Tell the truth, did you have huge travel plans for this year, and have they totally fallen through? Or were you caught off guard completely thinking that you had months to scrape money together to go sooner or later because you thought things would progress uneventfully for the rest of the year? Either way, you were sorely disappointed, right? If you are big on travel the events of 2020 have no doubt put a wrench in your plans in some form or other.

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​Being a budget traveler before the shit storm that is 2020, I feel you. Not having access to the kind of money you are used to can be a bucket of ice water to the face. Saving isn’t easy for me and has never been. But I know that if I want certain things to happen, that I have to set those goals to keep focused to reach them, like building a travel fund. Otherwise, I am just talking into the wind over here by myself.

I found this new set of tools that can really help you keep focused if financial planning is not your forte. Whether you have lost your stable income, or the borders have closed, or you’ve been grounded by illness, I’ve got a tool to help you do better for when we return to the new normal. It’s called Pigly. Pigly has a number of completely free tools to help you budget and manage your finances. No matter how small or how large, it will you get to your goal. And I am going to tell you how.

Use Pigly’s Debt Repayment Calculator

Use this handy tool to figure out how long it will take you to pay off your getaway if your method payment is your travel miles credit card. I don’t recommend running up your limit with funding travel with leveraging debt. But if this is your tactic, Pigly has got you. If you use the Debt Repayment Calculator and are looking for the benefits of a travel miles program to get to your traveling by year’s end, this may be your only option because 2021 is just around the corner.

Using Different Savings Accounts Calculators

Pigly has multiple calculators for a variety of savings accounts. You can choose the one you need according to what your financial institution offers. I recommend that you find a community bank because the rates are better and that the bank is FDIC insured. Whether, you choose a basic saving, a compound interest, or a variable rate account to build your travel fund you can figure out how much you will need to start with to pay for that week in Tulum or if you can upgrade to Cappadocia.

Using An Opportunity Cost Calculator

Have you thought about how much money you could add to your travel fund just by cutting back on little luxuries? Opportunity calculators on Pigly vary to fit your particular lifestyle. You can choose the one that figures best into your lifestyle. If you make lunch at home instead of buying it, or if you decide to quit smoking, or cut out that daily large frappuccino, or finally implement “Meatless Mondays” into your life to save money. How amazing is that? You can save money, get closer to your dream trip, and get healthier at the same time.

For example, using the opportunity cost for that large frappuccino with extra caramel I mentioned earlier factored every day at $7 a pop plus tax and have it reoccurring 7 days a week over a year’s time and you’ll see how much you could add to your savings account. I used NYC’s tax rate and the expense came to a grand total of $2802.64 including 2% interest in this example. Now, that would be an amazing trip to a number of countries if you just make your own coffee for a period of time. Don’t you agree?

Using the Savings Goal Timeline

Do you have a date in mind to shoot towards? Is it for a special occasion like a wedding or honeymoon or a girl’s trip next year? If you have a starting amount and a goal total you can use a savings goal calculator. Or from the other end of the problem, do you have a goal amount and need to figure out how long it will take you to save for that particular trip that you have your eye on? Well, Pigly has you covered there too with their savings goal calculator.

Using Your Existing Income to Plan Your 50/30/20 Breakdown

The most useful of all the tools on Pigly, in my opinion, is the Personal Budget Planner. It takes into account, not just an arbitrary number you want to save but, it includes all of your expenditures and wants that you are spending your paycheck on. You can plan by how often you get paid, weekly, biweekly, or just use an overall annual number. And the planner uses the 50/30/20 budgetary guideline. The percentages stand for 50% (needs), 30% (wants), and 20% (savings)that add up to your 100% income. You are provided with a detailed outline to keep yourself on track by percentage from high end to a low end. Either way, it keeps you focused on paying yourself first.

Yes, this year is hard and it is difficult to find the bright side of things at the moment. But with these free tools, the saving for the sunnier future won’t seem so difficult. Which of these calculators do you think that you’d be most likely to use to build your travel fund? Let me know in the comments below, how do you think its best to save for travel?

Until our next rendezvous …

XOXO

Trudy