If you’re a college student or a twentysomething, going on a Spring Break trip has a special allure. It’s a chance for you to travel somewhere exciting, enjoy some warm weather and have the time of your life before you have to get back to your class or your new job. However, Spring Break trips also cost money, and plenty of unwary Spring Breakers have come back to their normal lives only to find that they have some substantial credit card bills to pay off.

Fortunately, it’s not hard to have a fantastic Spring Break trip without breaking the bank. All you need to do is take the following steps.

How to Have the Ultimate Spring Break Trip

Determine Your Vacation Budget

he first thing you need to do to make sure you have a great Spring Break vacation is to make a vacation budget. While budgeting is admittedly a lot less fun than your average Spring Break trip, the truth is that by making a budget you’ll be able to keep your costs under control, and you’ll be able to spend your Spring Break vacation free from any worries about how you’ll be able to pay for your trip.

Making a vacation budget is also pretty simple. First, think about your vacation goals, such as where do you want to go, how long do you want to stay and where will you be staying during your vacation? 

Once you've got the trip roughly planned out, it's time to list all the expenses you’re likely to have on your trip. These will include staples of any vacation like transportation, food, lodging and souvenirs but you’ll also want to include any expenses that will be specific to your trip, like the ticket price for attractions ranging from nightclubs to theme parks.

Once you’ve listed all of your expenses, add them up to get the total cost of your vacation. From there, you can start planning out how you’ll pay for your Spring Break trip or look for ways to reduce the costs in your budget to make the trip more affordable.

Create your vacation budget today

Get Reservations as Early as Possible

One of the best ways to make sure your Spring Break trip will go smoothly is to get reservations. You’re probably aware that you should book airline flights at least two months in advance, but you’ll also want to get reservations at wherever you’ll be staying. You’ll also want to see if you can get reservations for any attractions you want to see over Spring Break, from boat rentals to theme park tickets.

Pre-booking doesn’t just save you time and reduce hassle—it can also help you save money. A lot of companies will give you some kind of discount when you make a reservation in advance. Even if you don’t get a discount for making a reservation, you’ll still be able to use the time between when you made your reservation and when you actually arrive to search for discounts and coupons.

Pay in Advance

Once you know how much your Spring Break vacation will cost, start putting aside money for it. The more money you can save before your trip, the less you’ll have to rely on credit cards, and the less money you’ll have to pay in interest. This is especially important for college students and twentysomethings, who usually need every dollar they can get.

The best way to save money for your Spring Break trip is to break out your monthly budget and add in a vacation category. You can fund it by lowering the amounts of other budget categories, like entertainment, clothing or eating out. Needless to say, the further in advance you plan your trip, the more money you’ll be able to save.

Get started setting financial goals today!

Have a Memorable Spring Break With First Alliance Credit Union

Going on a Spring Break trip can be a memorable experience, but it can also be expensive. However, if you create a vacation budget, save money beforehand and pre-book as much as you can, you’ll be able to have the ultimate Spring Break experience without the ultimate credit card bill afterwards.

You can get help preparing for Spring Break and other vacations by becoming a First Alliance Credit Union member today. Save up for your Spring Break trip in a traditional savings account or club account and use our budget calculator to help you figure out how much money you can put toward your Spring Break fund each month.