Creating a realistic travel budget is basically a deciding on a holiday that you can afford. Figure out exactly how much you earn a month. What portion of that are you able to set aside for a vacation? Are there any items you are willing to sacrifice in order to have your vacation to become a reality? Perhaps you've already been saving and have a few thousand dollars in the bank. You do? Perfect. Now that's a realistic budget. If you wish to travel to Paris tomorrow yet have only a few hundred dollars in the bank then you are not being realistic. However, it might be enough to get you in to a local hotel for a few nights.
When you are setting your budget, be practical. Everyone has different needs for their travel experience and if your travel plans include overseas flights, you will need to budget accordingly. Sure you can find great deals and get there cheaper than you might have expected, but make sure you have enough money in your budget to not only get you there but to travel around, find a place to sleep, oh and have enough money to be able to eat!
So how do you go about setting a budget? Following these steps might help:
1. Draw up a table with two columns.
2. Column A is for Expense Items. Column B is for Approximate Costs.
3. List all the things you can think of that you will need to pay for while traveling in column A. These items should include: air flights, car hire/fuel allowance, travel passes, sight-seeing tours, accommodation, food, insurance, immunizations, and souvenirs.
4. In column B figure out how much you think each item in column A will cost. You can research your travel costs quite easily using the internet. Trying to estimate a food allowance might be a bit trickier. If you are traveling alone, as a couple or in a family you will need to budget food costs accordingly.
5. Finally you want to add up the costs in column B. This will give you an idea of how much your trip will cost. The question you now ask is, "can you afford it?" If the answer is "yes" then you have found a realistic budget for your holiday. If not, then you may have to rethink your destination and the type of travel experience you want.
Remember that this table will only be an estimate of your travel costs. You must also budget for incidentals and prepare yourself for things to not go to plan. For example, have you got enough money in your budget to buy new clothes if your luggage goes missing? A realistic travel budget will have extra built in to it to cover emergencies. Setting yourself a budget of about sixty-five dollars a day, if traveling alone, is a reasonable amount. If you are traveling as a family or in a group, this number will be vastly different.
You will also want to consider if you will be traveling and working. If this is what your goal is, then you will not require as much money to begin with, just enough to get you to your destination and a place to stay while you look for work. (And enough money to buy you food until you start earning a wage.)
Keep your budget in mind when making your travel plans. Don't exceed your budget and remember to always keep a little in reserve so you can buy those amazing Italian shoes or go jet-skiing in Hawaii if the desire takes you!