Budgeting for Travel

Those of you who know me in real life, know that our family loves to get in the car and go on adventures. Whether it’s over to hike a local trail, take a road trip to see Lake Michigan for a few hours, or check out the local historical sites or museums, we love to experience life. But travel can be expensive. You definitely have to save your pennies and have a plan.

Here’s a Mom who has been budgeting to make her travel dreams come true since she was a small child. I have been following her travels for quite a while and love watching how Kiera (Easy Travel Mom) saves money on the everyday things so she can fund her hobby!

Budgeting for Travel

My parents like to tell me that I was obsessed with money and budgeting even as a toddler. Apparently I used to count my coins A LOT! I was a planner and a saver too – always thinking far ahead to that next big toy or my first car, and later to college and “real life.”

Somewhere in my teen years I was lucky enough to travel with my stepdad to London and I loved it, even the detour to Boston Logan Airport because of a plane malfunction. From that point on it became like an addiction that I could not feed fast enough. I wanted to see and explore everywhere.

With careful planning (counting those coins again!) I saved and at age 19 I did my first backpacking trip to Europe for a month with a friend. Then later at 25 I did my second backpacking trip for 6 months traveling solo. It was liberating, exciting, informative and soul-searching. Now that I am married and have a kid, we continue to travel. Travel changes with each stage of life and my passion has only grown stronger.

At some stage of being a stay-at-home mom and wanting a hobby outside of picking up toys all over my house, I decided to start my blog, easytravelmom.com. I have a background in marketing and thought it could be something fun. I love to write and share stories about my travels, but felt disconnected from my family and friends since we don’t live near them. For most of the time, my blog has just been for fun. Occasionally I do make money with my blog and could probably do more, but with a wee toddler at home I’m a little more realistic about my time and priorities. Besides, I like to plan regular adventures for my child as it’s so rewarding seeing the world through her eyes.

What keeps you motivated with this hobby?

For the budget part of my obsession, I have no idea what motivates me. I mean, who likes to play on Excel spreadsheets on a Friday night after the kids have gone to bed? I will admit that I have watched others close to me fall into debt or struggle to make ends meet, and I have this internal need to reach out to them and help them. I never want to see someone not be able to budget for a piece of their dream, so I try to share what I know to help my readers.

My dream is to travel the world, one place at a time. My passion of exploring comes from all the wonderful people I’ve met from all over the world that I keep in touch with. Maybe it’s just the funny accents, but I love talking to locals from other countries, travel bloggers, or other travel-addicted folks like me. My main motivation is to share this with my child and my husband as to me there is nothing better than quality family time on a vacation!

Any tips for beginners?

My top “Easy Travel Tips” are the following:

1. Get a passport. It’s so easy and so worth it.
2. If you’ve never left the country, the first few places you travel to go where they speak English as a first language. Don’t get my wrong, I love experiencing totally different cultures like those in Asia or South America but if you’ve never traveled before, it’s difficult to enjoy the experience when the first roadblock is a language barrier.
3. If you can’t afford to travel internationally, explore your own country. If you can’t afford to explore your own country, explore your own city and the area that you live in. There is a lot to be said for trying new things close to home, both friendlier on the wallet and very convenient.
4. Budget, budget, and budget for travel. I talk about a lot of ways to save money at home on my website. We chose to spend a large portion of what we save on travel. However, save for whatever your passion is.
5. Have two savings accounts: one for travel, one for long-term savings. And put money in them every month, no matter how much or how little it is.

About Kiera

Kiera, aka Easy Travel Mom, has 3 passions in life: travel, money & being a mom! With her travels to more than 30 countries, a background in finance & marketing, and her learn-as-you-go mommyhood where she is constantly budgeting, Kiera shares all she knows about all 3 passions. Easy Travel Mom is about making life a little easier for other parents out there that want to live life for today and skip the hiccups.

Connect with Kiera

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Do you love to travel? Have you ever taken a dream trip? Where did you go? I’d love to hear!!!

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