Tips For a Frugal European Vacation

Ok, ok. I know a going on a European vacation in itself means you’re going to be spending a pretty penny. Traveling to Europe these days isn’t cheap, with the Euro being worth about $1.50 in U.S. dollars. That exchange rate makes the prices sting right of the bat!

But put that aside for a moment, let’s assume that you’re already going on a trip to Europe, what are some good ways to save money?

photo credit: WTL photos

Ways to save money while traveling in Europe

Plan ahead: Even if you’re spending a lot of money on a European vacation or cruise like we are, you can save a ton of money by booking your vacation ahead of time, up to a year or more in advance can really save you a lot of money. It can be alluring to try and get a last minute deal, but often the best deals are to be had when booking far in advance.
Travel during the off season: You might want to consider booking your trip during the slow season for whatever your destination is. Rates are often far cheaper during the off-peak times of the year. The crowds will often be smaller too!
Be flexible with travel: Often if you’re flexible with the days that you travel you can save some money. When booking try to see what the rates are if you book mid-week travel instead of the more popular weekend travel.
Know what you’re spending: When you’re buying something in a Barcelona gift shop or at vendor in a Roman square, it can be easy to forget just how much money you’re spending. Remember you’re buying that souvenir in Euros - not dollars! That means you’re paying 1.5 times as much. That $50 item is actually $75! Take a quick pocket conversion chart with you so that you can refer to it when buying things.
Set spending limits for yourself, and don’t go over!: Before you go on your trip, set up a spending limit for yourself, and don’t go over it. Once you’ve reached your limit just take more pictures as souvenirs!
Use a travel guide: Using a travel guide for your travel destinations will help you to find cheap places to eat and little seen free events.
Some destinations offer discounts for Americans: research your destination as some European cities will offer discount packages for Americans to help offset the weak dollar. For example, Florence, Italy has a program like this.

With all the planning, preparations and excitement in getting ready for your trip, it can be easy to forget -you’re going on vacation to relax and see the sites. So don’t forget to have fun!

September 5, 2008 · Filed Under Travel, frugality, tips

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10 Things I Have Learned About Money

A year of learning about money

Since I started writing this blog back at the end of January 2008, I have learned a lot about money and managing my family’s finances. I never considered myself “bad with money”, but I knew we were doing a lot of things that were getting in the way of our financial success.

Starting in May my wife and I attended a class through our church called Financial Peace University. The class, put together by Dave Ramsey, really opened our eyes to some things we were doing that were hampering our financial success.

photo credit: pfala

In the spirit of sharing some of the things we’ve learned along our road to financial peace, here is a list of 10 things I’ve learned about money since I started blogging.

10 Things I Have Learned About Money

Having debt is not a good thing: A lot of times you’ll hear about how having and using debt is just a tool that people have in their arsenal as they work on their way towards becoming financially stable, and eventually, wealthy. What I’ve learned these past few months is that debt will cut short any gains you hope to make. I’ve learned that:

The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender. Proverbs 22:7

When you have debt, you are a servant. Only once you have gotten rid of your debt and are living free can you truly work on your way towards true financial independence.
To truly succeed with money, you must have a plan: Not having a plan means you are planning to fail. If you really want to have financial success you need to set up a family budget, have family budget meetings, and set financial goals for both the long term, and the short term. As the bible states:

A wise man thinks ahead; a fool doesn’t, and even brags about it! Proverbs 13:16
Having money does not mean having happiness: True happiness does not come from having things, or from having money. When you have money, you only want more.

Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is meaningless. Ecclesiastes 5:10

Money is a never ending black hole where you never have enough. True happiness comes from having a strong faith in God, and knowing your true worth is found in Christ, and not in things of this world. Once you realize that, it makes it so much easier to be happy!
Lending money to friends and family is almost always a mistake: One thing I’ve come to realize is that lending money to family or friends is almost never going to be a good thing. By the nature of it, when you lend money it changes the relationship from one of family, to one of master and servant (see the verse above about the borrower being slave to the lender). If you’re going to give money to family, give it and don’t lend it. By the same token, don’t co-sign. There is usually a reason why someone needs a co-signer.
Giving helps not only the person you’re giving to, but helps you as well: Sometimes you feel like you don’t have anything to give, or you can’t afford to. I’ve found this year that when you make a plan, you will always have something to give.

Give generously to him and do so without a grudging heart; then because of this the Lord your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to. Deuteronomy 15:10

Giving isn’t always easy, but when you do, you will be blessed. Earlier this year when my wife and I actually started giving more regularly, I found that the amount we had started giving, was almost exactly the amount I had started making on this blog. When you give even when you don’t know if the income is there - God will provide.
No need to worry, God will provide: We went through some very hard things earlier this year when my wife was hospitalized for almost a month and we had medical bills in excess of $250,000. If we hadn’t had insurance we would have gone bankrupt. If we hadn’t been saving for a rainy day through our emergency fund we would have gone deeply in debt.God knows what we need, even before we need it. Even if we aren’t able to provide for ourselves, he will find a way.

Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’ For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. Matthew 6:31-32
Start saving as early as you can: The earlier you start saving for your future, the better off you’ll be. Interest that you earn on your money compounds at an amazing rate if you start saving early. The wonders of compounding interest! It’s never too late to start!

The plans of the diligent lead surely to advantage, but everyone who is hasty comes surely to poverty. Proverbs 21:5
We are only stewards of everything we have: God has given us so much material wealth here in America. We must remember, however, that everything we have is God’s. We are only stewards of these things for a short time, and we must be careful how we use what we are given. We must use what we have for God’s glory.

For every beast of the forest is Mine, the cattle on a thousand hills. I know every bird of the mountains, and everything that moves in the field is Mine. If I were hungry I would not tell you, for the world is Mine, and all it contains. Psalm 50:10-12
“Easy money” is almost never actually easy. Get rich quick schemes often don’t make you rich quick: There are a lot of get rich quick schemes out there offering quick and easy riches. I’ve learned through experience that “easy money” or “getting rich quick” is almost never easy or quick. Most often the best way to make money is through hard work, and saving little by little.

Dishonest money dwindles away, but he who gathers money little by little makes it grow. Proverbs 13:11
Having your integrity is more important than having wealth: It can be easy to be lured by the siren song of quick riches, and to sell our soul to gain wealth. We can rationalize just about anything in order to justify doing things that are not very ethical, or just plain wrong. It is better to keep your integrity and not have as much. From Proverbs:

Better is a little with righteousness than great income with injustice. Proverbs 16:8

So there it is, 10 things I have learned about money in the past 6 months.

What are some things you’ve learned about money that you’d like to share with others? Leave a comment and tell us all about it!

September 2, 2008 · Filed Under Commentary, money, tips

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Your Credit Card May Give You Perks You Didn’t Even Know About

Having stuff stolen stinks

I recently was unfortunate enough to have some personal items stolen from me, including a GPS and digital camera. I had only recently purchased the GPS, and digital cameras aren’t cheap to replace.

photo credit: Steve Keys

I called my homeowner’s insurance to see if they would cover the replacement cost, but my deductible was too high and I didn’t have a rider for any of the items (If you have some big ticket items, you might consider adding a rider. Things like Digital SLR cameras, etc). I called my auto insurance, but they only covered items attached to the car itself, like a car radio or in-dash GPS.

Credit card member benefits

Then I got a notice in the mail for the Chase Rewards Mastercard that we have explaining the benefits of using their credit card. One of the benefits stuck out for me, because it was closely related to my situation. It was:

Retail purchase protection
Protects most purchases made on your card against theft, fire and accidental breakage of up to $500 for up to 90 days from the date of purchase.

I quickly checked to see if I had purchased the GPS with my credit card, or if I had just used the debit card. I HAD used the credit card!

I then checked when the purchase had been made and found it was 89 days ago. So it was within that 90 day window!

Then I looked at the fine print for the purchase protection. There were a few more criteria I had to meet, but the biggies were:

File a police report on the theft within 48 hours, and send in a copy
Send in a copy of your purchase receipt
The item could not have been stolen from an automobile

So my hopes of getting reimbursed for my stolen items were dashed because of the last criteria - the items could not have been stolen from a car. Mine were taken from my car.

It’s still nice to know for future reference that I may be covered if I have stuff stolen again. Here’s a list of some of the other protections that are available when I use my card:

Price protection
If you buy something with your card and then see it advertised in print for less within 60 days, you will receive a refund for the difference up to $250. (Excludes internet purchases and certain items.)

$0 liability for unauthorized purchases, online or off
Complete protection against the unauthorized use of account.

Extended warranty
Coverage duplicates the terms of the U.S. manufacturer or store warranties of one year or less up to a maximum of 12 months on most items you purchase and is limited to the lesser of the amount charged to your card or $10,000. ( I may need to use this for my Xbox if it dies… Again!)

Trip cancellation/trip interruption coverage
If you are prevented from taking or continuing a trip you billed to your account, you are eligible to receive up to $1,500 in Trip cancellation/trip interruption coverage

Lost luggage coverage
You are eligible for up to $3,000 in lost luggage coverage for you and your dependents when you charge your entire common carrier fare to your card. This benefit covers permanently lost, stolen or damaged baggage or personal articles checked with a common carrier. (hopefully i won’t need to use this on our cruise to Europe this coming week)

Roadside assistance
If your car breaks down, help is just a phone call away.

Car rental insurance
Provides up to $50,000 in secondary coverage against collision or theft when you reserve and charge your car rental to your card and decline the car rental company’s collision, loss/damage waiver insurance.

So break out that terms of service folder for your credit card, and see what extra benefits you might have available to you. Those extra coverages just might come in handy! Don’t wait to check until it’s too late!

