Balancing Personal Finance and Travel with Danielle Desir from The Thought Card

TMP Danielle
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Jenn: Hey everyone, and welcome back to the Travel Mug Podcast. So Something I've been passionate about for a long time is balancing personal finance and travel.

It's why I started my blog, Will Save for Travel, way back in 2017, which feels like yesterday and forever ago at the same time. So today we're super, super excited to bring on, I'm personally very excited to bring on Danielle Desir. To chat more about travel, financial growth, and tips for planning affordable vacations, Danielle, I've been following you for a very long time. So I'm really excited to chat today. So in 2018, Danielle started the Thought Card podcast sharing inspiring Stories, tips, and advice from money nerds and globetrotters who want to use their hard earned money to creatively travel the world. We love that. Pay off debt, build wealth. That's what we're all about.

She also hosts Road Trip Ready, which was established this year, 2024, which explores some of the best road trip tips and road trip destinations across the U. S. and and Canada. She's a podcast marketing coach and she believes that financial responsibilities should not deter you from pursuing your dreams.

So welcome to the show.

Danielle: Thank you so much for having me for being here. I'm excited to talk money and travel and, you know, similar, uh, similar to you, Jenn, like it feels forever ago that we started our websites, but also it feels like yesterday,

Jenn: Yeah.

Danielle: I, I'm just I'm excited

Jenn: Yeah. So tell us a little bit about you and maybe where your love of travel came from.

Danielle: Okay So my love of travel I think came from not traveling enough when I was younger Um so long short my family is from Haiti and every summer I would go to Haiti to spend time with my grandparents. Loved it growing up like super special I can't even replicate that right now with my kids so super special. But by the time high school and college came around like I wanted to do more things. I wanted to study abroad, I wanted to travel. And I did a little bit but money came up all the time. Money was coming up short for me.

So that really inspired me to be like Hey you know what Like I can't afford it now but when I can one day I want to make sure that it's a priority for me and I want to make sure it happens. So I got my first big girl job right of like grad school saved for a year. And in 2014 was able to go on a seven day vacation to Paris. And that was really important. It was a solo trip So everyone around me was like don't do it Don't do it And I was like why

I'm going to do it it also showed me that this is repeatable right I created a savings process for myself where I could do this. So why not continue to do this and then ramp it up like 10 10 trips in a year kind of thing. So that's really where my love of travel and money comes is the lack of and having this like tenacity and can do attitude to make it happen. And in terms of like Content creation and starting my website and things like that It was really to share like I've always been a very open and sharing person I didn't necessarily see myself as a strong writer when I started, which is not a requirement for you to start anything right

Especially in the content creation space so just kind of putting one foot in front of the other I was able to build this this site up build up the podcast And today, you know almost 10 years later when I started I'm still passionate about traveling money still today

Meggan: that's awesome. And I think, you know, it's, I've thought about, you know, why do I love travel so much as well? And I think it's actually quite similar. When I was young, I hardly went anywhere. I didn't, I'm from a very small town in Nova Scotia. I didn't see a lot of things. And I think once I finally, was able to just sort of step out into the world.

It sort of became something that was all consuming, like, how do I do this more? So it's something you've just put into words that I've, I've never really thought about. Well, why is that? But it's because I felt, you know, held back just life circumstances for so long. And now that I'm doing it, I'm like, this is, this is what I want to doing

Danielle: Absolutely And you know having the lack I do feel like it definitely offers inspiration and and also like now that I have a little one um the next generation like I'm fostering that early. Like he's already been to Paris. He's already road tripped so many times.

So, circumstances can change throughout our lives. And I think that's important uh to highlight and stress. And sometimes even when it feels like there's no way that's going to happen, you will find a way to make it happen

Jenn: Yeah, I think that's definitely true. Like making it A priority is important because like for most of us, the money is not just going to appear out of nowhere. You have to make it happen, which I think kind of moves into like, I'm going to call the meat of this episode that we're going to talk about is like tips to maximize affordable vacations if you are just starting out, um, or if your budget is on the lower end, it's really important to use your dollars wisely. So do you have any tips for maximizing affordable vacations?

