Title: Travel Advice: How to Budget for Travel

Brian Lehrer: Brian Lehrer on WNYC. And as some of you know, to end the pledge drive shows each day this week, we're talking travel tips. So far, we've been joined by Brian Kelly, last few days, better known as the points guy. And today and tomorrow, we'll get into some of the finances of going on vacation with one of our favorite guests, Michelle Singletary, personal finance columnist for the Washington Post, who's here to share some tips on making that dream summer vacation a reality without busting your budget. Michelle, always a pleasure. Welcome back to WNYC.

Michelle Singletary: Oh, thank you so much for having me. And by the way, if you save money on travel, then you can give some of that savings to the fundrive.

Brian Lehrer: We did not bribe her to say that. All right, first tip for today, Consider avoiding tourist traps. Why?

Michelle Singletary: Yeah, you know, listen, when you travel abroad, everybody says, or wherever you go, "You got to see this, you got to do that." But that might not be your thing. And you might be guilt tripped into going to see something that you really don't care about. I spent a semester in Europe during my college years and went over to Paris. And everyone's like, "You got to go see the Mona Lisa." And so I went and I'm telling you, I saw a better look of Mona Lisa in the book at the gift shop. And so, you know, it was a disappointment.

Now, obvious other pieces of art in the Louvre, but there are some places that may not be your thing and it's okay to skip it and save that money to go someplace during your trip that you really want to go to.

Brian Lehrer: But at the same time, you warn us not to be pennywise pound foolish when deciding what attractions to visit.

Michelle Singletary: That's exactly right. Let's say you're going to India and you want to see the Taj Mahal. Okay, so you do that. That's a big thing. Go with the guide so you get all the full experience, but then you cut somewhere else. For example, you don't have to eat out every night, so you get to choose but choose you must. And so when I travel, I like good meals, but I'm not a big foodie, so I cut there and I go to things that I really want. I love the water and the beach. So I'll take a long excursion on a boat and snorkeling. That's where I spend my money. And when we come back, I'm going to make me a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

Brian Lehrer: Right. You mentioned one of the traps that people fall into when deciding where to go, you reference fomo. Fear of missing out. How is that a motivator and how does it backfire?

Michelle Singletary: This is particularly true in places where there's lots of, I call them tourist traps, like you gotta go, which we talked about a little bit already. And so you go to these places and people just, "If you don't go here, you've not done it" and you fear of missing out on something and you jam your schedule with all these musts sees that are expensive and you just go from one place to the another trying to fit everything in for the fear of missing out. And you don't have a good experience. So you have a limited amount of time and a little bit amount of money. You get to choose what is the most important to you.

So like if you're going to London, maybe you don't go to Buckingham Palace. Maybe you just spend some time in some nice little cute little shop or you go to the theater. I love the theater. So you decide. But don't let other people's agenda itinerary dictate what you see. And it's okay to say, "You know what? I didn't have time to see that, but I saw this."

Brian Lehrer: Here's a tip you give that might seem controversial or just might make people frown. Skip souvenirs. Why that?

Michelle Singletary: Listen, you know, my husband and I, when we first could afford to travel, we'd almost have to a whole another suitcase because you know, auntie has to get this, and sister and brother and your children. And we brought all back all this stuff, you know, who needs another T shirt, a little trinket. And so now we have this rule. We don't for the most part buy hardly any souvenirs. And you know what? Most people don't even miss them. You know that, that T shirt that says I went to Paris and left my grandma home, Grandma don't need that T shirt.

Brian Lehrer: I just had an experience like that myself. I took my winter vacation last month to go see a music festival in Florida that had some bands that I like. And I had it in mind, I'm going to get a T shirt from this music festival and I'll always remember it. And then when I saw the T shirts they were selling, I didn't like the design. I said, "Well, I'm never actually going to wear this so do I still want the T shirt?" And I didn't buy it.

Michelle Singletary: That's right. And I mean, and it's the same for yourself, like you just want to remember the experience. But I have a whole T shirt drawer and it's overflowing and I might wear it once or twice. And so every time I go away, both my husband and I, we look at whatever it is and say, "How much are we going to use this? And is it really necessary?" Now, having said that, I do like to support local artists when I go places. So if there's a particular painting or something that's unique that you can't get somewhere-- I would say, you know, build that into your budget, because we do want to support those artisans and, and small businesses that cater to tourists in some of these areas.

So I may not go to that popular souvenir store, the ones where a lot of the items are not even made in the place that you went. Like, I originally went to Cambodia and Vietnam. And, you know, in some of the big cities, there's all these, you know, tourists and gift shops. But when we went to the villages, then I did, we bought a beautiful red silk scarf from my best friend who's a Delta. They're big on red and white. And so something like that, or we buy something that is unique to that particular area. I think that's okay. But you should not feel bad if you don't bring a single thing back for anybody. Show them your pictures.

Brian Lehrer: 15 seconds, last one for today, and you're coming back tomorrow. You tell your readers, get rid of the expression you only live once.

Michelle Singletary: Yeah. When people travel, they feel like they have to put everything in their spin. I mean, just bust their budget because they feel like they may never get back to that location. And that is the biggest, biggest buster of people's budget. Set your budget, stick to it, and be okay if you can't see everything.

Brian Lehrer: Michelle Singletary, personal finance columnist for the Washington Post. Her piece on this how to enjoy your summer vacation without busting your budget. And she's going to be here with more tomorrow. Michelle, thanks.

Michelle Singletary: You're so welcome.

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