Vacations and debt can coexist. With the right approach, your debt doesn’t have to interfere with earned rest. There are ways to spend time with loved ones without spending a fortune.
Vacation Alternatives While in Debt
A vacation is never worth going into debt for, but you can focus on less expensive, budget-friendly outings with family or friends. Here are three possible vacation options, ideal for those with debt repayments:
1. Homeswapping: If you want to go out of town but can’t afford to spend the 200+ dollars at a hotel or rental, try a short-term home exchange! Find a friend who lives in a different area and will swap with you. You get to live at their house for a few nights and they live at yours. You both get a mini vacation in a different area and home, and no big money is spent (just be sure to clean up after yourself and maybe bring your own groceries).
2. Staycations: Staycations became popular in 2020-21 after the global pandemic when you could not travel to other countries. Instead, many people went out in their hometowns or neighbouring towns to explore new areas. You can do the same when on a tight budget! Do some hiking, check out touristy areas, or enjoy a walk in the park. You may need to watch what you spend, but a small treat like an ice cream or cupcake won’t hurt.
3. Free Activites: Most of us want to break up the usual routine when we go on vacation. You might wish to go to a warmer spot on a beach, or a colder spot to ski. Mainly, you want to escape your everyday rush and spend time with family or friends. Try taking a few days off in the summer or winter and spend them doing fun activities close to home. There are many free activities around.
For example, you could pack a picnic lunch. Go check out a local beach. Look up your municipal recreation website and take part in some of the activities you may not know about. In the summer, there are often free swims and free concerts. While in winter, many towns & cities offer sledding, skating and other outdoor activities. Free fun is out there – you just have to find it!
Enjoying leisure time out of the office or home is valuable for everyone. But it’s not worth the price of high debt. One vacation probably won’t place you into Bankruptcy but several vacations can add up. And more often than not, we all spend more than we anticipate, which cuts into our saving strategy. Or we run into expenses we hadn’t planned for.
Choose to live within your means and plan affordable getaways. It’s the ideal way to enjoy your time off—without the lingering stress of unpaid bills.
The Social Media Vacation Trap
One last note, watch out for the social media vacation trap. We all fall victim to social media ‘comparisons’. There are always people with more money and free time who can afford that trip.
Before social media, those people still existed— we just didn’t see all their pictures and read about their trips. That made it much easier to avoid envy. Social media makes it easy to compare, and feel like these vacations make us happy. However, even though most vacations are fun, they are never worth going further into debt. When you return from your vacations, the bills will still come in and then your stress level will increase again. It’s a debt stress cycle.
Get Debt Help to Achieve Your Goals
The bottom line: don’t fall victim to vacation debt. There are plenty of other budget-friendly ways to enjoy time with family and friends. If you feel like your financial struggles are holding you back from your goals, then a financial plan is your best step forward. A saving strategy and budgeting can help you achieve your vacation goals.
Contact Allan Marshall & Associates at 1-888-891-8900 to set up an appointment to discuss your options. The sooner you deal with your debt, and start saving, the sooner you can enjoy that future vacation!
