Catching Flight On A Budget

So you watch people on Instagram catch flight every other week and you wonder “How can they afford that trip” or my favorite “She must have a sugar daddy or a scamming boyfriend.” Well, queen, you couldn’t be more wrong. Believe it or not, catching flight is pretty easy. Like most things we desire, want, and purchase in life, it’s all about planning and budgeting. So let’s discuss how to travel on a budget.

Listen, I am the queen of traveling on a budget. Life is all about balance. Although I am still climbing my way to the top and working towards accomplishing my dreams, I’ve learned that I can still enjoy my 20s while grinding out.

How can you do both you might ask? First thing first: assess your budget. Take a hard look at your bills, and monthly spending, and see where there may be room to save for a trip. Sometimes we don’t even realize our frivolous spending habits. Take for instance the Starbucks coffee that you purchase every morning.

Let’s say you spend on average $7 a day on coffee. That’s almost $50 a week and $196 a month. If you purchased a flight in advance, your coffee money could be used on a flight instead. Or maybe you love to buy Chick-fil-A breakfast every day. For the sake of your health, I hope this is not the case.

However, let’s say you spend on average $10 a day on breakfast. That’s $70 a week and $280 a month. There’s the price of your hotel or an all-inclusive resort for three nights and four days. Have you ever considered making your coffee at home, or preparing your breakfast in your kitchen?

Now that we have assessed our budget, the next step is to plan. As much as we would love to take a trip every other week, these things take some planning. Pick a time-frame that is convenient for you and your travel companion or crew, and start preparing. It’s December 2019, and you and your girls decided you want to go to Mexico in June 2020. This is perfect queen. This gives you and your friends 6 months to not only plan but also pay for the trip.

That’s right, did you know some travel companies offer installments instead of requiring full payment for a trip upfront? I’ll list some of these companies below. I’ll also provide you with a few companies that provide cheap flights, and deals. If you need the 6 months to get your finances in order, visit one of those sites today and start planning. Okay, we now know where we want to travel to, and how we’re paying for it. So what’s next? Savings.

Here comes the tricky part. Queens can catch flight on a budget. However, queens cannot catch flight on an empty bank account. Let’s assume you and your girls put down a down payment for the trip in January 2020, you also went ahead and purchased your flight, so all that is left is the remaining deposit for the resort, and your spending/shopping money. But six months can feel like forever when you have bills due, personal obligations, and things that come up to affect your travel budget. You have to remain disciplined.

Create a plan on how much you’re going to save every month for your trip. Talk to your travel crew about how much spending money you guys will need for excursions, shopping, and or food and drinks if your hotel/resort is not all-inclusive. Once you have an idea of how much you’ll need, be reasonable. Start to save a certain amount bi-weekly or every month till you reach your goal, and or until it is time for your trip.

It’s June 2020, your trip is paid for and it’s time to live your best life with your girls in Mexico. You did it, queen, you were able to catch flight while still sticking to your goals and budget. Remember, catching flight can be easy. All it takes is some planning, discipline, and a little funding.

#BlackGirlsWhoTravelOnABudget