Danielle: I first start with The destination in mind. A lot of people are they have a list a travel wish list which we all do have which is great but a lot of times these destinations on list if you really drill down they're expensive. They're very pricey I know on mine it's like It's like New zealand and Australia and those are amazing destinations but when you are on a tight budget or when you're first starting out I would absolutely be mindful about costs in the sense of okay how expensive is the destination to get there those things. What I really focus in early on was Affordable cheap flights. Getting there cheaply was opening the door of opportunity for me. So instead of having this travel wish list and pursuing that, I'm following the deals instead. I'm following the travel opportunities instead and yes they're not on my travel wish list, but I'm still exploring destinations. I'm still you know finding myself in these places and that really build the momentum where I can First be mindful of budget and then travel and fit in there. I think a lot of people reverse engineer that and it

and we come back home to debt you know. There's like statistics that say that you know the average american is coming home to thousand dollars of debt every year Um which Not ideal for us .So Cheap Flights for me was how I did and continue to do that today would definitely recommend there are lots of like Cheap Flight newsletters out there and I just subscribe to all of them. All of them and the reason why is because you never know when something's going to pop up and it's appealing to you but the second point after subscribing to these newsletters is you have to really know what a good deal is right? We have this evasive word "deal" and you know, the travel travel universe know that, so they put "deals" in front of a lot of different things and it's not necessarily true. So as consumers really have to be mindful of like what is deal. And for us to know that is establishing a baseline price.

So For example I know if I want to go to Europe I will be spening X amount generally on average right? So if see anything under that I know that's a deal I know that's a steal. Deals don't just exist It's based off of comparison to what you already know. So even if you're not in the travel you're not into traveling right now like right now you're not financially able to you know You're still learning about prices so that when you ready you know what to hop on and and take action on. So I think that's super important.

So for example during the pandemic when we weren't traveling I was still Subscribe to all those newsletters and still pricing things out. So that when we were able to travel I knew when to go and when not to go. So those are the two places I would start and then developing a workflow for yourself terms of the dollars and cents right saving money. There's a lot of ways to afford travel but I think for me How I feel empowered is by actually saving money for it and saving it for it regularly just like any other bill light bill home home mortgage all of those things are bills that I prioritize right? So is travel So I have travel as a line item in my budget and I supplement that a bank account attached to that So travel has its own account

So these are Financial workflows like think of step like once I get paid does that lead me to filling my travel fund And then I could then find cheap flights and do the other things that we talked as well

Meggan: So I have to ask a follow up, Jenn. I know you probably have one, but I have to ask. So you mentioned, of course, following the deal. So have you found yourself somewhere that was not on your list that you're like, I am so glad I took a chance on this place?

Danielle: All the places Oh

Meggan: Okay,

Danielle: all of the 27 most of the 27 countries I've been to Absolutely like Sweden Um Norway these are places that weren't I mean of course I'd love to but they
weren't my wishlist right Uh places like Austria I've been to Ireland twice I've been to Iceland three times deals deals deals deals deals So these deals up just your world of opportunity for you to different places places but still keep your finances at the center of everything I think Why I started another reason why I started my site in 2015 is because I see a lot of travel creators Focus solely on going and I to go but I also want to set myself up for retirement
want to you purchase a home I want to get out of student debt these aspirations So I always say that and money is two sides of the same coin like they're ying and yang

Um so it's important for me at least Those deals are amazing but I have to have the finances to back it up so that I can go responsibly

Jenn: Yeah, definitely. And I think as similar to you, I, um, transfer money into a bank account every time I'm paid every two weeks or so. And it's gone, it goes into another bank account and I just like pretend it doesn't exist until I need to go into it. And I think it's really important, like to save even when you don't have a trip planned, just keep that like momentum going.

Like let that automatically go into another bank account and let it build up. And then when you get those deals, those email deals, you can jump on it and you don't have to worry about where the money is going to come from. Because I feel like a lot of people like decide, I want to go to wherever and then they start saving, um, but you know, that the deal could pop up and you want to be ready to book it.

