When sitting at a family lunch a few weeks ago my auntie asked me across the table 'So where are you off to next then?' to which my grandma sharply turned to me and said 'Another trip Meriel Mae?!'. I sat awkwardly posed as my mind quickly flicked through its file of 'safe responses' working out how best to extinguish my grandma's stare while answering the question honestly...

Monthly Budget

Anyone who knows me knows I'm a spreadsheet girl. I get this type-A creative personality from my mum and I have a Google drive full of excel sheets and maps for places I want to go. If starting this completely new, a good base rule is the 50/30/20 rule which is 50% for needs, 30% for wants and 20% for savings. Nothing groundbreaking this rough percentage system has been around since the beginning of time but is a good starting point. I started saving and budgeting years ago and have gradually adapted how to manage my income as my circumstances have changed.

5-Calculate Saving + Wants Amount - This is where I take my remaining disposable income and create amounts for savings and my everyday spending. If you have never created a savings amount before then stick with 20%. For example, if your income is £1500 post deductions then 20% of this is £300 should be the amount to put aside each month. Perhaps this isn't possible as your needs, which you calculated before, are 55% of your salary post deductions in which case reduce your saving or wants by 5% to accommodate this or take a wider review of your needs to see if they can be reduced. Personally, I look back on previous years to see my saving goals against income and circumstances at the time. If my salary has increased and my living circumstances have stayed the same I will increase the amount that I can save and have as my weekly spending money or vice versa reduce the amount if things have changed. This should leave you with around 30% for your weekly ‘fun’ spending as well.

6-Allocation of Savings Money - I then take it one step further and divide my savings between my 3 main accounts which are travel, life and the newly added wedding fund. These aren't always equal for me as I may have a set amount that I need to have achieved by the end of the year in the 'life' account for example. If I had £300 which I can put away each month but needed to have £1500 in my 'life' account 1500/12 would give me £125 per month into that account. The amount I could then put away into my other two would be £87.50. It's a combination of working backwards and forwards depending on if you have specific things you wish to achieve, destinations or events to attend by the end of the year. Either way, my savings come out of my account in the exact same way as my bills do.

7-Balance in Planning: I will then review the year as a whole and allocate certain amounts that I can afford to spend on each trip, more on this below. I note all of this down on an excel sheet and colour it green once I have placed the correct amount into each account.

To be transparent without giving too much away my personal percentage breakdown of spending is 35% on needs 35% on wants and 30% on savings per month. I have managed this balance by carefully selecting what my priorities and sacrifices are and living somewhere within my income level which gives me the freedom to spend more money on travel.

This all sounds great and good as if I have my life fully together but my two downfalls are:

1-Online Shopping: The first has to be, with the help of Klarna, online shopping. This has reduced massively over the years but I try to curb the need to shop by having a Pinterest ‘Wish List’ where I pin all the items that I currently have my eye on and wait to see if they go into the sale or if I still want them a month later. This is also super handy for friends and family when it comes to gifts as they always know that I have a list on the go! I also have a one-in-one-out policy where I use Depop and eBay to sell my pre-loved items before I purchase anything new.

2-Beauty Treatments: Another one of my largest monthly spends is beauty treatments. I do try now and again to do my manicure and brow tint at home but honestly, they never come close to salon quality. Luckily my hair is very low maintenance so only requires a quick cut 3 times a year and I finally bit the bullet to pay for laser to remove the need to pay for waxing.

I am open to exploring a range of countries, accommodations and times of year for travel. Creating this mix not only allows me to explore more places but gives me a range of experiences while away. For example, during my 11-day trip to Morocco, I stayed in a hotel that cost £26 one night followed by a two nights stay in Berber Lodge for £220 per night. I will cover more on exactly how I book, plan and get inspiration for my trips in a different post but to give you an idea of cost and balance below is a rough breakdown of two trips I took this year.

Morocco: Tangier to Marrakesh: (12 Days 11 Nights) Car + Flights £585, Accommodation £1100, Food + Drink £950, Activities £300, Miscellaneous £50 = £2935 Total - PP £1476.50

Road Trip Through Albania + North Macedonia: 11 Days + 10 Nights: Car + Flights £440, Accomodation £290, Food + Drinks £580, Activties £120, Miscellaneous £60 = £1490 Total - PP £745

These trips were both similar in duration but at very different costs as Morocco was £1476 per person while Albania and Macedonia were £745. Both trips could have been cheaper or more expensive but selecting this mix of places and being flexible with accommodation meant I could afford to see all three countries within my yearly budget.

In a world where we praise success and are quick to assume that things come easier for other people, we forget to look deeper into the cost that goes behind everyone's glossy lives and holiday photos. I hope this breakdown and honest account of how I balance travel and money is encouraging, adaptable and will help enable you to explore areas of the world that you always wanted to see. Turning ideas into reality one excel spreadsheet at a time...

If you're looking for some travel inspiration head to my library of posts! More coming soon.

Inspired to plan ahead for the future? Pin this for later so you can come back to this article anytime.