A budget-friendly family holiday can be difficult, particularly as a student as it can be difficult to scrape together the money needed. Despite it being a challenge, it is not impossible and with some planning and preparation can be achieved. In this article, we are giving you some advice on how to save up for a budget-friendly family holiday made simple.
Begin Saving In Advance
As a student, it can be difficult to find time to relax, let alone travel. However, there is always the option to tag along on a family holiday provided you have the additional funds to pay for your own flight and accommodation. Though saving money as a student is difficult, you can begin saving in advance to ensure you have the money when it comes to paying back your parents.
If you are working during your time at university, this is the perfect opportunity to begin saving as just £20 per week can add up over the course of multiple months giving you the funds that you need. Though it may take significantly longer to save up the money, this will make the time spent with your family much more special as you know you have worked hard to afford it.
Book A Year Ahead
Another way to save money in the long term is to book in advance. If your family are aware of your current financial status, booking in advance may help to save everyone a significant amount of money. Often, locations such as America are cheaper when booking in advance, particularly if you are travelling out of term time this is due to their being fewer people travelling at this time. This is ideal for students as the holidays differ slightly when compared to secondary schools and can, therefore, accommodate this. Though this is not the same for all universities, many break up for summer at the beginning of June and return in mid-September, making it the ideal time to spend with family and travel at a much lower cost should you want to.
Organise Passports 6 Months Prior
It is important to remember that applying for a new passport will cost you around £86 and should, therefore, be worked into your budget when saving. By paying for this 6 months prior to your leaving date you not only have time to ensure that it arrives, but you will also have the time to replenish your funds to give you spending money for the trip. This will also help you to save as there will then be no additional expenses allowing you to save a specific amount per month with ease.
When applying for your passport, it may be beneficial to apply online as the cost of applying by a paper form is £95 pounds. Applying for a new passport is a simple process and can be completed on the government website. It can take between 30 mins to one hour and the overall application process will need up to 3 weeks to be sent to you. This three week period has the potential to be longer if you have not filled the application out properly.
Begin A Holiday Fund
The final way to save up is to begin a family holiday fund. If you are living at home whilst attending uni then it is, much easier for you to be involved in the planning of the holiday. By adding money to a jar in the kitchen or collecting loose change, you can begin collecting spending money. This will help the entire family to save and encourage everyone to contribute. The amount raised will also then determine either the location that you will be visiting or the amount of spending money that you have thus encouraging you to raise more.
With all this in mind, saving money as a student for a budget-friendly family holiday doesn’t have to be difficult and with some planning and preparation, you can have the money you need in no time at all.
