How I Financed the Road Trip of my Dreams Within a Year?

Ever since I was young, I had always dreamed of traveling the world and seeing all of its glory.

It is my theory that God made our beautiful planet as exquisite as it is so that we appreciate it. And according to my theory, the appreciation would only be thoroughly given when we see the beauty with our own two eyes.

This theory is the sole reason why I caught the travel bug. And this is the only bug in the world that people are not scared of catching.

Even though people are not afraid of the travel bug, their bank balance is indeed scared of practicing it. And the same was right for me.

I am a manager at a trucking company, and I make good money. Given my bills, installments, and miscellaneous expenses, I did not have much left by the end of the month.

So, I had to plan my finances to ensure that I had enough to take a month-long road trip from Liverpool to Edinburg and back.

Why the Road Trip?

I could go to Edinburg by a flight, it would cost me much less than the road trip in terms of time and money, but through a flight, I stand to lose something far more precious.

For me, a trip is all about the small moments you get to experience on the journey. Through a road trip, I would get to see all the enchanting gorgeousness of our wonderful nation.

I would get to visit the small towns and villages and get to meet the people there.

I would be able to see all the landscapes in the route from the gigantic mountains and valleys to the lively rivers.

But more than that, I stand a chance to go on the road less taken and become the controller of my journey.

The road trip has been a dream of mine, and I plan to make that dream come true. For that, I need to accumulate almost fifty grand, yeah; I do want a luxurious trip.

And here is how I made that happen.

The Extra Work

I am a very hard working fellow. That is one reason I got promoted to being a manager within the first year of my job.

My shift starts at 4 in the morning, and I never complain.

I could take the 9 to 5 shift, but that pays less than the early morning round, another reason to not complain.

As a job perk, I get 2 week offs, and 2 Paid leaves in a month.

Since I enjoy staying at home more than going clubbing with my friends, I do not feel the need of taking the leaves.

And working on Saturdays and Sundays pays you to double, so I worked overtime. I even worked overtime on weekdays and was paid extra.

For my boss, I was the ideal employee, and he loved me more than anyone else.

The Cost Cutbacks

The extra pay was going to the most significant way of accumulating the funds for my trip, but I needed to find other ways as well.

And I did, I started cutting costs wherever I could.

I saved a ton on my grocery bill by shopping at the farmer’s market instead of the supermarket.

I did not buy any new clothes, new gadgets or devices for my home since I already had whatever was needed.

I even sublet my duplex home, to cut back on the rent. And it was sort of nice to have someone stay with you. He also cooked most nights, so that was even better.

These habits helped me a lot in improving my savings, and I almost had the amount that was needed for my journey.

The Money Arrangement

A road trip cannot be started without a vehicle, and in my case, a car.

A significant reason I needed to save up to 50 grand for my trip was the fact that I would have to buy a car.

I did not need one since I used my bike to go to work every day. It was my daily round of cardio as well.

I had thought that I would buy a used car since it would cost me much lesser than a new one, but my family along with my best friend suggested that a car would be with me for years, so it was better to invest in a new one.

So I decided on that and bought a Ford Ranger Raptor, with its hulks like design and four-wheel drive, it was the best option for a road trip.

It cost me roughly 40 grand, and of course, car finance for bad credit with an instant decision made it possible for me to buy that. I had the loan approved in minutes. It was kind of surprising.

The Dream Coming True

I have all the savings and the car that will be needed for the trip. It took me almost 11 months to save that kind of cash. Now that I have it, I could start my journey tomorrow, but I am going to wait until the pandemic wanes.

I hope that it happens soon so that I can live my dream.