Have you ever used the extra protections that your credit card gives to you? Do things like those extra coverages factor into which card you sign up for? Do you think it is worth using a credit card just for some of those perks? Leave a comment and let us know!

August 28, 2008 · Filed Under Credit, tips

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Shameless Plug: LogosForWebsites.com for your logo design needs

A new site is launched!

Some of you already know that in addition to this website, I also run a couple of other websites. I have a fitness site called QuicktoFit.com, and now within the last week I have also launched my new logo design website LogosForWebsites.com.

I have been doing quite a brisk business in the past few weeks through my free blogger logo site doing designs for a lot of my friends in the personal finance blogosphere, for other bloggers, webmasters and tons of folks who have an online presence with Twitter, Plurk, Digg or other social media. Since I was getting so much work, I decided it was time to move up to my own hosted website at logosforwebsites.com.

Get your new logo now!

If you’re in the market for a new logo, an entrecard badge, a twitter background or just an small graphic you can use on all your social media profiles, head on over to my website and I can whip something up for you in no time, at a reasonable price! Here’s a few examples of my recent work.

Head on over to logosforwebsites.com for more!

Want some more examples of my work? Head on over to my website! Already decided to buy a logo? CLICK HERE to go directly to the payment page. Already paid? Just go to our logo questionnaire and tell us what you’re looking for - it’s that easy!

August 26, 2008 · Filed Under Miscellaneous, tips

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Finances and Personal Responsibility: Who Is To Blame For Your Money Problems?

The victim mentality

I was reading a post over at Moolanomy.com the other day that really got me thinking about the idea of a victim mentality, personal responsibility and how people handicap themselves by blaming others when they have problems.

I think it is helpful to first define when I mean by a victim mentality. Moolanomy.com gives a good definition for this discussion:

a tendency to blame external or uncontrollable factors, instead of focusing on internal or controllable factors for things that go wrong

I think this lack of personal responsibility is one of the biggest problems we face today as a society. Much of the credit crunch and foreclosure crisis we’re having can be placed squarely at the feet of people’s lack of responsibility. People are buying into the lie that there is always someone else to blame (and someone else to depend on) and as a result find themselves paralyzed when it comes time to make wise financial decisions on their own. They feel powerless. We live in a consuming society where if we want something - we buy it. Never mind the consequences. We’ll just blame someone else for our money problems later on!

photo credit: Steven Fernandez

Do you know someone who is always the victim? (Or is it you?)

Have you ever known someone that always has an excuse for every problem that they have? When they can’t make their credit card payment, they blame the credit card company for giving them a card with such a high interest rate. When they get into an interest only or adjustable rate mortgage and they end up in foreclosure, they blame the banks for giving them a loan on such horrible terms. They always look to blame someone else when in reality they should have taken responsibility and made better decisions for themselves and their families. They should have been more responsible with their financial choices.

When it comes to personal finance, playing the victim card instead of taking responsibility will get you to one place - broke and in debt. It all comes down to how you think, and how you react to your thinking. Henry Ford once said:

Whether you believe you can, or you can’t, you are right.

The power of positive (or negative) thinking is very real.

Ok, so I want to take responsibility. Now what?

The first step to turning things around, is just realizing that you are in fact in control of your own destiny. You don’t have to rely on the government, the banks or your credit card company to help you stay in control of your finances. You can take steps to turn things around, and take responsibility for your financial decisions.

Don’t want to be in debt? Take control of your finances. Follow a plan like the one laid out by Dave Ramsey in his book “Total Money Makeover” and get out of debt - and prosper!

Decide to stop your debt spiral and stop taking on new debt. Stop using the credit cards and don’t take on any new loans.
Set up a monthly budget, and live by it!
Save a baby emergency fund ($1000-2000) for little emergencies that come up.
Set up a debt snowball, and pay off your debts with the smallest balance first. If you need to - get an extra part time job or make money online to help pay off your debts.
Save 3-6 months of expenses in case you lose a job, get ill, or something else along those lines.
Save 15-20% for retirement.

That is a good place to start. If you have questions about where you should begin, drop me a line and I’ll do my best to help answer your question.

Freedom through responsibility

One thing that I’ve found that financial responsibility brings - is freedom. Freedom to know that you can rely on yourself instead of depending on someone else for your financial destiny. The freedom to be debt free. The freedom to grow wealth instead of wallowing in debt. You will find incredible peace of mind (like I have found) when your last debt is paid off.

The Bible says:

The rich rule over the poor, and the borrower is servant to the lender. Proverbs 22:7

By the same token, those who don’t borrow are no longer ruled over, but are free! Start on your own journey towards financial freedom today!

Have you ever engaged in the “victim mentality”, and what did you do to get yourself turned around? Do you agree that the “victim mentality” is pervasive in our society?

August 21, 2008 · Filed Under Commentary, finance, tips

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