How to balance saving money and traveling in college
College students struggle to balance building long-term savings like a maxed-out TFSA with the FOMO and social pressure of taking trips with friends. This tension often triggers fear of falling back into past debt, making it difficult to enjoy experiences without worrying about financial fallout.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
- 1Building up an emergency fund first before spending on travel
- 2Analyzing monthly expenses and savings rate to see what is affordable
- 3saving money in advance before booking
- 4setting a goal to go next year
- 5finding other streams of income to pay cash
In their words
Unedited, most upvoted first, each linked to the thread it came from.
“Just iffy bc I’ve had myself in more debt before and I’ve been fine staying home. The opportunity was presented to go. Just scared of opening the door to that drowning feeling again.”source ↗
Cherrybimbo777 · r/personalfinance · 1 upvotes
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
- 5How to start managing money as a college student
- 4How to balance saving for retirement and enjoying your 20s
- 5Should I use my savings or take a loan for college tuition?
- 2Why can't I save any money despite a steady income?
- 2How to pay for private college after a layoff without draining trust funds
- 5Why can't I spend money on myself even though I earn well?