank account, you’ll be constantly tempted to withdraw more money than you should. Before you know it, you won’t have enough left over for your travel fund. Worse, the reverse might happen, where you withdraw it for a small trip and end up using your utility bill budget!
To help you resist temptation, try opening a separate savings account specifically for travel and vacation purposes. Better yet, make it a checkbook-only account so you can prevent yourself from withdrawing impulsively from it. It’ll also make it easier for you to track your travel fund, as you’ll see at a glance how much you’ve saved up and how much you have left to go.
You can even take it a step further by asking your bank to set up monthly automatic transfers, where a certain amount is automatically transferred from your payroll account to your travel savings account at a set recurring time.
- Cut Back on Certain Expenses
When you’ve got a big savings goal in mind, you may need to spend a bit less now to afford something more meaningful in the future. That doesn’t mean completely depriving yourself of nice things, though. You just have to cut back a bit on some regular costs, at least temporarily.
To start, check if you have any recurring monthly expenses you can do away with for a short period of time. For example, try replacing your paid streaming subscriptions for free alternatives online.
You can also take a closer look at your daily expenses and think of ways to spend less. For instance, you can cut down on food costs by packing your own lunch at least a few times a week. If you regularly take taxis or use ride-hailing apps, try to find a cheaper way to commute to work via jeeps, trains, and buses. You might just surprise yourself with how much you could save per trip!
- Open a Time Deposit Account
Though a separate travel fund is a great start, most savings accounts don’t offer very compelling interest rates. If you’d like to maximize the potential returns on your hard-earned cash, why not invest your money instead?
For those who are new to investing, a time deposit account is always a safe bet, as you’re guaranteed not to lose any money. Instead, you’ll earn a fixed interest rate as long as you don’t touch the account for a predetermined amount of time. Due to its low risk, a time deposit is perfect for short-term goals, such as a dream vacation between a month or a year’s time.
If you think you don’t have enough to spare for investments, the good news is that you don’t need a lot of cash to get started. With a Robinsons Bank Time Deposit Account, you can start investing with as little as PHP 1,000.00 for a short-term time deposit.
Though it may seem extremely difficult at first, you’ll find that saving gets easier with time. The more you practice sticking to your budget, the easier it’ll be to resist impulse buys and to set aside extra cash without batting an eye. With enough planning, patience, and determination, we’re sure that you’ll save up enough to make that dream vacation happen in no time.