This is an excerpt from a story originally published in newsreports.
Now that we’re in the post-pandemic era, consumers are eager to travel. But are their budgets able to keep up? It’s a good question, especially when 49% of people expect to shell out at least $4,000 to get away in 2023. That’s a fairly high figure, especially for younger travelers who haven’t had a lot of time to sock away savings.
This isn’t to say that you’re doomed to either forgo your PTO or try to make the best of a staycation if you don’t have a pile of money right now. There are several hacks that will allow you to indulge your wanderlust and still travel on a budget. Try the ones that suit you best — you could be chilling beachside or scoping out a new city in no time.
To save money… try an envelope challenge
As financial-style TikTok challenges go, the 100 Envelopes Challenge is about the most streamlined on the planet. You just need to buy 100 envelopes and label them from one to 100. On day one, you put $1.00 in the envelope labeled “1”. On day two, you put $2.00 in the envelope labeled “2”. You continue this pattern for 100 days, by which time you’ll have a total of $5,050. It’s a solid (and fun) way to save – at least if your salary is competitive and you can set aside more than $500 in the final week.
What if you’re someone who would rather keep up with your personal “envelope challenge” online? Or maybe the simplicity of the envelope challenge itself is attractive, but you prefer to pick a savings amount that’s a bit more in line with your own budget and goals.? Just download the Envie app. Envie is a free digital version of the envelope challenge and works on the same premise of setting aside certain dollar amounts daily.
Built by TeamWALT, the internal fintech from Southern Bancorp, Envie simplifies and gamifies the experience of saving up for your dream trip. Just plug in your preferred savings goal and Envie will help you move enough money over a specified period of days to achieve progress. It’s easy and keeps you engaged in the process. Best of all, you wind up with a pool of money that you can use for your next plane ticket or hotel room.
Everyone deserves to get away from it all now and then. Just be sure that you don’t come back to an empty bank account and travel on a budget. Instead, put some tips into action early in the planning process so you can de-stress without financial stress.
