I hate budgeting. Thinking about money is stressful, and a stressful vacay should be an oxymoron. But the fact of the matter is, traveling costs money. So over the years, I figured out how I could make my trip spending enjoyable, not stressful. On the blog, you’ll find tips for spending less overall. The goal here is simply to introduce you to my budgeting framework. It’s a guide for how to stay within your overall trip budget without keeping track of every single expense. Welcome to BLT Budgeting!

Sometimes you may have a dream destination in mind but no concept of the cost for making it into a reality. In that case, you can do what I call Estimate Budgeting (note: there’s a straightforward how-to on Estimate Budgeting over on the blog). However, more often than not, you know how much money you have saved up for a trip. For now we’ll explore a sample trip with a pre-determined budget:

You’ve saved up $2500 (Bravo!), been approved for 2 weeks of time off, and Argentina is calling your name. If the budget allows, you’d like to try and go to a few different regions of Argentina or do a weekend trip to their northern neighbor, Uruguay. Your flight cost $1100, so you’re left with $1400 to spend in the land of beef and Tango.

Take your total budget ($1400) and shave off some “oops money” [oops I missed the ferry and have to buy a second ticket. Oops there were no hostels available tonight so I have to stay in a more expensive hotel. Oops I walked 10 miles today and now I need to eat my weight in prime rib, etc.]. Take off $200 for an inexpensive destination, $400 for a more pricey one. For Argentina, you have $1200 remaining. Good news—the math stops here. I’ve never made a dollar-per-day allowance. Why? Because the days where you only spend $40 makeup for the more pricey long weekend you’ll have the pleasure of spending on a bicycle wine tour in the mountains of Mendoza. Price categories have a way of balancing themselves out, my friends…

The fundamental component of how I keep it between the lines on a day-to-day basis is by making Price Categories in my head. Start by doing some basic pre-trip research. As you look into activities, transit, restaurants, and housing at your destination, divide things into three columns in your head: $; $$; and $$$. The actual dollar equivalent range of a $, $$, or $$$ will be different depending on your destination, so this will change every trip, but the categorization remains the same: very cheap/free ($); I’m probably gonna do this/spend this most days ($$); and this is a splurge ($$$)! The actual price ranges of these three categories will become clear during your research as you start to see average costs for housing/food/activities, etc. The $$ category is your barometer, and will likely contain the majority of your expenses.

Because you already have clear cut price categories, it’s super easy to place expenses you encounter on the road into your virtual columns… maybe a donation based graffiti tour ($) or a weeknight show at the famous opera house ($$). In fact, you start to do this categorization subconsciously as you become more comfortable with this type of budgeting! 

Now, how to balance it all out? Try to keep the majority of your expenses in the $$ range, adding as many $ as you want. Thoughtfully select a couple items from your $$$ category based on your trip focus/goals. Remember, this is both a daily and overall running “budget,” so be aware of balancing your categories not only for today’s spending, but also your trip overall.

Imagine that in Argentina, you’re spending more on food than you’d expected, indulging in a white tablecloth steak dinner with wine every night. You can easily re-prioritize items from your cost categories: perhaps instead of three, only choose one activity from your $$$ category. Or you could commit to a few days of $ activities/tourism—self guided walking tours, free day at the art museum—to balance out the cost of your meals.

After all that, here’s my biggest secret… when I go on vacation domestically, I don’t even think about a budget. That’s certainly not because I’ve got $100 bills growing on a tree in my non-existent back yard. It’s because if I’m traveling in the USA, I have a pretty good idea of how much everything will cost. I don’t drop $600 in a weekend at home, so I’d rather not do it while visiting Seattle. Excessive spending on one trip means way less trips. Start thinking that way and you’ll be much more inclined to reign in the unnecessary spending while on vacation in your own country. Remember, fellow BLT, it is possible to experience what makes a place special without shelling out all your cash. Vacationing domestically or abroad, just keep yourself balanced between the $ and $$s and you’re golden.

A Budget Luxury mentality means that you’re constantly striving for a balance between the two extremes: backpacker cheap vs. Conde Nast chic. Find a style of budgeting that works for you—one that allows you to be flexible with spending and frees you from constantly worrying about money while you’re on the road. Perhaps adopt a few of the techniques mentioned here, or modify them to your comfort. Get up close and personal with how you manage your spending. With a little practice, you can let go of down-to-the-dollar budgets and enjoy the shit out of your vacation.