How To Save For Travelling: 14 Smart Tips to Fund a Career Break in Your 30s

Feeling a bit stuck and starting to realise that waiting for retirement to live out your travel dreams might not be the best option after all? You’re not alone: many people in their 30s are swapping corporate burn out for career break travel.

But how do you actually fund a career break?

If you’re wondering how to save for travelling, you’ve come to the right place. The idea of funding a long trip can be overwhelming – especially in today’s economy. It’s hard to know where to start, but with the right strategy, simple changes and some discipline, you’ll be ready to book that flight before you know it.

A career break in your 30s is becoming an increasingly popular choice for a reason: not only is travelling rewarding in different ways in your 30s, but the appreciation for stepping away from the daily grind is off the charts. I just got back from a year long career break in my late 30s, and it’s one of the best choices I’ve ever made for myself. So much so, I think you should do it too.

In this guide I’ll show you exactly how to save money for travelling by sharing what worked for me, along with practical travel saving tips to get your career break travel fund started today.

Is It Too Late To Travel in Your 30s?

Absolutely not! I hate this notion that travel is only for graduates or people in their twenties. There are so many advantages to travelling in your 30s.

The combination of the rising cost of living, risk of redundancies and high pressure jobs mean that professionals are increasingly burnt out. The appreciation for having a break from working life is far stronger when you’re 10-15 years into your career versus at the beginning of it.

Is it any wonder many people in their 30s are the making the decision to take a career break before even more responsibilities head their way?

Why Saving for Travelling in Your 30s Is Different

Saving for a career break in your 30s is in theory a lot easier than saving in your 20s. Your salary will have grown as your career has advanced, giving you a better starting point from which to save.

With this career advancement your outgoings are also likely to be higher as you’ve gotten used to a higher level of comfort and every day luxuries in life, but this is the perfect place to cut back and save for travel fast. If you can get into the right mindset and start reducing some of those luxuries, you can build a career break travel fund much quicker than you could in your 20s.

Work Out How Much You Need to Save

Working out how much you need to save to for travelling can be tricky as it’s not a ‘one size fits all’ answer. Estimating the career break travel fund you need will be dependent on several factors:

• Where do you want to go? Different regions and countries have wildly different travel costs.
• How long do you want to go for? Will this be a 3 month career break or are you taking a full year out to travel?
• When do you want to go? Travelling over peak times mean an increased cost for flights and accommodation whereas travelling in off season can save you money.
• How do you travel? Your travel style is a huge factor in your budgeting process. How boujie or budget are you?
• Are you travelling solo? Just as there is a solo tax in general life, there is for travelling. You can’t split some of the expenses that friends or couples can.

Where Do You Want To Travel?

A lot of people will already have an idea of where they want to go; we all tend to have particular countries or sights we’ve dreamt of seeing, a noticeable pull to one region or another.

Is your career break calling you Down Under? Australia and New Zealand are expensive destinations. Asia more your style? Prices vary across the region – your money can go a long way across the majority of South and South East Asia, whereas the East can be pricier places to travel.

Keen on the Americas? The States and Canada will require a hefty budget. Your money will go further in Latin America, but as a region overall is a lot more expensive to travel than say, South East Asia, and the quality of accommodation will be starkly different for the same cost in Argentina versus Sri Lanka.

Consider the affordability of a destination and how that can attract different crowds. Higher costs tend to attract older travellers with more disposable income, therefore the average age of a backpacker in Asia can be significantly lower than in Latin America. This is by no means a reason to not travel to a certain region but it is something to be aware of for a career break in your 30s – perhaps more so if you are travelling solo and hoping to meet others your age.

How Long Do you Want To Travel For? Short Trip vs Long-Term Travel

The length of your career break is likely to be determined by two things: how much money you’ve saved and how long you can be away from home. The latter is determined by whether you’ve managed to secure a sabbatical from work versus quitting and any commitments you need to be home for.

I met lots of people who secured sabbaticals varying from a couple of months to a year off, and if you can secure one for a timeline that suits you, I would recommend taking a sabbatical over quitting. Having job security to come back to may not sound romantic but this is an undeniable advantage in today’s job market.

That’s not what I did, though. I was made redundant and then worked in a temporary contract to save more money until I was ready to go travelling, so I didn’t have a job to come back to, and I really enjoyed this freedom. Quitting gives you the advantage of true flexibility around your travels, but it does require saving a bit more to have as a back up fund to use whilst job hunting when you return.

