By budgeting for vacations we are able to go on more vacations than the average person. We often get asked how we can afford such a "lavish" lifestyle.

Part of it is just making travel and going on trips a priority. The other main part is that we make vacations part of our budget.

Kelsey seems to like our trips scattered throughout the year while Phil would be more than happy taking off several months and clumping several trips together. No matter what strategy you prefer there are ways to save for those vacations.

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Make a Budget

Before we even get into budgeting, especially for vacations, you should probably make sure you have an overall budget. If you don't have a budget and don't know where to start, check out our other post, Introduction to Budgeting.

You could always have one budget just for vacations but it will be easier to save if you know where all of your money is going. We suggest starting with one budget for all expenses then breaking it down further into a separate vacation budget.

Set Financial Goals

It is always good to have an idea of how much you want to save up for a vacation. Have a good idea of what is affordable for your budget then set that as your goal.

Once you pick a number for your goal, stick with it. You can set goals in a budget program like Mint to help you keep track of a more consolidated way.

Have a "Vacation" Savings

We have multiple bank accounts but one of the banks we use is Capital One 360. At Capital One 360 you can open online savings accounts at any time and as many as you want.

We have opened multiple savings accounts for travel. This is to make sure we have the necessary funds set aside.

We like having accounts under the names for our different vacations planned. Accounts such as “Island vacation” “Vegas vacation” “Treehouse vacation”, etc. have money put in every week and over time they just keep growing.

This way when we can make sure to have enough for a certain travel location on our bucket list. We also have one for a yearly "mega vacation" and weekend getaways.

Be Realistic

You always have to be realistic about what you’re looking at. Everyone is different. Depending on your job and/or lifestyle, your getaways may differ.

Are you someone who might take one trip a year because of work or just your preference? Then just save for one trip at a time.

If you really can't take too much time off work look into smaller weekend trips. Saving and planning for several small trips may be better for you and your schedule.

Don’t try to overdo it and then ultimately fail and lose all your steam. Stick to what you think is best for you.

Prioritize

Make sure that you are spending your time and money on things that are a priority for you. This could be the size of the vacation or what you do on the vacation.

If you don’t like taking vacations to other countries, don’t plan a trip to a foreign country. Instead, plan a trip somewhere closer you would like.

If you want a "bigger" trip maybe visit a big city or a national park. Or try making the trip for a longer getaway.

For Kelsey, flying first class is a goal for traveling. Phil, on the other hand, loves having a nice hotel room. On our travel budgets, we make sure those two categories have a major percentage of the money allotted for that trip.

Always Be Saving

If you are going to budget for vacations then you need to make sure you are ALWAYS putting money towards a trip. You should put away money every month if not every week. Just make it be part of every paycheck.

It starts to become second nature and you don’t have to do as much work for it. If you put aside a certain amount of money each week/month, you will have more than enough set aside to make that vacation everything you want.

Tackle One Step at a Time

Little steps are easier than big steps. When you book a big trip, the number of things you need to do can be overwhelming.

When we traveled to Cook Islands (over by New Zealand) we had to: book a flight, book a hotel, check on rental cars, make sure our passports are good, exchange our currency, figure out what we wanted to see while on the island, etc. That can be a lot to do and the money quickly adds up.

Instead, you should start months in advance and book things weekly. This helps with money and not spending too much all at once.

It's also a great way to be less stressed. Of course, this tip only works if you are planning your trip months in advance.

Make Travel Affordable

So how do we save up the money for all of our trips? For our weeklong or even month-long trips? We use these easy tricks to budget for all of our adventures.

Budgeting for a trip and planning a vacation can be daunting when you think about everything that has to go into it but it doesn’t have to be. We take about 20 vacations a year and while our jobs are set up perfectly to allow us to do this, you can do it too.

Some are short getaways but some are big grand getaways. Even if you just plan out one big trip next year, we promise the process can be painless and you won’t regret it!