Unfortunately,
many vacationers won't realize just how substantial their spending
may have been until after their vacation is over. Most likely, they
won't start out with a budget, or if they do, they
won't track spending to make sure they stay within their budget. For
these people, vacation fun can result in a bad case of the return
home blues to face vacation bills.
To
help eliminate this problem, CaribbeanLime Travel Services USA
offers the following tips on managing spending during vacation time:
- Save
receipts and spending records. When the vacation is over, take a
few minutes to review spending. Did you accurately estimate your
expenditures? Did you stay within your budget? Keep records on
this year's vacation in a file that can be reviewed when
planning for next year. This will give you a realistic starting
point for establishing next year's vacation spending limit.
- Get
a blank check register from your bank. Every time you cash a
traveler's check or get money from an ATM, write it in your
check register as a deposit along with the check number if it's
a traveler's check. Each night, write down your expenses as
"checks" or withdrawals. Credit card purchases can be
tallied in the back of your register. This will help you easily
track where your money is going and how much you are spending
compared to what you budgeted.
Being
on vacation doesn't mean taking a vacation from managing your
money," reminds Becky Cutler, spokesperson for Citibank's
credit management education program. "With a little planning
and discipline, what you'll remember from your vacation is the
amount of fun you had, and not the amount of bills you had to pay
afterward."
Citibank offers its
Credit Minder credit management tool free to all consumers. It's
essentially a handy, miniature checkbook-type register that lets you
record every purchase you make with a credit card -- as you make it,
wherever you are. It also has a pocket that holds one card. Keep in
mind that limiting the number of credit cards you carry with you
will also help you limit your spending. To receive a free Credit
Minder, call 1-800-669-2635.
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