Knowing how much you need to save for your trip starts with choosing your destination and the type of holiday you’re after – luxury or budget. It’s also wise to think about when you’re travelling, as prices can soar during peak holiday periods.
Once you’ve worked out where you’re going and for how long, it’s time to start planning.
Here are some tips for saving for a holiday:
Consider your upfront travel costs
These are the costs you’ll most likely need to pay before you go, such as flights, accommodation, travel insurance and visas, passport fees and vaccinations if you’re going overseas.
Set a daily budget
To work out how much you’ll need to take with you, do some research and estimate your costs for every day that you’ll be away, factoring in accommodation, meals, entertainment, tours and shopping.
Set aside emergency funds
Don’t forget to set aside extra funds in case of an emergency.
Set a savings goal
Now you’ve got an idea of how much your trip will cost, it’s time to put a plan in place.
Try our savings calculator to see how much you’ll need to save regularly in the lead-up to your trip to make sure you reach your goal. For example, to save $2,500 for a trip in 9 months' time, you’ll need to save roughly $280 per month.
Here are some tips to help you reach your savings goal:
- Create a budget to see how much you can realistically afford to save. If you’re unable to save as much as you need in time, look at how you can cut day-to-day costs with our everyday savings tips, or reassess your travel plans
- Open a savings account so you can regularly deposit your savings (and any extra when you can). If you already have money saved, you might want to think about a Term Deposit – you’ll get a fixed rate of return for the nominated term, so you know exactly what your investment's worth
- You can set up a savings goal using Goal Tracker* in the CommBank app. We’ll break it down into weekly targets and help you set up automatic payments from your everyday account into your goal
- To keep your goal top of mind, try setting a photo of your destination as your phone or computer screensaver, or stick a photo on your fridge.
Need to keep track of your spending so you can save more? Explore Transaction Notifications and Spend Tracker which help you work out how much you're spending, when and on what.
Top tips for saving on holiday costs
- Book early to try to avoid high costs during peak holiday periods, and use flight comparison sites to get the best possible deal. You might also get discounts on tours if you pre-book.
- If booking flights, you may notice the price has gone up since your last visit to the website. A lot of airlines do this to encourage you to buy before the price goes up again. Try deleting your internet cookies and see if the prices fall.
- With a CommBank Gold, Platinum Awards, Diamond Awards or Ultimate Awards credit card, you, your spouse or partner, and up to 10 dependent children (if they're travelling with you for the entire trip) have international travel insurance included with your card. No minimum spend is required.
If you don’t have one of these cards, you can look at the range of tailored CBA travel insurance plans to suit your budget and travel needs. Whether it’s an unexpected medical cost or lost luggage, travel insurance can be one of the biggest savers while you're on holiday.
- Keep a close eye on exchange rates in the lead-up to your trip if you want to buy foreign cash or put money on a Travel Money Card. Locking in a good rate when the dollar is strong is a great way to save.
- Get more out of your money when you’re away with our tips on how to access and manage your money overseas.
* Requires a GoalSaver or NetBank Saver in your name only.
