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My next few posts will be about my own travel hacks. Its so easy to lose track of your money. Pay day comes, and before you know it, its gone. Here are a few ways to starting to make the most of your money to save for your travels !

• • A weekly/monthly diary and write down when you spend money and I do mean all. You will be surprised how much a brought lunch, magazines, chocolate costs. Then try and take a packaged lunch two or three times a week, get a magazine subscription instead, and buy chocolate on offer with your weekly supermarket shop.
  • Daily budget. Calculate all your outgoings (bills etc) and divide whats left to give yourself a daily allowance.
  • Prioritise. Do you really need to buy item, than to go to Brazil for example. Think about the experiences you would like to recall in five or ten years.
  • Visualise your goal. If it is a destination, use a screensaver and it will be a reminder of why you are saving.
  • Walk instead of taking public transport if possible !
  • Savvy shopper – I use http://www.mysupermarket.co.uk/ – to check supermarket deals. And visit which ones does the best price for your weekly/monthly shop. We shop at both Tesco and Aldi, but have Morrissons and Asda in my town. We do not denying ourselves everything but just buy at the right price. We love fillet steak, and get some from Aldi at £5.49 each – much better than an £70 restaurant bill every week !
  • Piggy bank –  are not just for children. I save all my small change and have a separate pot for my two pound coins and do not touch until for a year or until it is full.
  • Half price days and nights out – check out www.lastminute.com for theatre tickets, meals and theme park days.
  • Create your own package holiday  – try putting together your own holiday online and compare it to ready-made packages in holiday brochures and see which is cheaper – I have started to do this and found that for me, it is cheaper – but you are not covered by ABTA or ATOL – So also add your travel insurance in your calculations.
  • Holidays – Or book a deal of the week package, I have done a few of these with Kuoni and had amazing trips. I am aiming to do this in the future !
  • Wait a week – if you really want to buy something, wait a week and see if you do really want it !
  • Shop online – things sometimes are cheaper online – check out www.pricerunner.co.uk
  • Stay in – instead of nights in the pub, nights at home. Instead of eating out, try ‘come dine with me’ with friends. Instead of cinema night – try movie nights with already owned dvds/blurays or streaming movies. Or just try and be patient, movies are available digitally after four months and prices start from £9.99 – cheaper than the cinema and you own the movie !
  • Join the library – I am a profilic reader. So to try and save money on my kindle books, I joined the library. And I only buy books now if I love them and they are reduced.
  • Use the 1 in, 1 out rule – this is something I am now trying. I am trying to avoid shops like the plague. And if I buy any clothes or beauty products, then I have to remove something that is like it.
  • Mortgages – We have been overpaying our mortgage since 2014 and have already halved the remaining term. Choose a mortgage that has no penalties for early or over payments is key. So if you save any extra money, you could do it like we do.
  • Health Plans – I have been paying out for a private medical plan since 2009. I thought a couple of years I should cancel and use the money for travel. But due to my ill health this year, I am so pleased I did not. I will always recommend if you can afford it, the NHS is underfunded and you will wait weeks for diagnosis. I know this from my own experience. Think long and hard, if you want this, I certainly will continue paying out for this.