How to avoid a money hangover on your next vacation
Hangovers aren’t fun. After popping a few Advil, gulping down Gatorade and spending some quality time Netflix binging, though, the aftermath from a fun night out isn’t so bad.
Other hangovers don’t have a quick fix. I’m talking about the damage done to your bank account after you maybe had a little bit too much fun.
I recently took a trip to the Hamptons. Yes, I have champagne taste on a Bud Light budget, but for the past 3 summers that I’ve lived in New York City, I’ve watched my friends prance out of town to have fun in the sun while I sweated it out in the concrete jungle. I decided to pull a YOLO, packed up my stuff and took a little weekend getaway.
It was the perfect escape, and I definitely found my peace on the beach.
But, on Monday, when I looked at my bank account, all that zen I felt was gone.
The money hangover was very real. I made too many financial mistakes with the trip.
The area we stayed in was far from the beaches, so we spent too much on cabs. I impulsively bought the wrong train ticket, when I could’ve gotten a discount for picking a “non-peak” travel time. I forked over too much on meals when I should’ve sought out more affordable restaurants. The list goes on.
Here’s where I went wrong.
I assumed everyone had the same budget
One massive mistake I made was assuming everyone that I was traveling with had budgets similar to mine. I was traveling with about 10 people, though, all with a wide-range of salaries and financial priorities.
This is where things get sticky. It’s awkward to openly ask your crew how much they’re each making. But it’s definitely important to have some sort of discussion when it comes to how much you’re each willing to spend on the trip; ranging from nights out to excursions.
If your friends are planning to book a slew of pricey excursions back-to-back or fancy meals every night (yes, I’m still bitter about that $30 bowl of pasta I was forced to order), you might want to sit this one out. You don’t want to feel uncomfortable during the whole trip about how much you’re spending, so just wait until another trip pops ups, one that you can realistically afford. Or plan one yourself!
If everyone is on the same page when it comes to how much money will be spent overall on the trip — from club cover charges to meals — that’s when #SquadGoals are officially achieved.
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I adopted a “go-with-the-flow” attitude
As much as I want to be the cool, go-with-the-flow type of girl who has a “down with whatever” approach to life, that’s just not me. Ask my friends. They purposely roll into brunch 20 minutes late, because they know I’ll be there right on time to secure our reservation.
But I was tired of doing all the planning, and just this once, decided to let other people lead the way.
And I was misled.
Instead of researching the area we were jetting off to, I completely went into the trip blind. I knew the Hamptons had a reputation for being pricey, but I came down with a sickness dubbed “Bank-Nesia” right before the trip. Symptoms include conveniently forgetting your bank balance when the weekend arrives.
There is no known cure for this illness, which plagues young adults between the ages of 18 and 30.
I didn’t realize that we were staying in East Hampton, while all the fun we would be having would be in Montauk, a good 20-minute drive. Without a rental car, and jacked up cab fares, shuttling back and forth between the rental house and the bars resulted in cringe-worthy expenses. Being car-less also meant grocery shopping was next-to-impossible, so I forked over way too much on meals.
Avoid breaking your budget on vacation, and research the area before you book a place, including restaurants and bars that are within walking distance if you don’t have a car. Figure out the best local restaurants that offer fair prices using Yelp, pack snacks and find out which beaches don’t charge a cover.
Drake can YOLO all he wants. But not all of us can afford to.
You can still be ballin’ on a budget, it just takes a bit more planning and researching. Then, once you’re on vacay, the only thing you have to worry about is whether to start with a Bloody Mary or mimosa.
Learn from it, but move on
Naturally, after living on an A-lister budget all weekend, I started kicking myself. The consequences of the expensive weekend sunk in when New York City’s skyscrapers came back into a view, and I was reminded of all the financial obligations I had to keep. Ugh. Not exactly an Empire State of Mind.
But then I stopped. Because you know what? Mistakes happen, and the important thing is I learned from it. I had a great time and definitely don’t regret my choice to go, but now I know to plan better.
If you make a financial flub, don’t beat yourself up. But, be sure to learn from it. The first time it happens, it’s a mistake. The second time? It’s a choice.
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