1. Open a travel savings account

We all know money doesn't appear out of thin air, so yes, you have to start somewhere! If you're a college student working a part-time job similar to myself or are already in your career field, do yourself a favor and open a separate savings account JUST for traveling. When you take control of your own finances, especially if it's rather new to you, I'm sure we can all agree on those monthly bills and daily purchases get all jumbled up, forcing you to question where all your money has gone.

Opening up a separate savings account will allow for you to keep track of your travel funds and only your travel funds. Most banks do charge monthly service fees, but there are numerous ways to avoid them. For example, a great way to start saving along with avoiding those fees is to set up small direct deposits coming straight from your paycheck every two weeks. Now I'm sure you're saying you won't be able to afford that, but in all reality, will taking a few bucks out of your check truly make a difference? Try cooking at home, using a spending app, etc... I can get way more into this but that's a whole other ball game!

2. Apply for an international credit card

If your desire is to travel out of the states (which I sincerely hope it is), you WILL run into some foreign transaction fees along the way. Taking cash is great and all, but to stay safe and lower the chances of you losing it or getting it stolen, apply for an international credit card! Personally, I use Capital One's amazing Venture Rewards Credit Card.

This card has numerous features that are great for traveling: no foreign transactions fees, no annual fee, cash advances, bonus miles, bonus rewards, etc. When I applied for the card about a year ago, the company had a deal going on that if you were to spend $2,000 within the first 3 months of opening the account, you'll receive 20,000 bonus miles! With those bonus miles, I was able to redeem them for either airplane miles for any airline, cash, and or reward choices from their website.

I'm sure there are tons of other cards out there, so it's best you find the one that suits your financial situation. Here is a link to the Venture card and a few other options!

https://www.capitalone.com/credit-cards/venture/

https://www.nerdwallet.com/best/credit-cards/no-fo...

3. If you're a student, look into studying abroad

Whether or not you're a student at a community college, online college, trade school, or University, you do have the ability to study abroad! There are hundreds of programs out there waiting for you to look into. Whether it be an international exchange, third party provider, or your specific institution-lead program, there have to be at least one (if not 50) scholarships available for you to apply to.

During the summer of my freshman year, I went on a UA-lead study abroad program to Fort-de-France, Martinique. Luckily I was introduced to the program quite early in the semester and was granted half the cost (a couple thousand dollars), just for being one of the first 12 students to apply! My study abroad experience is a whole other story, but all you need to know now is this: don't question it, it IS worth every penny and all the effort you will put into making it happen.

But when it comes to scholarships, you'd be surprised what these institutions would offer a student going abroad if you just put aside a little extra time to complete a few essays for an experience of a lifetime.

4. ALWAYS check Google Flights for any and all trips

Now you're getting a little closer to taking off! Google Flights is a great and easy way to compare all tickets available in the market. The search engine will range from the cheapest to most expensive tickets, and will also recommend a few other days near your departure/return dates that can be hundreds of dollars less! Acknowledging how much higher the tickets become the closer to your departure date, I recommend purchasing your tickets months in advance if possible!

5. Don't forget about those phone service fees

Verizon, AT&T, T-Mobile, Cricket. Whoever your phone provider may be, make sure to check in with them before you take off. Bombard them with questions about their foreign service policy & make sure to abide by it as much as possible. As a T-Mobile customer, I'm able to travel out of the states and use my phone to text, browse with data, and FaceTime. The only downside is that I'll get charged about 20¢ per minute during a phone call, which is normal for most carriers. Though depending on how long your stay, you may want to look into purchasing a SIM card through the local phone provider in the country your traveling to (which is normally available at their airport).

6. For the love of God, invest in a Hydro Flask

Now that you've gained a few tips on how to save money on some larger purchases, let's get down to the nitty-gritty. Imagine walking up and down the dunes of the North African Sahara desert at 110 degrees and not one water bottle stand in sight. What do you do? Oh yeah, if you had a Hydro Flask, this wouldn't be a problem! But then again, let's say we did stumble upon a water bottle stand & they were going for $5 a pop. A nice $5 you either don't have or were planning to spend on dinner that night. Yes, having to dump out your flask every time you pass through airport security can become quite irritating, but trust me on this one. End of story, it'll save your life. You'll never have to purchase a plastic water bottle (infested with BPA chemicals) again!