Anybody that has been following this blog will know that I am a huge supporter of traveling and vacations. With that being said I have received many emails from readers telling me that it’s bad advice to tell people to travel or that it’s not frugal to go on vacation. Well first off let me just state that this is not a frugality blog and while on the rare occasion I will provide students with tips on how to save a few bucks here and there, I only do it because I know many students are strapped for cash and saving a few bucks can make a major difference in the long run. I don’t think that stressing about every penny is the way for anybody to live their life and in fact I believe that we all deserve a vacation at least once a year.
Before I get too off topic let me return to the original question; are experiences worth the price? First let me define a few different experiences that many people spend money on:
1. Sporting events/concerts. I’m pretty sure everyone has been to some sort of a game or concert at some point in their life. Whether it be watching your favorite hockey, basketball, or baseball team play against their number one rival to going to a big concert in your area.
2. Vacations. Anywhere from going down south to enjoy to sun to going to the mountains for a weekend of snowboarding or going on a Europe trip.
3. Visiting family. Traveling across the country or even traveling 9 hours by flight, we all fill spend money at some point in time to go visit family.
4. Time off with friends/family. This is the simplest type of experience because all it requires you to do is to take time off to work to spend time with those that you care about.
As you may know Studenomics is not a place where I claim to know all of the answers. I simply am here to help you find the answers with me through insightful articles and great blog comments left behind by readers. So when pondering whether experiences are worth the price, think about these questions to find the answer to your specific situation:
Will the memories truly last a lifetime? You must consider whether the experience will be so fun that you will remember it for the rest of your life. Don’t lie to yourself and honestly try to envision how memorable the experience will be.
Will the experience hinder my financial goals? If you are working on paying down your high interest debt then maybe taking a vacation or attending monthly concerts is not for you. We all have different situations and different goals.
Is there a cheaper alternative? Sure it may be great to travel to a 5 star resort every year but you have to wonder if a 3 or 4 star will be suffice. No matter what you do in life there always seems to be a cheaper alternative. On the other hand you may not be willing to risk trying a cheaper alternative. It all depends on your own preferences.
Can I miss an event or two? If times are tough you may have to skip on your yearly vacation or miss a few games. You have to question whether it is feasible for you to miss an event or two.
Will the experience affect my mental health? I don’t know about everyone else but getting away from the cold winter for a week is all I need to recharge my batteries and stay sane. On the other hand maybe going away during a busy time is not exactly the best idea.
After reading over this article I hope that you are able to determine for your own specific situation whether certain experiences are worth the price or not.
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How was the all-inclusive? Drink lots of cuba libres?
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MLR
Great post. I have been thinking a lot about that too, and I feel like the answer is “Yes and no.” It all just depends. I think we can often use it as an excuse to spend a bunch of money, when we could have equally as good of a time with our family by going to the park and spending a day barbecuing or something.
I absolutely think experiences are worth the price. I’d much rather have a shared experience than a knick knack or another sweater laying around. For example, for our 10th anniv. DH took my to Quebec and I took him for a hot air balloon ride. We try to get away just us (sans kids) every year, but also provide family experiences as well. Obviously, YMMV.
Interesting article. It is always tough to determine whether something is ‘worth it’ for another person; we all have different values and different priorities, and it’s difficult, if not impossible, to extrapolate onto another person’s situation. It’s like asking whether a particular purchase is worth it; it all depends on your own situation and perspective.
Sorry, but the question “Will the experience affect my mental health?” made me chuckle. A tad overdramatic, it seems. Perhaps one might ask instead “Is this the best time?” or “How beneficial will this be for my psyche?”
A very good point generally, though.
Personally I think that experiences are just about always worth the price. But that’s my personality.
I’m more than willing to pay money to do things I’ve never done before, go places I’ve never gone or to see things I’ve never seen before. Are they occasionally a rip off? Yep. But at least I’ll have the experience forever (or until the Alzheimer’s sets in).
Having a life rich in experiences is also a perfect complement to my other passion, being maddeningly well read.
I should also add that happiness derived from experiences tends to last way longer than happiness derived from purchasing material things.
Hmm…. it’s an interesting topic and I don’t think that there’s ever the right answer for the question but if I were to give my opinion I would agree with SaveBuyLive; travelling is one of my passion and favourite things in life, and I have never regretted any cent that I’ve spent on travelling; Especially when it is to a new place and involves doing new things. It provides you with something that you can’t quantify in monetary terms.
In saying that, I am aware that I am in a fortunate position and that is an ideal (and somewhat selfish) view. I think that when you are responsible for taking care of others and their well-being then the decision becomes much harder because then you have many new additional factors to consider.
All in all, in the end, there’s no right or wrong answer. It does depend on the situation and circumstances, and only you can make the best judgments for yourself.