There is an additional factor to consider, and that is what your limits are. Although I’ve travelled for longer in the past than I did on my recent career break, the time away feels longer the older you get. I did find being away for so long a challenge at times, but it also gave me the advantage of a true break and the ability to rejuvenate properly after being so burnt out.

When Do You Want To Go Away?

Figuring out the time of year you will be travelling will become a factor in your budget, but also in where you choose to travel.

Will you be travelling in high season or at peak times like Christmas, New Year and Easter? Also consider the timing of local festivals such such Holi in India, Songkran in Thailand and Día de los Muertos in Mexico. Accommodation will cost more across these dates, but these can be amazing bucket list experiences you may want to include on your trip.

Travelling in shoulder or low seasons can reduce costs but isn’t something I necessarily recommend. Bad weather can negatively impact an experience and even cause activities to be cancelled, and low season can make it hard to meet other people if you’re travelling solo.

What’s Your Travel Style?

The way you travel is a huge factor in your budgeting process. Are you happy staying in hostel dorms or is it private rooms only for you? Do you want to only eat local street food or are you someone who likes to indulge in restaurants from time to time? Do you drink alcohol or have a speciality coffee habit that will add money to your daily expenses?

Are You Travelling Solo?

I love travelling solo so much, but it’s a fact that there is a single tax attached to it. Couples or friends travelling together can split taxis, share meals (portions can be huge!) and pay the same for a private room as they would two dorm beds in many places.

Key Costs to Budget For

Daily expenses:

• Accommodation
• Food and drink
• Transport
• Activities

Monthly expenses:

• ATM fees
• Data and sim cards
• Laundry
• Souvenirs
• Toiletries

Costs Prior To Leaving:

• Flights
• Insurance
• Vaccinations
• Visas
• Backpacking Essentials

In addition to this you may want to factor in an emergency buffer, as well as some reserve living costs on your return.

Set a Clear Travel Savings Goal

Once you’ve decided where you want to go and how long for, work out how long you will need to save your career break fund and assess whether that goal is realistically in that time frame. If not, adjust accordingly.

I gave myself an enforced deadline based on wanting to be in India in time to experience Holi festival. My redundancy payout formed the base of my savings, but I was able to more than double those savings in the year following through cutting back and working long hours in a job where I was paid hourly.

I gave my career break travel fund a name: ‘The Big One’, and weirdly this helped me commit to it more – it felt like a true life event, not just another backpacking trip.

Prioritize the places you are most keen on, and remember that going away for longer isn’t necessarily better than going for a shorter time if it means you will have to sacrifice comfort, activities and places you truly want to experience.

How To Save Money for Travelling: 14 Travel Saving Tips

1) Open a Separate Travel Savings Account or ISA

As soon as you start thinking about a career break, open a dedicated savings account or easy access ISA with the highest interest rate you can find. If you have any money that can go straight into it to get you started, fantastic! Even £10 is a start.

2) Automate Savings On Payday

Once you’ve worked out how much you can save directly out of your salary every payday, set up an automated transfer into your savings account so you’re not tempted to touch it.

3) Audit your Subscriptions

Subscription costs stack up quickly, adding to your monthly outgoings significantly. Consider cancelling all but one streaming service and utilising that one for a month or two before changing again. This way you’ll avoid paying for four or five streaming services at once. Realistically, are you using all of them every month?

Be sure to check subscriptions on your phone; check for any upcoming renewals you no longer need and cancel accordingly.

4) Host Friends At Home

I love going out for dinner and drinks as much as the next person, but these days you go out, cough, and you’ve spent £80.

Make dining out more of a treat and start hosting friends for dinners and drinks at home. With the cost of living being what it is, your pals will probably appreciate the saving as much as you will.

5) Cut The Takeaways

Ordering in on Deliveroo or Uber Eats every week? Cutting this habit will see you rack up a lot of extra savings very quickly. Anything you’d usually spend, transfer weekly into your savings pot.

6) Sell Clothes on Vinted

Time to clear out that wardrobe! How many clothes are you holding onto that you don’t wear or don’t fit anymore? Sort through them and start selling them on Vinted. Transfer everything you make into your career break travel fund.

7) Can You Get Extra work?

Are you in a position to not only reduce your outgoings, but increase your income? If there is an opportunity for overtime or freelance work around your current job situation, it could be a great way to help save for travel fast.