Meggan: yeah,

Danielle: always ready right Always at or ready. And sometimes the deals are so good but you maybe it's not in the budget still after all the savings and that's okay

Right Um

I do want to say that I do see a big difference because I've been entrepreneur now full time for three years So there's a difference between um Entrepreneur Dani saving for travel and back in the day nine to five Dani saving for travel like the nine to five because you have such a steady paycheck it's so easy to earmark of that check every pay period. However now as an entrepreneur where things are in flux like I have really busy seasons I have slow seasons have big checks small checks and little drips and all of those things So I think my my workflow my system Has definitely changed quite a bit Now that I'm an entrepreneur um we go on a Disney trip every year With baby including so we've two trips with him and Disney is not cheap right

Um that is really Just of our trip as a project So when we have we know we have larger projects coming in bigger checks coming in We know we earmark half or a quarter of that entire check towards our trips because the consistency again our finances is not we can definitely still do but just bit craftful So kind that because

I was trying to do the same thing as a entrepreneur of like that every you know that every paycheck period but when you only have one or two paychecks a month
it's it or none for that month it could be difficult for entrepreneurs

Jenn: Yeah, absolutely.

Meggan: that makes sense. And, something we noted that your website for the thought card podcast mentions is affordable luxury. So talk to us about what that means to you and let our listeners know as well.

Danielle: Yes so traditionally we know luxury which is high end travel and we know budget travel which is low end and cheap traveling cheaply So I started my travels as a budget traveler and even budget there's like backpacking budget and like you know there's these different tiers But as I have money I've grown I've grown quite a bit now Um I've realized that I want luxurious things that are within budget that are affordable to me So affordable luxury is really this this phrase is coined phrase where you are the things that you truly value which may be on The higher end side but That also means saying no to certain things that are no longer of value or not in line with style

So it's very subjective Everyone's everyone's term for affordable looks different right And even for me affordable could look different in a year or years Um so it's it's a term that allows us to be flexible but it's very value focused Like what do you about What's a priority to you so for me I actually do care about where I put my head down at night Um I stay at a really nice hotel resort And I don't necessarily care if I fly Economy right Just please don't have me up like this the whole

Jenn: Yeah.

Danielle: I don't want up like this with no

But I'm willing to make sacrifices for what's a value to me So that's what I would say affordable luxury is all about

Jenn: Yeah. I think that's very similar to definitely similar to me and similar to you as well, Meggan. But as an example, it's funny. Um, we live two hours away from our Our airport, and so if we have a really early morning flight, we usually go and stay at a hotel the night before, and there's a couple of options around our airport, and there's the like, super budget, the rooms haven't been updated since like, 1980, basically, it's a horrible place, honestly, and they have, you have to take a shuttle to the, to the airport, but they give two nights, It's free parking, or two, two weeks of free parking.

And the last time we stayed there, my husband and I looked at each other and we're like, we're not doing this again. We're going to stay, we're staying at the hotel that's connected to the airport. Like we have grown, our budget has grown and we can afford to not deal with this anymore. So, you know, but like, you know, a long time ago, that's okay.

Definitely all we could afford and that's what we had to do. But yeah, as your circumstances change, you're, uh, you're allowed to change your travel style for sure. And so once you get somewhere, once you've booked your, uh, your cheap flight, hopefully, how do you balance like Spending, splurging, saving on, like, different experiences when you're traveling.

Danielle: we mentioned this term travel style which has become so important and I feel like every year I'm dialing what that travel style means so travel style not in a fashion sense but in terms of your preferences So I always start my year off with a list of things I truly enjoy that make me happy when I travel So like I mentioned having a really nice hotel that's a priority to me That's on the that's on wishlist And then there's a list of like uh not as important That would probably be the flights right wish list is most likely for me parking at the airport which is so expensive

Jenn: Yeah.

Danielle: traveling York but like that convenience right That convenience that time savings So make a list of things that you truly care about when you travel and then make a list of things that you don't necessarily mind to skimp out on And that really helps you to to really drill down and refine All the money that you are spending is very in line with what's going to bring you joy and what's going to bring you happiness So starting off with a travel style Evaluation is awesome if you have your family members like for you know you're traveling as a family And even even your partner but like with my mom I do a lot of mother daughter trips with her and we always like touch base Like hey are you okay with this Like where are you at this Like You know as she gets older I have to accommodate her a bit more So these are things that definitely becomes part of our conversation definitely I think of it as your values right definitely overarching and that it's very important Um now Um on the ground some of the times I like to do uh these no spend days So no days are like Hey we're just going to explore the city with a challenge of not spending activities for today And that really kind of opens me up I wander around the city I may end up going on Pinterest for example and looking up free things to do in that destination So there's a lot typically a lot of things to do in a destination So no spend challenges definitely of anchor you to to to not spend money in certain areas But then again you have all this other money that you can spend on what is important to you So

