Spring Break Damage

April 23, 2014

So, I budgeted for the spring break trip, and now I have to do a review of my spring break expenses.

I didn’t have a realistic goal of how much a rental car would cost. I aimed for $20 a day, and got the car for that amount, but that doesn’t account for taxes and fees so it looked like I went over when actually I got a really good deal.

While I budgeted well for getting nieces and nephews college gear, I didn’t plan (in writing) for getting parents or my sister – although that was always in the back of my mind somewhere. When we went into the store I gave everyone a $25 limit and everyone stuck within the limit. So, the overall expense seemed to be twice what I planned for even though everyone stayed within limits.

I was under the amount I budgeted for gas and the hotel. I went over the food budget. I chose to cook while I visited – which was a smart move. However, we should’ve eaten before going to that baseball game and packed snacks before going to College Day at my alma mater. That could’ve saved me $30 at least.

Overall I was happy with my money management. I’m especially proud that I even kept tabs of spending at all. I don’t recall ever doing that for a trip before.