• home
  • about
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • Work with me
  • Plan a Trip with Me
  • Best Travel Cards
  • Read the blog

ashley on the move

  • Travel Planning
  • Destinations
  • Blog

Paying for travel · May 2, 2022

The Ultimate vacation Budget Template (free download!)

Ashley on the Move is part of an affiliate sales network and receives compensation for sending traffic to partner sites, such as Milevalue.com. This compensation may impact how and where links appear on this site. This site does not include all financial companies or all available financial offers. Terms apply to American Express benefits and offers. Enrollment may be required for select American Express benefits and offers. Visit americanexpress.com to learn more. Read the full disclosure here

Plan the best trip and handle the financial portion seamlessly with the vacation budget template free download!

A big part of being able to travel so much is being able to PAY for it. We prioritize travel in our household, so a large chunk of our budget goes to travel! Having a great budget is key for me to feel confident in booking that next trip. When I have an idea of where we want to go, I immediately start thinking about how much it will cost and how long we need to save.

pin me for later!

I’ll get right to it. Today, I’m sharing my vacation budget planner template with you for FREE! I’ve been tweaking it for awhile to make sure it’s great for you and I hope you love the outcome!

Table of Contents

  • why you need the vacation budget template
  • Grab the vacation budget planner!
  • how to use the budget planner
      • three steps to using the vacation budget template
  • Grab the vacation budget planner!
  • Need more financial travel planning help? Check out these posts

why you need the vacation budget template

Having a plan is key to being able to travel more. And once you have a plan you need a way. And the way is money.

Let’s face it: vacation ain’t cheap. But it is NOT worth it to rack up a credit card bill that you can’t pay off. It’s really hard to truly enjoy vacation when you have to come home to a mountain of debt.

cash money of dollar and euro banknotes | vacation budget template
Photo by Karolina Grabowska on Pexels.com

How to solve this? Plan ahead! The budget planner can help you see in a more visual way how much you need and have left for that epic trip you’ve been planning.

You are able to make multiple copies of the template for ANY vacation. I personally don’t make budgets for short weekend trips but I do use the template for any of our bigger trips requiring flights, hotels, etc.

Having a budget for vacation provides:

  • freedom to spend in the way YOU want
  • discover priorities and cut in categories you don’t care about
  • spend more thoughtfully
  • travel more (yes, really!)

There are so many great benefit to using a budget for vacation… guilt free travel? Yes, please!

You may also like…

How can sinking funds help you save for travel? plan + Pay for vacation

Download the free vacation budget template here!

Grab the vacation budget planner!

Get the free template sent right to your inbox to plan your next vacay.

    We won’t send you spam. Unsubscribe at any time.
    Built with ConvertKit

    how to use the budget planner

    The vacation budget planner has sections for transportation, accommodations, food, activities, souvenirs, and miscellaneous items. Each section is also further sub-divided into sections, if necessary!

    white smartphone beside silver laptop computer
    Photo by Dominika Roseclay on Pexels.com

    You can EITHER start by putting in estimated amounts in each individual category OR putting the amount you have saved for your trip in the yellow box.

    There are benefits starting with both. Starting with your estimated amount is a good strategy if you are still saving and have plenty of time to save the needed amount. I recommend starting 1-2 years before a big international trip and 3-6 months before a shorter/domestic trip.

    You may also like…

    how to create a budget that works for you

    If you want to start with your total amount, this helps make sure you can stay on task as you begin budgeting things. I recommend doing this first if you already have certain amount saved up and don’t have much wiggle room to save more.

    Then you can move on to the fun part–spending! There is a section for expenses on the right side of the template.

    Just be sure you do have a SET budgeted amount in the yellow box before you start plugging in your expenses.

    The expenses section has areas for date, expense, category, amount spent, and remaining amount. The remaining amount is my favorite part because it adjusts as you put in your expenses. This makes it SUPER easy to see how much you have remaining and adjust as necessary.

    You can change the amount in the yellow box as you save more and this will adjust your remaining amounts as well! I’ve tried to make it as simple as possible for you!

    three steps to using the vacation budget template

    There you go! Only 3 steps to creating the perfect budget for vacation:

    1. Establish your total budget
    2. Plug in your expected spending in each category
    3. Add your expenses

    I truly hope this vacation budget template helps you as you plan vacation. Understanding the cost and making a proper budget is so crucial for being able to travel more! Dream it, plan it, do it! (Is that cheesy? Maybe. But I’m ok with it.)

    I hope you love this template and use it for all your vacation planning needs! As always, drop a comment or email me at hello [@] ashleyonthemove.com if you have any questions!

    Happy planning!

    Grab the vacation budget planner!

    Get the free template sent right to your inbox to plan your next vacay.

      We won’t send you spam. Unsubscribe at any time.
      Built with ConvertKit

      pin me for later!
      pin me for later!