Meggan: The food, Danielle, thefood

Danielle: Yes

exactly Exactly

The food I am definitely I've become a foodie I've grown into a foodie and there are many different types of food styles There's food carts food trucks and dinings and dive bars and you know Michelin star restaurants So definitely having a broader mind as to you can experience destination and what if you love food what food looks like right Um it doesn't necessarily always have to be a sit down meal at a fancy restaurant but if you do want that that could be you know that could be an option but then you have ways to dial it back down to So it's it's really balancing It's really saying what's important to me Can I enjoy free things to do are there free walking tours for example which are quite popular in many different cities

You can find ways to have a lot of fun without spending a lot of money Um that's something that I continuously have to remind myself especially as I get older is like you can have a lot of fun Also in terms of splurging if you know you want to splurge on things book them in advance especially this you know uh since you know the pandemic lot of things are we have to book them now So I always say if you know you want to do something you want to splurge on something book it pay for it and it be done So when you get to your destination you're not having you're not thinking about the checkbook in that regards you planned it you save for it's already paid for

Jenn: that's one of the things that kind of came out of the pandemic that I really like is booking things in advance. And then like you said, paying for them in advance, and you don't have to think about it anymore. Once you get there, you can just enjoy it. But yeah, it's, uh, I like the booking ahead. I thought, you know, At first, like, oh, this is going to be kind of annoying because you're on a little bit of a time crunch, but in general, it's really good.

I've read things with people showing up, um, for example, at Edinburgh Castle and not being able to get in. And it's like, well, the rest of us pre booked this six months ago. So, so sorry.

Danielle: And

Meggan: about that

Danielle: know it's it's

I'm actually one of I've become one of those last minute people

Jenn: Have you?

Danielle: is like how did I get here

Um

it's it's I think having a baby I'm sure which we'll talk about definitely things but there is this ease of travel when you can book things in advance for For sure but sometimes when you get to a destination like your hotel for example or accommodation may have deals

Meggan: Yep.

Danielle: you may walk by a tourism office and they have like coupons and and different things like that So just because if you necessarily don't book in You may not be missing on savings opportunities You may find lots of things location as well So keep an

Meggan: Yeah, I agree with that because I definitely sort of sway a little bit the other way. So coming up, we're going to the Netherlands. So I have, I've booked, of course, like the Anne Frank House experience in advance. It's important to me. The book means a lot to me. I want to do it. Um, there's a few other things we know we want to do, but we've just decided to wait and see, because we often run into things we didn't know we wanted to do in the first place.

So we like to sort of leave that, and I, I get a little bit stressed when I know I have to be somewhere at a specific time, so I only want one or two of those things waiting for me, and otherwise I want to dictate my day. But if it matters enough to you, and it is something that's popular like the Edinburgh Castle or the Anne Frank House, I definitely recommend, you know, taking the plunge to book in advance, but also leaving sort of that time because something else might pop up.

Danielle: This is so true I just actually came back a week long vacation in Azores with my mom And of course me being last minute planner these days we were literally booking things the next day

And it was it was stressful I'm not gonna lie I was like oh my god you know get your guide says There's no space I can't It was stressful Um but it was also magical be like Hey do you want to go to the East coast or West coast tomorrow Like do you want to do this or that Right So as we travel we find that style right feel like for me I'm more loose that I was back

Meggan: Me too.

Danielle: and that's okay right And that's okay as well

Meggan: Yep, for sure.

Jenn: Yeah, I'm interested to talk a little bit about how you leverage travel as a tool for personal and financial growth. Can you share a bit more about that?

