Are you dreaming about your next luxury vacation, but aren’t sure where you’re going to get the money to fund your trip?
While luxury vacations can be a life-changing experience, funding them can often feel like a nearly-impossible task.
Luckily, there are plenty of things you can do to save for your next luxury vacation, even if you don’t have a ton of money to start with.
Check out this vacation financing guide to learn how to fund your next luxury getaway.
- Plan Ahead and Book Early
When it comes to planning a luxury vacation, one of the best things you can do is plan ahead and book early.
Not only should you try to book your hotels and accommodation early, but you should also book your flights, excursions, and tours as soon as possible. If you wait too long, then you could easily end up paying triple the amount for your vacation.
- Be Flexible With Your Dates
In addition to planning your trip early, you should also try to be as flexible as possible with your dates.
If you’re going on a short trip, try to book it during the weekday instead of over the weekend. Also, try to avoid popular vacation holidays like New Year’s, Labor Day, Christmas, and Memorial Day weekend.
Additionally, look into the destination you’re planning to go to. With most destinations, there’s a peak travel season and an off travel season. For example, if you’re traveling to Italy, we suggest avoiding the summer months, as this is when the majority of tourists flock to this country. Instead, look into going to the country during the fall or spring.
- Choose the Right Travel Credit Card
The right travel credit card can really help stretch your vacation dollars.
Here are some of the top credit cards to consider:
- Capital One Venture Rewards Credit Card
- Discover It Miles
- Chase Sapphire Preferred Card
- Wells Fargo Propel American Express Card
- Capital One Spark Miles for Business
- Bank of America Travel Rewards Credit Card
- The Platinum Card from American Express
- Chase Sapphire Reserve
- Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus Credit Card
Take some time to research each of these credit cards to see which one is right for you.
- Set Up a Vacation Savings Account
By setting up a vacation savings account that you don’t touch, you’ll be less tempted to spend all of the money in your bank account.
Once you set up the account, you should aim to put aside a certain amount of money each day, week, or month. To make setting aside money even easier, we suggest setting up an automatic withdrawal. This way, you don’t even have to think about stashing the money away.
- Find Creative Ways to Save Money
Before your trip, there are a lot of things you can do to save some extra money to help you pay for your trip.
Don’t worry, you don’t need to give up your life for months and take on a second full-time job. There are plenty of things that you can do to set aside from extra cash that won’t take up a lot of your time.
Here are some top ideas:
- Buy a lottery ticket — and don’t forget to check the Powerball numbers
- Rent out a room on your home on Airbnb
- Pick up freelancing work as a writer, photographer, designer, virtual assistant, pet sitter, or house sitter
- Hold a garage sale
- Sell old items on sites like Etsy or Craigslist
- Get a roommate
- Rent out your car
- Get paid to do online surveys
- Drive for Uber or Lyft
- Sell stock photos online
- Do odd jobs on Task Rabbit
- Teach English online
- Enter online contests
- Build a niche website
- Buy and sell domain names
- Rent out your camera gear
- Become an online notary
- Participate in a focus group
- Earn cash back for grocery shopping
- Wrap your car in advertising
- Collect and recharge electric scooters
- Donate plasma
As you can see, there are plenty of simple ways you can make some extra cash to put more money towards your vacation fund!
- Take Out a Loan
If you want to go on a luxury vacation soon but don’t yet have the money saved, then you should also consider taking out a loan.
Generally, there are two types of loans you can take out: a travel loan or a personal loan. The great part about taking out a personal loan is that you can check your eligibility online anytime and anywhere. Another bonus is that this type of financial service is available to anyone, regardless of income. But, keep in mind that personal loans come with high-interest rates, so make sure you can pay it back quickly.
Travel loans are specifically designed for vacationing. That is, you can use a travel loan to fund your trip and nothing else.
- Mix Luxury with Budget
If you don’t have the money to take a two-week luxury vacation, then consider mixing luxury with budget.
For example, you can spend 4 days at a luxury resort, relaxing under the sun and ordering expensive cocktails, and then you can spend another four days staying at a hostel or affordable guesthouse.
If you’re looking to give back to the community you’re traveling to, you may also want to consider volunteering in exchange for accommodation and meals. You can use websites like Workaway and WWOOF to find volunteer opportunities in your destination of choice.
Vacation Financing: Are You Ready to Pay for Your Luxury Vacation?
Now that you’ve read this luxury vacation financing guide, it’s time to start saving for your big trip. Before you know it, you’ll be living a life of luxury under the sun, even if just for a short while.
If you liked this article, be sure to check back in with our blog for more vacation financing tips and tricks.