5 Financial decisions that helped achieve my travel goals

While most of us have different reasons to travel, there are some who find reasons to travel. That’s how profoundly travel has taken over us. Work hard, save up and travel far is probably the motto of travellers these days. Though we save up money for various reasons, saving up for travel is not something all can relate to. We save money to buy a phone, a bike, a car, a house or anything that fancies our mind. Most of us don’t save up to spend it largely on travels and experiences. But if you are saving up to travel, here are a few decisions that I made which helped me achieve my travel goals.

Separate savings account:  Open a savings account and deposit money into that account whenever you have any additional savings. This could be on a weekly, monthly or quarterly basis. Make sure to touch this account only for your travels.

Buy Insurance: Mutual funds and life insurances are probably the best and the most recommended investment options these days. Apart from lifeinsurance policies, the insurance companies also offer a variety of investment plans such as ULIPs that have interim returns. This would help fund your travels without dipping into your other accounts.

One can also opt for term insurance where the premiums are low and the coverage is high, making sure your family’s future is secured in case something were to happen to you when travelling.

Cut down on unwanted expenses: In today’s world, anything can be bought with the swipe of a card or with the press of a button. While possessing a credit card has numerous advantages, it also tends to make us vulnerable while shopping, partying etc. Assess your previous month’s expenditure and note down the expenses which you feel could have been avoided. Calculate it and that might well have been the amount you would have spent on your next travel. Ask yourself if you absolutely need that new phone or that colourful jacket or that additional beer each time you open your wallet. Also try to find cheaper alternatives to what you need. For example, why get Cable TV or Satellite TV when you can get Netflix which gives you global access to shows if you use a VPN.

Systematic Investment Plan: A monthly investment plan is always helpful and is similar to a recurring deposit. Even if you can’t make any savings from the month’s salary, SIP makes sure that an amount is saved every month. You can withdraw it when you plan that much awaited long holiday.

Choosing experiences over possessions: This is a decision that grows over a period of time as you assess your life’s goals and dreams. Buying a house or a luxury car on loan was never a part of my goals in life. I do not wish to pay premiums for 5 or 10 years and end my life paying bills. I would rather spend that large amount on my long term travels. This decision comes from the fact that I’d love to have experiences in my life and not possessions. If travel is your life goal, then this decision would definitely help.

About Aegon Life:

Aegon Life Insurance Company Limited launched its pan-India operations in July 2008 with a vision to be the most recommended new age life insurance Company. The fulfillment of this vision is based on having a complete product suite, superior technology, providing customized advice and enhancing the overall customer experience. This joint venture adopts a local approach with the power of global expertise to facilitate a direct to customer approach, leveraging digital platforms to bring transparent solutions to customers and to prioritize their needs. Aegon is one of the world ’s leading financial services organizations, providing life insurance, pensions and asset management and Bennett, Coleman & Company, India’s leading media conglomerate, have come together to launch Aegon Life Insurance.

P.S.: This post is in collaboration with Aegon Life.