Ahh Summer! Summer is usually vacation season for most families.
And while I won’t be going on a vacation anytime soon (read: until my debts are paid off), I know many of you probably will be if you haven’t already.
While there are plenty of posts about there about how to spend less on vacation, how to plan a staycation, etc. No one talks about how going on vacation may be affecting your regular monthly budget.
Vacations are about enjoying yourself, relaxing, and getting away from the grind of everyday life, which may include getting away from thinking so much about your budget. I’m all for that, but you still need to be cautious so you don’t return home from your vacation stressed out because of all the money you spent.
Even if you budget and save for your vacation separately from your normal monthly expenses (like you should), going on vacation can still affect your regular budget.
Not sure how? I’m glad you asked.
Spending More
–Petsitting or Babysitting. Depending on if you take your pets or kids with you on vacation, you may have petsitting or babysitting to pay for when you get home.
Some people might include petsitting and/or babysitting in the budget for their trip (I probably would), but others may not. If you don’t include it in the budget for your trip, it will have to come out of your regular monthly budget, which will increase your spending. (Unless you swap petsitting with friends or leave the kids with family.)
-People’s mistakes. I’ll never forget when my family went on vacation when I was a kid and we came home to a flooded basement. The people who were supposed to come over and water the plants, take in the mail, etc. had left the outside water running in the garden (next to the house) and the water leaked into the basement after running for 2-3 days straight. That was a fun to return home to after vacation.
Spending Less
-Groceries. While you are away on vacation you won’t be buying groceries out of your regular monthly budget at home. This means you should spend less on groceries in your regular monthly budget whenever you are gone on a vacation. Woot!
-Utilities. Likewise, if you turn your AC way up so it doesn’t run much (if at all) while you are gone on vacation, your utility bill will likely reflect that too. If you are only gone for 2-3 days it may not change a lot, but if you are gone for quite a while it could have a large impact on your utility bill.
-Entertainment. Because you just took a huge vacation, you shouldn’t be spending a lot more on entertainment in the weeks leading up to or following your trip. This should help you spend less in this category too.
Are you planning to take a vacation this summer? Where are you going? You should definitely dish about it so the rest of us (me) who aren’t going on vacation can live vicariously drool over yours. 🙂