Danielle: Absolutely of the things like I didn't really know when I started like traveling and and being a creator But there there's lots of opportunities beyond just the pretty pictures that we take and the memories that we have with our family where depending on your interests there are career opportunities that you can pursue when it comes to travel which impact your income Um so for example I speak on stages all across the world and offers a creative opportunity to travel because a lot of times they will take care of my They take care of my flights and things like that So that take cares of travel but also I'm building my career I'm maybe highlighting things that I'm doing I'm sharing with my community so That's like 1 aspect of that um whether you decide to take your travel stories and write books about that which now self publishing makes it so easy that could create an income stream for you um whether you want to create create maybe become like a travel agent and create itineraries forpeople Right there's So many opportunities in travel where can Sure experience the travel but you can share those experiences in a multitude of ways that can impact your finances

I also like because travels been such a important financial goal of mine that has definitely shaped the way that I I think about money and and my Priorities for the year and and how I want to pass that down so I hope that answers the question because they

Jenn: Yeah Yeah.

Danielle: Um again like travel it could be two sides of the same coin for many different uh facets and regards there

Meggan: Yeah.

Jenn: Yeah, I feel like it's definitely changed my life as well. You know, I started Will Save For Travel and, you know, similar to you, just kind of like taught myself and like, you know, you're Googling what is SEO and like, what am I doing? And then all of a sudden I'm like starting to freelance and I built it a virtual assistant business, which then actually led to me getting a nine to five job.

Um, I write mostly about personal finance and like, Um, housing and that sort of thing. So real estate. So it's a really interesting, trajectory. You don't really know where you're going to end up, but it, it started as a way that I wanted to hopefully work, um, location independent. It didn't matter where I was.

And so, yeah, you don't know, you don't know where it's going to lead you for sure, but the love of travel can definitely, uh, lead you down some interesting pathways that you didn't know you would end up down.

Danielle: Absolutely I want to second that because like when you were speaking Jenn like I think travel is a lifestyle choice right? For some people travel is you know a hobby or something they do maybe once in a while but there are people who really it's part of their identity and that's I feel like that's That's

Jenn: Yeah.

Danielle: all as humans This is a fabric of who we are If we had to tell our life story travel had to be a big part of that so I love all this conversation because in order for that to happen the finance piece is an important piece that ropes into that

Meggan: I couldn't agree more. And I think, you know, going back to that as well, very similar in terms of, you know, having the money is one thing and having the will to want to travel. Those things have to meet or it's, you're not going to be able to sort of fulfill the things that you want to do. So it takes that planning and it takes forward thought in terms of how am I going to get to achieve that?

And you're exactly right. We're all here today having this discussion because Travel is part of who we are and it's brought us to this place. And I think if it's that important to you and everybody has different priorities and things in their lives that they need to handle, but if it wants, if you want it to be a priority for you, it is at least start small, start saving small, but start making those steps toward it.

And obviously you've built this amazing career. So starting back in 2015, of course, with the blog and then your podcasts. You've written books. Why did you want to share these tips and resources and all this valuable information with like a wider audience? So what was your specific driving force or inspiration?

Because a lot of people travel, Danielle, but not everyone shares it you do. So talk to us about why this has been important for your journey.

Danielle: Yes know I think when you have a website there are like a sandbox that you have to play in There's rules to how we grow and turn things like that non technical things Um but I really just wanted to break free of those rules

And writing an ebook was my way of doing that I could talk about how to save for travel for example from start to finish Um Be me not have to worry about any sandboxes I can color outside the lines that to me was really really important I'm also Not feel like I'm a writer today But when I first started I wouldn't say I was a writer

like I wouldn't say that at all and I think Branching out to write books was a challenge for me and it helped me grow professionally and offered opportunities still today so It was a personal challenge too It's like even if you don't see yourself as something like take that leap it you know and now it's like six books later like I have an author tone like I know how I write and I know the kind of books I write Right So for me there was a couple of reasons but wanting to share I feel like if I had the resources that are available today for for just free and out there in the public it would have changed my trajectory I think I would have maybe gone a different career path maybe maybe went to a different school for college like everything could have changed so it's important to me to share that and motivate people to if this is something you want you do it There could be some challenges but there's nothing we can't overcome

Okay

Jenn: switching gears a little bit, I know you're a big road trip lover. Uh, yeah, I,

Meggan: Danielle. Same. Love a road

Jenn: those, Megganan and Danielle, you're on the same page. I am less of a road trip lover, but do you have any favorite road trip destinations or advice for people who are just starting their road trip? Maybe convince me that road trips aren't the worst thing ever.