      Need more financial travel planning help? Check out these posts

      Finances 101: How to Make Your Budget Work for You

      How to plan and pay for a big trip

      Travel hacking: how to score free travel

      In: Paying for travel

      You’ll Also Love

      ash michael and benhow to plan and pay for a big trip
      cash money of dollar and euro banknotesEarn a Nearly Free Vacation with Your Holiday Shopping
      Hand holding 5 of the best credit cards for earning points and milesBest Credit Card Offers for October 2022

      Leave a Reply Cancel reply

      Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

      Next Post >

      How to Travel for FREE–is a travel credit card right for you?

      meet ashley

      Hi friend! I’m Ashley, a 20-something newlywed, dog mom, and pediatric physical therapist. I have incurable wanderlust and when I’m not working, I’m dreaming up our next adventure. We utilize credit card points and miles to see the world for nearly free and I’m teaching you the same thing. I’m so glad you’re here!

      free credit card consultation

      Not sure what credit card you need to meet your travel goals? Fill out the survey to get a FREE personalized credit card recommendation.

      connect on instagram

      Can’t wait to add another girlie pop to our squa Can’t wait to add another girlie pop to our squad!!!!
      🚨Exciting news!! Personalized travel planning j 🚨Exciting news!! Personalized travel planning just entered the chat. 

I’m so grateful and excited to have partnered with Fora Travel to to help you book your next bucket list trip as a travel advisor. Fora has partnerships with over 2,000 hotels and tour companies around the world so you can get VIP perks anywhere you wanna go. Whether you want to just book a hotel for the perks or want a full customized itinerary. 

As such, it’s time to retire this account because it just doesn’t match the vision of my travel advising business. I would LOVE for you to follow me over at @ashleyrice.travel to keep up to date with my blog and travel business. This account will still remain as more of a personal/Raleigh-Durham account. Whether you follow my business account, stick around here, or decide it’s time for us to part ways—thanks for being apart of my journey. 

I’m so excited for what 2023 has to bring! If you have questions about my new venture as a travel advisor, want to book a trip with me, or just see what all the fuss is about, follow me @ashleyrice.travel or send me a DM on either account. I can’t wait to hear from you!

#traveladvisor #travelplanning #luxurytravel #adventuretravel #frequentflyer #firstclass
      In 2022, I started to see the potential of what my In 2022, I started to see the potential of what my life could be. Thanks to the blog, Instagram, and burn out in my professional life—I traveled more last year than ever. And 2023 is shaping up to be the same way! My advice remains the same as always: take the damn trip. Use the PTO! Explore on the weekends. Life is short, make it worth it!! 

#travelinspiration #travelreels #travelblogger #luxurytravel #businessclassflyer #frequentflyer #weekendwarrior #sheisnotlost #womenwhotravel #traveladvisor
      “Ashley, you just asked for PTO last month” I “Ashley, you just asked for PTO last month” I can’t hearrrr youuuuu 🙉

Who can relate?? Do you have a goal to use more PTO this year?

#travelblogger #travelinspiration #sheisnotlost #womenwhotravel #luxurytravel #pointsandmiles #travelmore #travelreels #traveladvisor
      Ready to finally travel more like you always said Ready to finally travel more like you always said in 2023?! Avoid these 3 things and… 

follow @ashleyonthemove_  for more travel tips, travel hacks, and itineraries!

#travelblogger #travelmore #travelinspiration #travelvibes #travelreels #traveladdict #luxurytravel #adventuretravel #womenwhotravel #sheisnotlost #travelcouple
      ——- See ya, 2022! 👏🏻👋🏻 It was a ——-

See ya, 2022! 👏🏻👋🏻

It was a great year: we bought a house, went on tons of weekend trips, visited 2 new countries, and I changed jobs. 

This space grew by about 100%… even though it’s still small I’m proud of the community here! Instagram is easy to get burned out on and even through my wild inconsistency (lol) I’ve made so many new connections and learned a ton. 

The blog grew by over 60%, too! I’ve been much more consistent over the last 5 months and it’s paying off big time. 

But of course, I’ve got huge goals for 2023 and I can’t wait to make them happen. Thanks for being along for the ride!

#travelblog #travelblogger #sheisnotlost #womenwhotravel #travelcommunity #travelwriters #ncliving #pointsandmiles #pointsandmilescommunity
      Plan 👏🏻 ahead👏🏻when👏🏻using👏🏻points!
 
If you really want to maximize your points earnings and use, you need to be thinking about travel 1-2 years out! High ticket items like business class flights and luxury hotels have limited award space… and they go fast. Many hotels and airlines release 360-370 days in advance and award availability goes quick! Like, sometimes same day. 

If you want to book your dream trip with points, you can! Just plan waaaay ahead. Need help figuring out how?! Comment “plan ahead” below so we can chat about what card and points you need for that dream trip!

#pointsandmiles #pointsandmileslifestyle #frequentflyer #luxurylifestyle #luxurytravel #travelhacks #travelhacking #firstclassflight #firstclass #businessclass #businessclassflyer #airportlounge
      Cloud over the Andes mountains in Sale to, colombi Cloud over the Andes mountains in Sale to, colombia 🙌🏻 What was your favorite view of 2022?

#travelblogger #travelviews #luxurytravel #frequentflyer #businessclass #firstclassflight #firstclasstravel #pointsandmiles #travelhacks #colombiatravel #salentoquindio #cocoravalley

      latest pins

      the archives

      trending now

      work with me

      • Travel Design
      • Brands / General Inquiries

      join the club

      Read more

      • home
      • about
      • Blog
      • Contact
      • Work with me
      • Privacy Policy
      • Terms & Conditions
      • Blog
      • About

      Copyright © 2023 ashley on the move · Theme by 17th Avenue