A COLLEAGUE came by this week to remind me that he will be going to visit China with his family starting next weekend.
This was a plan he had mentioned since last year and he was fully ready for the expense, the adventure, the quality time with his family and the shopping.
My question for you this week is: are you ready for this 2015 summer vacation time?
Whatever is your normal consuming interest – work, research or studies – a worthy vacation allows you to return to the tasks with fresher and clearer thoughts. Vacation is a time to relax, celebrate the past year and recreate our interests and passions for the years ahead. Here then are six pointers for maximising the value of your vacation:
1. First and foremost, make the vacation create value for you. Your best friend may just have had a grand time shopping in New York, or your workmate may be raving about their luxurious cruise, but is that what you really want to do?
2. Consider the nature of your vacation time. Will it include adventure, exploration, celebration, shopping, quality time with family or friends, sports, exercise or plain relaxation, for example?
3. How much can you afford to spend? Smart planners would have been saving beforehand. Additional funds may be borrowed, or some vacation costs charged to a travel, debit or credit card, provided that you can see how you can repay the debt over no more than say, the next six months. Ultimately, the total amount of funds estimated for this vacation would serve as the vacation budget total.
4. Given this budget total, try to draw up a daily itinerary projection of how the various days of your vacation would be spent: at home; or going out locally; or travelling overseas. Would local or overseas accommodation, meals and travel be needed and so on.
This step will help to match your planned vacation with the nature of the vacation which you would really like. Estimating and totalling the daily cost of the plan activities, plus allowing for a contingency amount, should be equal to or less than your vacation budget total.
5. Some adjustments may have to be made. First, you may be guided and motivated to save more over the next year in order to enjoy a more extensive vacation. On the other hand, you may need to contain costs by spending more of the time at home, and curtailing expensive activities for the current year (or even say, the next few years) in order to afford a more valuable vacation in a future year. Furthermore, you may also be forced to contain vacation costs for a number of years if your financial focus is on meeting your university education expenses, or repaying debt such as a car loan or a second mortgage.
6. Accommodation: Staying at home can fully save on additional accommodation. Alternately, a local staycation may cost more, yet can be a significant change of scene that adds real value without the cost of overseas travel. Vacations spent in the country provide the opportunity to get to know the island just like tourists. Car and bus trips can be fun and local restaurants and eating places are there to be sampled within budget constraints.
Once you are welcome, overseas accommodation costs may be less when you arrange to stay with relatives or friends. I encourage you to express your gratitude by contributing or giving back to them in some way. You may also seek cheaper accommodation at budget hotels or on websites like www.airbnb.com and www.homeaway.com. Such websites assist by providing alternate accommodation with detailed references from a room, or an apartment to a house at typically reduced costs compared to the rates of well-known hotel properties.
* Louise Fairsave is a personal financial management adviser, providing practical advice on money and estate matters. Her advice is general in nature; readers should seek advice about their specific circumstances.
* This column is sponsored by the Barbados Workers’ Union Co-op Credit Union Ltd.