8) Use Cashback Apps

Sign up to a cashback website or app like TopCashback for free money on any purchases you do make. New customers will get a bonus on signing up via my link with TopCashback – every little helps!

9) Utilise Current Account Switch Offers

Throughout the year banks will run switch offers which will give you anywhere between £100-250 simply for opening a current account and switching your bills over to the new account. Free money!

10) Stop Buying Takeaway Coffees

I have a serious coffee habit, but switching to making my own coffee at home has saved me a lot of money. Even one coffee out a day adds up to £15-20 per week. Add that up over the course of a month and that’s nearly £80 that could be going towards paying for a once in a lifetime experience during your travels.

I invested in one of these and watched the pennies build up.

11) Make Packed Lunches

This is one of the easiest and fastest ways to save money. Stop spending £10-15 on lunch every day and start prepping lunch to take your own packed lunch into the office.

12) Use Your Avios Points to Book Your flights

It’s no secret that I obsess over Avios points in order to fly around the world for cheap, ideally in business class! Utilizing points to pay for flights or reduce the cost of them can save you hundreds.

This works particularly well if you are planning for a career break over a year in advance, as you will be able to book a reward flight as soon as they are released (being organised and flexible is key when it comes to using points).

It won’t work for every destination, but as an example I booked the 4 long haul flights I needed for South Asia and Latin America using my points and only less than £780 total in taxes. That’s an average of £195 per flight, and every one of them was a business class ticket!

13) Ask for backpacking Essentials for birthday and christmas presents

If you’ve got a birthday or Christmas coming up before your big trip, put things you need for your travels on your list so you can save on buying them yourself and avoid gifts that you may not get to use during your time away.

You’d be surprised how exciting some great packing cubes can be when you’re on the countdown to a one way flight out of the UK.

14) Vocalise Your Plans With Your Friends

Sounds simple but telling your friends your plans and making it known that you’re going to be cutting back in order to make this career break happen is a really helpful way to commit to saving. You’ll find friends offering to have your round for dinner instead of going out, and encouraging you when you’re stuck in a rut.

What If You Have Debt and Still Want to Travel?

If you still have some credit card debt or an overdraft hanging over you, the first thing to do is ensure that this debt is interest free. Arrange a balance transfer to an interest free credit card and divide the remaining payment by the months left until the interest free period ends.

Having debt doesn’t necessarily mean you can’t start saving alongside clearing it – both can be worked towards at once, and you don’t have to delay working towards your career break dream.

How To Save For A Career Break: Extra Considerations

It’s a good idea to save a reserve fund for use on returning home, especially if you’ve quit your job for your career break. This should include money to front your mortgage or rental costs, as well as living costs for food and bills for 2-3 months in case it takes longer to find a job on return than you’d hoped.

Even if you are returning to your job from a sabbatical, consider the first month of expenses needed before you start getting paid again.

Final Thoughts: There’s No Time Like The Present

Even if you’re vaguely thinking about taking a career break, transfer a nominal amount into a savings account for it today. Don’t wait until you’re desperate and in the midst of burnout to start working towards the possibility of a career break to travel.

If you don’t end up going, you have some savings towards something else, be it a nice holiday or something bigger. If you do, knowing you’ve already started saving toward the route you’ve dreamt up and a bucket list of experiences to enjoy goes a long way.

How to Save For Travelling: FAQs

How much money should I save for travelling?

How long is a piece of string? Not what you want to hear but this completely depends on destination and duration of travel, amongst other factors. I personally spent approx £2000 per month, but this didn’t include costs spent prior to leaving or some of the bucket list experiences I had.

Can I save for travelling on an average salary?

The cost of living is really high at the moment, but with sacrifice and consistency it’s achievable to save money for travel. Reducing your outgoings can take some getting used to, but if you have a travel goal in mind, you’ll be surprised how quickly your career break savings can grow.

Is 30 too old to go travelling?

From a 38 year old who just returned from her third backpacking trip: absolutely not! There are huge advantages to travelling in your 30s instead of your 20s.

How long does it take to save for long-term travel?

It can take anywhere from months to years to save for a career break depending on income, willingness to sacrifice every day luxuries and how long you intend to travel for, as well as where you plan to go. Unfortunately this is not a one size fits all question, but this blog is a good place to start figuring it all out!

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