Taking a holiday when in debt?

ms_london

I think that you should go on the holiday, but only IF your debt can be managed whilst you are away & your debt isnt likely to be increased. If going away means borrowing more money then I wouldnt do it, as it will make returning to the UK even worse & having to face double the debt!!

Just think - you could go for 6 months or longer if you did it when you are debt free??!!! Isnt that worth thinking about? xx

lynzpower

Experiences are for life?! Course they are if you are paying them off for years to come!

Crikey, I cant believe you lot today!

If this trip was being put on a CC would we have different responses? I think everyone would be going Nooo dont do it. Personally, I dont see the difference

sparkle_monkey

Thanks everyone for your replies and concern.
There's no way I would do one of those ridiculous ripoff deals where you pay a load of money to line the organisation's pockets. I've got a few options lined up where you volunteer and receive a room to stay in return. I only mentioned the £3,000 cos that's some money that will be coming in.

I'm taking on board everything you're saying because it all makes sense. It's just I don't have much common sense! If I did go I'm trying to come up with a compromise, e.g. go for a shorter length of time and only visit the very cheap countries such as Bolivia, Ecuador or Peru. Maybe doing a long volunteer placement.

If I don't go I suppose I will wait 3 years, until after all my training is finished, although I imagine I will be getting on with setting up business and contacts then. (As you can tell I really want to go, but at least I'm making some progress as I wouldn't have thought twice about doing this a year ago.)

Please keep the advice coming and I'm sorry if this kind of frivilous question offends any DFWs.

JAMIEDODGER

totally with you lynz. dont take the trip. you have debt pay it off first. check out ms londons sig.....she paid of 19000 debt and has now SAVED up to go away. maybe its not what you want to hear but you have a choice and i think you know you should pay off your debt first. you will just be prolonging the enevitable. save up then go when you are debt free.

Murtle

I'd go. Unfortunately if you know you are going to be tied for the next 2.5 years, then you won't be able to go travelling next spring. Your debt is surmountable, and you can pay it back in the next year or so following your travels. You can volunteer whilst you are away, do some research before going if you like the look of any of the i-2-i type packages, they are all linked to charities in the country. You can look to work directly for the charities. However, i-2-i do provide levels of insurance etc that you may not get directly. However, I digress, look at how cheaply you can accomplish what you want to do. So instead of flying 1st class round the world, see how you can get from A-B the cheapest/most economical way. Budget for all your expenditure, following living in Japan don't go crazy thinking you need to spend the same amount of money, it is much cheaper out of Japan!!! I think it's a trip that will help build your confidence and give you a different outlook on work, making friends and the world in general.

Your debt isn't going anywhere, work out the cheapest way of sevicing your debt and then pack your bags

Thriftylady

I was starting to feel like I was the most unreasonable person in the world, as everyone else was saying 'go for it'.....

But it is interesting that so many people seem to see a difference between 'travelling' and 'holidaying'. Obviously I can't be sure, but I have a feeling that if you had said you were thinking of taking two weeks in the sun during the summer, people would have been queuing up to say that it was unnecessary...

Chortle_2

Travelling does change your outlook on life, and yes, it is one of those things that can be worth shelling out for. It is certainly where a fair whack of my debt came from, and I am glad in many ways that I did it, despite getting into debt. A few years after I came back I was diagnosed with MS, so there is no way I could travel in the same way now.

BUT. I would say, that looking at your sig, it won't be long before you are debt free anyway. If you come back and work, throw all you can, and your tax rebate at your debt, and build up a bit of savings, you can not only go and have the experience of a lifetime, but you can do it content in the knowledge that when you do come back, you won't still be paying for it!

I'd also say to arrange your own trip, rather than paying £3k for the priviledge of paying this charity. If you saved £3k up, you could not only get your flights, and expenses covered, but you could use a fair chunk of it to directly help the people there, and volunteer independantly. Yes, it would take more organisation (but I always thought that was the best bit of travelling - planning it all before hand! Plus it'll keep you motivated whilst working in the UK to clear your debt!) but I'd put money on the fact that you'd end up giving more back to the communities out there than you would by lining the charities coffers!

ms_london

JAMIEDODGER wrote:

totally with you lynz. dont take the trip. you have debt pay it off first. check out ms londons sig.....she paid of 19000 debt and has now SAVED up to go away. maybe its not what you want to hear but you have a choice and i think you know you should pay off your debt first. you will just be prolonging the enevitable. save up then go when you are debt free.

Thanks Jamiedodger :0) Really though, the going travelling was the only thing that kept me going whilst I was in debt. I knew the whole experience would be 10 x better when debt free. A) I could really enjoy the whole experience and not have to worry about servicing my debts in the UK whilst away, I didnt have to come back if I didnt want to, C) If I wanted to take time out from working then I could!! And in 14 weeks time I shall be doing all of the above - yiippeeeeeeee!! xx

dinkylou

I do understand and very much appreciate the DFW view but I think this one is different than just taking an extravagent holiday personally.

If you are going to be tied into a job/a steady lifestyle once you move back to London then personally I would go.

Its not something you can do easily when you get a steady job as getting a few months off without losing your job is pretty much impossible.

Plan ahead and dont forget about paying off your debt but recognise that this opportunity to travel (cheaply) for a few months may be a whole lot more difficult when you settle.

If however, you will get the chance to have a few months off at a later date then pay off the debt and go for longer.

maryjane01

Hello,

As others have said it sounds like you are trying to delay the reality of heading home a little bit.

With debt you cannot afford to spend £3000 on a holiday/volunteering experience. Even spending what you get back as a rebate you are not spending YOUR money on the trip. Because you are in debt you are spending your creditors money and you will be paying interest on that, and delay making a decent life for your self, buying a house etc.

If you really want/feel you need a holiday/volunteer in the thrid world, you could compromise. How about stopping in Thaliand/Laos/Cambodia/Vietnam/Burma or even Borneo? If you got a flight home that incorporated a stop over you could have a decent trip around there for under £500. You could just travel, but there are also lots of volunteering programmes around there too. There are budget airlines that fly within Asia if you made it to hub like Hong Kong or Bangkok.

I have travelled a lot myself I first went backing around SE Asia when I was a student for 3 months. I taught English in Taiwan for a year and half, so I may somewhat be able to relate to what it is like to head back home. It can be really scary, but delaying it by a few months is not going to change that.

I don't know if you have been to SE Asia before, but it is really different to Japan, there are some great places there. If you have been, you have clearly travelled a bit (a lot more than most people) and definitely do not deserve an OS experience to South America you can't afford. I would love one too, but I can't afford it, so I am not going to do it.

I live in London now myself and always try and do cheap stuff, I love using buy 1 main meal get 1 free Wagamama vouchers and going out on mystery shopping dinners. If you want somebody to catch up with in London PM me and I might be able to treat you on a mystery shopping night out sometime (can't gaurantee the quality in those circumstances...can vary a lot!).

Good luck with what ever you decide, but please, for your own sake and that of your family and friends who care about you, do not spend £3000 you don't have on a trip to South America.

MaryJane