Danielle: Oh okay I don't think road trips are the worst thing ever but I will admit that I started road seriously during the pandemic So 2020 when things were locked down like we were only allowed to do certain things So that was my outlet in us

And that really opened my love for road tripping There's lots of pros and cons for road tripping I'm not going to lie but I do love the freedom of it I do love the ability to stop and go at at your own pace and at your own leisure So I just came back from a three day road trip. throughout Vermont And Vermont is one of my favorite States And I think If you're on the East coast it's a wonderful place to road trip

Meggan: Agree.

Danielle: call they call green mountains for a reason mountains are massive and stunning and beautiful And personally what I love about Vermont is that there's just a lot of small towns and small villages that are connected So what I did is I started off in Manchester. I drove to Rutland I went all the way up to Burlington and I I made my way back down So it's a very easy laid back lots of outdoor activities to do but I definitely grew to this stage Like I don't think it's I don't think was it would be easy for me to just I'm going to go road trip entire Right Um but for today definitely easy and doable when it comes to starting I think of couple things So there's day trips So day trips are that we would say under two hours driving So somewhere you can head there explore for a few hours head back home And that honestly is what I'm loving right now especially with the baby Um and it's just super easy also cost effective no hotel night Um then you have your more traditional classic road trips which are you know three plus five hours plus and that typically you're going to be spending the night there going to maybe do multiple stops and explore

Um and then there's like the cross adventures where it's like cross state adventures or state adventures right So road trips can look like so many different things

I felt like for me when I first heard of road trips it was like RV and do this that's not always does it have to be the case like you can do smaller excursions and still have a great time. So those are my tips I wasn't a lover but I am now

Another another big thing because um you know if you're in um I recently did a two week road trip in the prairies So I was in Manitoba and Saskatchewan and that was also stunningly beautiful and so different from my life here in Connecticut so there's just I think there's any place can have a road trip element it It's just a matter of how about and do it

Jenn: I love, yeah, I love that you brought up, um, Manitoba and Saskatchewan because I listened to your episodes and it's so funny because as Canadians and, you know, we're in Nova Scotia, so we're on the East coast. I have like. in the past had almost zero interest in ever visiting Manitoba and Saskatchewan. I'm like, eh, prairies, skip them.

And then I'm listening to your episodes and I'm like, oh, okay, it sounds pretty cool. Maybe I shouldn't go. All

Meggan: You inspired her, Danielle

Jenn: right. It's not going to be high on the list and I'm definitely not going in the winter, but like

Meggan: Who is? Who's voluntarily doing that? No one.

Danielle: Well I would like, to go see the polar bears I would

Jenn: okay. Yeah.

Danielle: yes yes I get it

Meggan: Yeah, exactly. No, no, that is true. The Northern Lights for sure. And I'd like to add to the road trip thing. I was the same way, Danielle. I was not into it. Um, my husband said, can you give me the opportunity to plan something? And see if you like it. And I'm like, I'll give you one opportunity to like wow me.

And he planned an entire road trip. And I think the key for that and what brought me to my love of the road trip is not powering through. I don't want an 8 to 10 hour drive just to get to my destination. A road trip, if you want to enjoy it. It isn't about the destination, as they say, but it's literally the stops along the way.

It's like, what are you doing to explore the places you're going? If you're just driving for eight hours, that's boring and terrible. But if you want to go somewhere and see places, you actually have to make that conscious effort to get out your Google Maps or whatever it is and find those little nooks and crannies along the way that's going to open your eyes to sort of say, I get to take myself here, but I do it on my own terms, and I get to see all these little things along the way.

And then you get to maybe where you're staying overnight, have a great meal in that town, and support local where you can, and then move on and sort of do the same thing. But I really do think in order to start to enjoy your road trip, it can't just be a marathon of driving, because that isn't enjoyable for anyone.

Danielle: And that's exactly what I used to do And that's why I did not really like road trips because I was just powering through And it's like you said it's just not an enjoyable experience of a road trip is the sights the spending time together the podcast you're listening to like the conversations you're having the places you visit along the way those attractions and stops Like that's what makes it special And you know from my experience still limited in Canada but and the U S are huge countries

Jenn: Yeah

Danielle: There's so much to see So much that you may miss if you're just flying or even taking a train Haha

Meggan: agree. Now We've referenced your baby boy, so talk to us about how has your travel planning, or travel in general, changed, if it has, since becoming a parent?

