How Do You Afford to Travel So Much?

Everyone has a question they get tired of answering. Mine might be “How do you afford to travel so much?”

I know sometimes people are genuinely curious and seeking answers for their own lives, but many times it’s awfully judgmental. What really grates my nerves in those cases is the delivery. Not just the incorrect assumption that travel is outrageously expensive, but the attitude of scorn that an average person shouldn’t be able to see the world. The presumption that anyone who travels must have been handed their lifestyle by rich parents.

How do I afford to travel so much?

How do people afford to drink Starbucks? How do they afford gym memberships? How does anyone afford going to a Taylor Swift concert?

Nobody likes it when self-righteous people put down what you choose to spend your money on.

And while privilege is absolutely a factor, we’re not talking about Bank of Mom and Dad privilege every time we talk about travel. You can see the world without a six figure trust fund.

In practice, saving for a sabbatical isn’t much different than saving up for grad school or for a new car. I made many a concession, both small and large, in the name of saving money for my travels. (Here’s the full breakdown of how I saved $500 a month for travel.)

I’ve had periods in my life when I was super diligent about my money and times (ironically post-sabbatical when I very much knew better) when I took bad advice or fell into awful habits that hurt my finances. But the sabbatical itself did not put me into debt!

During my sabbatical savings journey, I managed the process in four different places:

• The sadly now-defunct Mint.com where I linked all my bank accounts in one place and track spending in detail
• A small dry erase board which became the Travel Savings Thermometer I now offer for free on this website
• A basic draft email, where I kept a projected itinerary with budget estimates
• A separate draft email, where I tracked my spending more generally, like a scratch pad

A good budget app that links all your accounts in one place is great, but it’s not perfect. I like having that scratch pad to stay mindful of purchases in the moment. It also helps me sort expenses much more generally into Bills, Savings, and Other Spending.

Those apps are also not motivational enough for me. The physicality of coloring in a savings thermometer, however? That’s very motivational. With each paycheck, you get to inch up to the next milestone and see just how much you’re accomplishing in terms of the big picture.

For the small picture, I keep a projected itinerary in a draft email, detailing every potential cost. Price of Travel’s Backpacker Index provides a rough estimate of basic costs in over 100 cities worldwide, including hostel beds, cheap meals, public transportation, entertainment, and paid attractions. Google Flights and Skyscanner help sketch out airfare costs, while Rome2Rio and its corresponding mobile app FetchMyWay can do the same for overland travel. I’ve also priced out travel visas based on information from the U.S. Department of State’s official website.

Even if the details of your actual sabbatical change, this can give you a good blueprint for motivational purposes. You can look at every minor step along the way and tell yourself that cooking dinner tonight means spending another full day in Vietnam down the road.

It can be hard work… but so is saving for anything that matters to you.

How do you afford to travel? Some of it is good luck, but committing to a goal, keeping it a priority, and managing your progress makes all the difference.