Many families are looking for a getaway this year, but also want to stay on budget. We'll go over some great family vacation ideas and ways to plan a wonderful trip!

Planning a Family Vacation in 2021

How do you plan for a year where you don't know exactly what to expect? 

I think that's been the unofficial theme this season.

We've been talking about how to create a budget that's flexible enough? How do you figure out your schedule? 

Now I'm hoping maybe a little cautiously optimistic, how do we plan some family fun, maybe a few family trips sprinkled throughout the year if possible?

Summer is coming up, people are getting vaccinated and while we’re not out of the woods just yet, I’m looking to travel more. 

It seems I'm not the only one. A recent VRBO survey found that 65% of Americans plan on traveling more in 2021 than they did pre COVID.

We rolled over a chunk of our vacation money into this year. I’m looking forward to going to the beach, whitewater rafting, taking a trip with just the two of us, and maybe going for a longer trip.

At the same time, I want to be reasonable and keep some flexibility in case things change. 

This is why I’m so happy Karen Cordaway is here. She’s the author of The Everyday Bucket List. 

In this episode we’re going to look at:

• How you can build and cross off your bucket list
• Creating a flexible plan for travel this year
• Affordable vacation ideas

Let’s get started! 

Resources to Save on Your Next Family Vacation

If you're looking to start planning and saving for your next family trip, here are a few handy resources to check out!

• Best Budget and Money Apps: Personal Capital, Tiller, Mint
• Jumpstart Your Marriage and Your Money
• The Everyday Bucket List Book by Karen Cordaway
• How to Have a Safer Summer Family Getaway
• How to Vacation with Kids For Free: Travel Hacking 101
• Free Travel Hacking Tracker from Our Rich Journey
• Everyday Bucket List Podcast: Raleigh

Thank You to Our Sponsor Coastal!

Support for this podcast comes from Coastal Credit Union! If you’re living in the Raleigh Durham area and looking to bank better, come check out Coastal today.

  Key Takeaways on Making the Most of Your Family Vacation

I really enjoyed chatting with Karen and hearing all her creative ideas to have some memorable and affordable family fun.

Here are a few key takeaways I got while preparing this episode:

Bake Vacations Into Your Budget

I’m a big fan of including what matters to you into your budget. Trips for us are not just about escaping, but connecting. Having the budget is really handy for a few reasons.

1. You can move quickly on any great deals you find.
2. You’re doing this debt-free so when the trip is over you’re not worried about paying off the card.
3. If we don’t happen to use that money – like what happened last year – we can roll that into the next year or use it for some other goal. 

Go Green

Add parks- whether’s national, state, local – to your rotation of destinations this year. These can be memorable and affordable trips for your family while still staying relatively safe. This could be an opportunity for your family to try something new. 

Be Flexible

Last year really hammered in that there were things outside of our control. I’m cautiously optimistic that things will move forward, but I don’t know.

There may be smaller lockdowns or increased restrictions on the future in certain areas based on the numbers.

To cope with that, we’re taking Karen’s advice and have some backup trips.

As I’m making travel plans, I’m also being a bit flexible with dates to get some great deals. And I’m also checking reservations to make sure they have reasonable cancellation policies.  

Maybe because we’ve been staying more local that I’m really excited about this, but I'm so ready to travel more.

If you’d like to chat more, please join us in our free and private Facebook group, Thriving Families. 

We’re all about helping and encouraging one another with our family and financial goals. We swap stories, ideas, and tips. 

Just head over there now. We’d love to see you there!  

Support the Podcast!

Thank you so much for listening to the podcast! If you enjoyed this episode and found it helpful, here are some ways to support it.

• Spread the word! If you enjoyed this episode and think it can help a buddy get on the path to dumping debt and become financially free, please share.
• Leave a review. Honest feedback and reviews make a big difference and helps gets the word out about the podcast. Leave your rating and review on Apple Podcasts.
• Grab a copy of Jumpstart Your Marriage and Your Money. My book is designed for a busy couple to set up their finances in 4 weeks. Get tips and tools that have worked for other couples on their journey of building their marriage and wealth together!

Music Credit

Our theme song is from Staircases. Additional music by various artists from Audiio.