How To Make a Budget for Traveling

Last Updated on April 3, 2024 by ETC Team

When planning a trip, it is easy to underestimate your costs and exceed your travel budget. Little expenses can begin to add up. In this guide, we’ll detail how to create an accurate budget for traveling. We’ll outline most every expense that you are likely to incur and detail how to estimate it. We’ll cover transportation, lodging, food and drink, travel gear, admission tickets, tours, activities, and so much more. This process is helpful for all budget sizes and trip lengths. It doesn’t matter if you’re planning a weekend getaway, an international vacation, or an extended multi-stop trip. If you follow this guide, you’ll end up with an accurate trip budget. We’ll also detail how to track your spending while on your trip to help you stick to your travel budget.

Transportation while Traveling

Getting from point A to point B is a major travel expense. Maybe even the biggest expense depending on where you’re traveling. According to this guide, travelers spend an average of 44% of their travel budget on transportation. Transportation costs include flights, parking, a rental car, bus and train tickets, and public transport. In this section, I’ll explain how to estimate your transportation budget for travel. I’ll also share some tips to help you save on transport.

Airfare

The single largest individual expense of your trip will most likely be your airplane ticket. Airfare can be expensive. Using a flight booking tool such as Google Flights or Kayak can help estimate the cost of your flights. These tools quickly offer a summary of flight prices for any given month. These sites can also be used to find low cost flights. Google Flights has even added a ‘Price Guarantee’ to certain flights booked through the site. Being flexible with your travel dates and aiming to fly during off-peak times can help lower the cost of airfare. If you have access to multiple airports, be sure to check prices at all of them. For example, New York residents are near LaGuardia(LGA), John F. Kennedy(JFK), and Newark(EWR).

Local Transportation

You will also need to consider transportation costs in and around the cities and towns you will be visiting during your trip. This includes taxi, Uber, Lyft, shuttles, or local busses and trains. To estimate this, list the areas or locations that you plan to visit and research the cost of transportation between them and your lodging. Entering a mock trip in a ride share app is an easy way to estimate the cost of a rides for each trip around town.

Rental Cars

If you plan to drive, rental cars are usually your easiest option. You’ll need to factor is costs such as the rental fee, gas, and insurance. Most travel sites have the option to check rental prices and can sometimes be bundled together with flights and hotels for even more savings. On average, renting a car can cost between $50-$100 each day. Also take in to account that rental prices can vary depending on the location. Busy seasons and holidays will also increase prices due to increased demand.

Lodging

The next item on your travel list is where to sleep. Lodging is likely to rival airfare as one of your biggest travel expenses.

To estimate your budget for lodging, be sure to check multiple sites before booking to find the best rates and deals. Booking sites such as Booking.com or Priceline offer a way to research prices of hotels at your destination. These sites usually offer a member discount if you signup for a free account. Booking directly with the hotel can also sometimes offer the best available rates. It’s best to check multiple properties within every city you plan to visit. This will allow you to find the average price for lodging in that area. Airbnb is another option that will allow you to check and compare prices before your trip. Airbnb also lists shared lodging which can offer lower prices compared to renting an entire home. Don’t forget to take advantage of any deals through membership programs such as AAA and AARP. Remember that prices and availability will change based on the season in many places.

Food and Drink while Traveling

This can be a challenging item to estimate before a trip. This will vary from person to person and from trip to trip. Checking restaurants in the area where you will be staying can give you an idea of menu items and prices before a trip. If your hotel offers daily breakfast with your stay this can be a great way to save money on a meal each day. A hotel room or an Airbnb with a kitchen also allows you to prepare some meals yourself after a trip to a local grocery store. Of course trying local foods and restaurants is a great way to explore the area you are visiting.

Travel Gear: Luggage and Electronics

Another cost that many people may not take into consideration is travel gear. Before you even take your trip you may need to buy luggage. A new suitcase or backpack can cost between $100 and $200. You may also need luggage locks, packing cubes, toiletry bag, passport wallet, a money belt and other accessories. With current travel guidelines, you’ll have to buy travel sized toiletries including soap, shampoo, sunblock, bug spray, lotion, etc. Depending on how frequent a traveler you are, you may already possess these items. If you are new to traveling and need to purchase these items, this can add between $200-$300 to your travel budget.

Many places around the world have different voltage and plug types. In order to properly charger electronic devices, you may need travel adapters. Also, while out and about, it is a good idea to have power banks and portable chargers to charge devices when you are away from power outlets. These items, as well as portable and rechargeable lights, fans, etc. are helpful during camping and hiking trips.

Entertainment, Activities, Admission Tickets and Tours.

If you plan to do any activities during your travel, you will need to budget the cost of all these adventures. This includes tickets for admission, tours, entry fees, equipment rentals, tips, entertainment costs, etc.

To calculate the cost of these activities you’ll need to research the price of the activities you plan to do. For example, if you plan to visit a museum, go to the and check the cost of admission tickets. If you plan to take in a show, go to the website of the venue and check ticket prices and availability. Guided tours will typically include entry fee transportation and a person that would lead you through the tour. Tips for guides is another expense to consider. Google has recently added a feature to Google Maps and Search that lets you view prices for specific locations. You can even pay for tickets for those attractions ahead of time instead of having to wait in line the day you want to visit them.

Prior research and gathering price estimates of the things you want to do during your trip can help you avoid expensive surprises.

How to Stay on Budget During Travel

While on your trip, you should keep track of your spending. Doing this, I will help you stick to your planned budget. Monitoring your daily expenses will help you with this task. If you overspend one day, you can reduce spending going forward to get back on track. 

Tracking your travel expenses can be tricky, but using a travel journal or keeping it simple note in your cell phone can make it easier.

Start by creating the basic categories of your trip such as lodging, food, transportation, and entertainment costs. You can get as detailed as you like within these categories. This will give you an overall view of your spending and help you stay within your travel budget. Banking apps and notifications are another tool you can use to monitor spending while on a trip.

The Wrap

Whether a novice adventurer or a seasoned jet setter, taking time to set a travel budget is a good idea before taking a trip. Having a travel budget can lessen some of the stress of taking a trip by reducing surprises that come from your travel expenditures. Making an accurate and useful travel budget will take time and practice and after a few trips you will begin to understand how the information can be helpful during your travel. You will spend most of your time researching the items that will build your trip such as flights, hotels, entertainment, and activities. The amount of detail and effort you put into your travel budget can be a fun learning experience as you piece together the building blocks of a memorable adventure.

Just remember, that while preparing and sticking to a budget can be helpful and save money, a major part of travel is to Explore, Experience and Make unforgettable Memories.