How to Save $10,000 and Travel the World

Have you been dying to travel the world for as long as you can remember? What’s been stopping you? Fear? Money? Comfort? If money is the issue, you’re in luck today. I’m going to show you some ways to save money fast. In fact, I’m going to show you how you can save $10,000 by next summer and take your dream trip to anywhere in the world you want.

Before all the haters jump on my case, the 5 things I’m about to explain are things that I’ve personally given up or changed in the past few years and that you can easily change in your day-to-day schedule. I’m not going to tell you to sit in your house and be a recluse for the next year. In fact, after a while you probably won’t even miss these things. People ask me how I’m able to travel as much as I do. Here’s how.

Ready?

Ways to Save Money for Travel

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1) Give up your $5 per day Starbucks drink

Honestly, this one was probably the toughest for me. I used to be a hardcore Starbucks addict, visiting once or twice a day. When I did a little calculation and figured out how much I was spending on coffee, it blew my mind! Instead, go buy a Keurig machine, a bunch of K-cups, and some flavored creamers at the grocery store. It will be practically the same drink for a fraction of the cost.

Starbucks: $5/day x 5 days/week x 52 weeks/year = $1,300/year

Keurig: $100 (machine) + $0.50/day x 5 days/week x 52 weeks/year = $230/year

Savings: $1,070/year

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

2) Cook a few times per week rather than eating out all the time

Think about how many times per week you eat out at restaurants. For me, it used to be almost every night. Again, when I added up all my food expenses I decided I should start learning to cook. At least a bit. Now I cook 3-4 nights per week, saving on average about $15 per meal. Not only are you saving money, but this is also a lot healthier than eating out. It’s a win-win.

Savings: $15 x 3 nights/week x 52 weeks = $2,340/year

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3) Get rid of your expensive car payment

I used to have a cool sports car. It was fast and I loved it, but at the time I didn’t want to have to store it for the winter and have a second car. So I sold it and bought a used car that was a few years old, but still in great condition. Guess what? My car payment was cut in half, my insurance was cut in half, and I didn’t have to use premium gas any more! I couldn’t believe how much money I was saving.

Total payment before: $1,100/month x 12 months = $13,200

Total payment after: $600/month x 12 months = $7,200

Savings: $6,000/year

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

4) Watch movies on Netflix rather than going to the theater

By the time you buy 2 movie ticket and a bucket of popcorn, you’ve easily just spent $25. Consider this twice a month and it starts to add up. Luckily, there are options like Netflix to satisfy all your movie cravings. It only costs $8 per month and probably has more movies than you could ever hope to watch.

Movie theater: $25 x 2 movies/month x 12 months = $600/year

Netflix: $8/month x 12 months = $96/year

Savings: $504/year

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

5) Find free events to go to around town

This may be easier in some cities than others, but in Austin I go to free parties once or twice a week. Whether it’s a new startup throwing a launch party or a new food truck opening, it seems there are always opportunities to eat and drink for free or extremely cheap here. In any city or town, there are hundreds of things you could do rather than eating out and going to bars.

Savings: Depends on you, but could potentially add up to a lot.

 

Total Savings = $9,914 or more per year

So there you go. 5 relatively easy way to save money for travel. If you can implement these or similar strategies, you’ll be on a plane to some tropical destination in no time! What are you waiting for?

Do you have some good tips for ways to save money? Leave them in the comments below.