Ep # 51-Mastering Financial Savvy for Luxury Travel: Tips from Danielle Desir Corbett
In this episode, host Joe welcomes travel expert Danielle Desir Corbett (The Thoughtcard Podcast) to the show. With years of experience in finding creative ways to afford travel, Danielle shares her insights on financially savvy travel. She highlights the importance of understanding your travel style and aligning your spending with your priorities. Whether you're a retiree looking to indulge in luxury travel or someone seeking affordable adventures, Danielle's tips and strategies cater to travelers of all kinds. From budgeting and saving for travel to finding the best deals on flights and accommodations, Danielle's expertise will help you navigate the world of travel while maintaining your financial goals.
Join Joseph and Danielle as they discuss the misconceptions of luxury travel, the significance of setting travel goals, and how to plan your trips effectively. Discover valuable tips on optimizing your travel budget, signing up for loyalty programs, and planning ahead post-COVID. With practical advice and insider knowledge, this episode is a must-listen for anyone seeking to travel more while staying financially savvy. So sit back, relax, and let Danielle's expertise guide you on your next adventure.
What You’ll Learn in Today’s Episode:
Define Your Travel Style and Priorities: Understand what experiences matter most to you and allocate your spending accordingly.
Create a Dedicated Travel Fund: Set aside money specifically for travel, just like you would for other essential expenses.
Establish Goal-Oriented Travel Funds: Plan for big trips or regular travel events by creating separate funds for each.
Master a Travel Specialty: Find one area to save money in, be it flights, accommodation, or food, and allocate those savings to other experiences.
Leverage Loyalty Programs: Sign up for free hotel loyalty programs and accumulate points for future stays.
Plan Ahead for Luxury Accommodations: Start thinking about your trips at least six to nine months in advance.
Ideas Worth Sharing:
· "Your travel style helps to align spending when it comes down to the actual travel part."
· "Make sure you're including travel as a line item in your budget, make sure that travel is there."
· "I think it's important to find a specialty, to find an area that you are really interested in and excited about. What do I mean by this? There's credit card travel hacking, hotelier aficionados, cheap flights, folks like me."
· "The further out you're looking to go on this trip, the more savings that there are opportunities to have."
· "Don't take Google at first value... Click on the website or call... just do a little bit more research... because just things are closed or sold out or it just could get more expensive."
Resources in Today’s Episode:
The Thought Card podcast - Danielle's podcast combines travel and personal finance topics.
Travel Zoo - A website mentioned by Danielle that offers weekly top 20 travel deals.
Gate One Travel - A travel company mentioned by Danielle that offers hotel and flight packages and sends out a Monday newsletter with deals.
Hilton Honors, Marriott Bonvoy, IHG Rewards Club - Loyalty programs for hotel chains that Danielle suggests signing up for to accumulate points for free hotel stays.
Achieving Retirement Travel Goals with Financial Savvy: Advice from Danielle Desir Corbett
In this episode, travel and personal finance expert Danielle Desir Corbett (The Thoughtcard Podcast) shares her secrets to affording luxury travel in retirement. From signing up for hotel loyalty programs to planning ahead for accommodations, Danielle provides practical tips for saving money while enjoying the finer things in life while still enjoying your retirement.
Danielle Desir Corbett is a travel blogger and podcaster who has been influencing the luxury travel market since 2015. In an industry that often presents a paradox between splurging and saving, Danielle stands out with her unique approach to financially savvy traveling. She looks beyond the initial price tag and explores creative ways to afford luxuries while keeping her other financial commitments, like retirement, in view. It is her belief in a well-planned budget and her knack for finding irresistible deals that makes Danielle an authority on luxury travel planning. Her revolutionary approach extends to encouraging others to find their areas of interest, contributing to a more enjoyable and financially secure travel experience.
In this episode, you will be able to:
Uncover the crucial role of fiscal acumen and setting targets in designing your dream retirement travel itinerary.
Explore innovative game plans that make luxurious travel possible even on a tight budget.
Dive into the secrets of maximizing financial benefits from loyalty programs offered by hotels.
Appreciate the perks of careful pre-planning for comfortable accommodations and flights for your trips.
Familiarize yourself with the current travel landscape influenced by the advent of COVID-19, and its effect on prices and availability.
Seizing the Opportunity.
While it's important to plan and save for travel, it's equally crucial to remain open to opportunities that come your way. They might need you to tweak your plans a bit, but at the end of the day, travel is about experiencing new things. Be it an excellent off-season deal or an unexpected weekend getaway, being flexible and quick to seize the opportunity can often result in beautiful memories. In this context, Danielle advises being open to opportunities that may arise throughout the year. By maintaining both a broad travel fund and a specific goal-oriented fund, retirees can have the flexibility to pursue spontaneous deals or trips that align with their interests. She also recommends regularly monitoring flight prices to establish a sense of what constitutes a good deal, which can help identify when flight prices are lower and can save money.
Open and Honest Discussions about Travel Budgets
Travel and finances go hand in hand. To make them work in harmony, you must have open and honest discussions about your travel budget with your family members or partners. This can help manage expectations and ensure a smooth travel experience. If you're spending on luxury accommodations or flights, let them know it might mean cutting back on other aspects like souvenirs or eating out. Danielle stresses the need to have open discussions about your travel spending to keep everyone's expectations in line. For instance, if you plan a stay at a luxurious Disney resort, communicating that the budget may not allow for extra souvenir purchases will prevent any disappointment later.
Financially Savvy Traveler
As we dive into the topic of retirement, things like financial planning and goal setting are more important than ever before, especially when it comes to enjoying leisure time, like travel. A travel lover doesn't necessarily have to settle for budget or bare-minimum experiences. Instead, they can become what is called a 'financially savvy traveler'. This approach involves not only knowing how to find great travel deals but also how to balance the desire to travel with other financial commitments. Making a separate fund specifically for travel or including it as a line item in your regular budget can help make traveling a habit without breaking the bank. Reflecting on this, Danielle emphasizes aiming to become a financially savvy traveler and not limiting oneself to a budget travel category. She believes travel is just a piece of your financial pie that you can enjoy, provided you take a comprehensive approach to managing finances. One way to do this, as Danielle suggests, is by saving cash specifically for travel and possibly even creating a separate travel fund. This paves the way for financial stability and prevents you from going into debt to finance trips during your retirement years.
Embracing retirement with a spirit of adventure is a thrilling prospect. Realizing our travel dreams while maintaining financial stability is totally possible during your retirement years.
The resources mentioned in this episode are:
Start a travel fund: Open a separate bank account specifically for your travel savings. Make it a routine to contribute to this fund regularly, whether it's through automatic transfers or by including it as a line item in your budget.
Identify your travel style: Determine what aspects of travel are most important to you and prioritize your spending accordingly. For example, if you value staying in nice hotels, allocate more of your budget to accommodations rather than splurging on business or first-class flights.
Have open-minded goals: While it's important to have travel goals, also be open to spontaneous opportunities. Keep a general travel fund for impromptu weekend getaways or family visits, while also having a specific fund for goal-oriented trips like an annual Disney vacation.
Stay financially savvy: Avoid going into debt for travel by planning and saving ahead of time. Don't rely on credit cards to fund your trips. Instead, save cash specifically for your travel expenses.
Explore travel deals and newsletters: Sign up for newsletters from travel websites like Travel Zoo and Gate 1 Travel to receive weekly deals and discounts on flights, hotels, and vacation packages. Take advantage of these opportunities to save money and make your luxury travel more affordable.