Saving for a holiday

Save now and play later

Whether it's snorkelling on the Great Barrier Reef or going on safari in the Serengeti, your next holiday will cost money. It's much better to save as much as you can before you leave, so you don't rely entirely on your credit card. You don't want to spend the next year paying off your trip debts.

1. Work out your holiday costs

2. Save as much as you can

Work out your holiday costs

The cost of your holiday depends on where you go and how you like to travel. Some costs to consider include:

1. Airfares or transport costs

2. Visa and passport charges

3. Travel insurance

4. Transport at your destination e.g. hire car

5. Accommodation

6. Food

7. Entry fees to sights and activities

8. Souvenirs

9. Entertainment costs

10. Extra money in case of emergencies

11. Charges for using your phone for calls while you're overseas

Smart tip

If you are exchanging money here or overseas shop around with a few different operators. Different fees and charges can have a big impact on how much cash you receive.

Accessing money

Think about how you are going to access money while overseas. If you carry lots of cash around, you could risk losing it. You could get a travel prepaid card or you could talk to your bank about how you can access your money overseas without paying high fees.

Save as much as you can

Budgeting

Cut back on spending before you go and you'll have more money to spend on your trip. Use our budget planner to see where your money goes and find ways to spend less on non-essential items.

For example, Paul is going to Mexico and decided to save money by not going out for dinner for 2 months. He saved $300, which he put towards dining out on his Mexican trip.

Look for savings in your:

• Entertainment costs

• Restaurant meals

• Clothes

• Takeaway lunches and coffees

Growing your savings

Once you've cut back your spending, you should make the most of your savings.

Think about putting your money where it will earn interest, such as a term deposit or a savings account. These accounts will give you a higher rate of interest than transaction accounts.

Use the saving goal calculator to make the most of your savings or try our app TrackMyGOALS.

Case study: Laura and Kaz save up for Europe

Laura and Kaz dream of backpacking around Europe.

They have only 18 months to save as much money as they can for their trip.

Laura opens an online savings account with an interest rate of 5% and deposits $500 every fortnight. She resists the temptation to dip into the money as she knows she will lose some of her interest if she does. Kaz saves $500 of her pay every fortnight in her everyday transaction account. She tries not to use the money but sometimes takes out $50 to get her through to the next pay day.

Eighteen months later, Laura has saved more than $20,700, while Kaz has only $16,200. Hard-to-access, high interest accounts can make a big difference.