Danielle: It has changed a lot So I'm at the point especially since I'm traveling for work that I actually travel a lot alone So prior to having a baby I was very rarely doing solo travel And now I'm actually finding myself doing more solo travel especially for work So that's one big change But when we do rope him in there's slew

of things that come to mind like it going to be safe Like for example we were thinking about Azores my mom and I and we were like we bring him or not And because I knew it was a very rugged and beautiful and outdoorsy space I said you know what let's keep him home for this time because I just don't want to have to be worried about him as we're looking overlooking a volcano cliff

Meggan: Right.

Danielle: So there's just considerations about how how centered around his safety and his focus will this trip and excursion be um but also things to do for him So that's really important if we're road tripping building in those stops uh not powering through a 20 drive to Orlando to go to Disney These are some things I've learned along the way Um but just that intentionality Right. Being very intentional about the type of experience we're having together so that we're all very happy he also has his own personality his own things that he likes and doesn't like So when he's cranky sometimes all things has to stop

Jenn: Yeah.

Danielle: So really accommodating to his schedule also travel at a slower pace when i'm traveling with him

So You Not this neck breaking speed uh very calm very relaxed being willing to out of head out of there if I have to like if we have to go back that's okay too and not taking it like so like not a big deal if it doesn't work out exactly as planned

Meggan: Right I also, I oftentimes need a nap and get cranky as well, so I can

Danielle: And hangry right And

Meggan: relate to that very much.

Jenn: That's amazing. So as we, uh, get ready to wrap up here, if you could share one tip regarding personal finance, personal financial growth and travel, what would your best headliner advice be?

Danielle: Ooh best headliner You know I I definitely feel like um lot of times we feel like we have to do one thing or another especially when you think of personal finance meaning like I have to focus on student loan debt Or nothing else you know I have to be all in on just one goal that I have I've always been uh against that I've always been you know what I have multiple goals that I want pursue at one time and all of these goals speak to me So I and Is part of the conversation versus or I think also that's been a big reason as as to why I've been able to travel so much get out of debt become a homeowner is because I had my mind and eye on a few different handful of different things Now you could say well Danielle you maybe would have gotten that free faster if you would just really focus in on your debt but I would have missed out on all the development that I would have had with other goals like traveling and saving and all the other things So I just encourage everyone to consider how can you add and more into your life and not be fixated on Just focusing on one specific thing the time There's a time and place to focus really hone in but for I would say we have a breadth of options. So pursue them

Jenn: Yes. Thank you. Yes. Yes. Because, the like, the, If you're in the personal finance world, there is a lot of advice on not doing anything except getting out of debt. And I think it is horrible advice because you should be saving for retirement as well, but then you should also be enjoying your life and doing things.

And, you know, personally, I was in debt. Obviously I went to school and I had school debt and that sort of thing. And then, um, I had the opportunity to go to Iceland with my step mom. And it was amazing and she has since passed away and it's like, I'm so grateful that I didn't say no to that trip because I had student loan debt, like, you know, I didn't go further into debt for the trip.

So that was important to me, but I didn't prioritize debt repayment over everything. And I think that that's really important because unfortunately we don't know what's going to happen in the future.

Danielle: Oh so so powerful So so powerful And you know some people prioritize like reaching early retirement

Right

And I understand wanting to be all in And there are people that really need that discipline to be all in But like you mentioned like spread spread it out a little bit and you'll be more fulfilled as you are reaching all your goals

Okay

Meggan: agree. before we get to, uh, a bucket list travel destination because that's how we're going to end this thing, we do of course want to give you the opportunity to sort of tell us a little bit more about your podcast and books and where people can find you and support you

Danielle: Yes absolutely Well the best place to connect with me is thoughtcard com I have a travel and personal finance podcast where I share creative ways to afford to travel to build wealth It's just be a uh full of breath of opportunities when it comes to traveling money So I love that Um and I'm really pretty active on Instagram

I love hanging out there as well So at the Danielle Desiree would be a great place to connect with me You can find my books all there too as well and all the other things I do Um yeah that's where to connect with me

Jenn: Yeah, we will make sure all of that is in the show notes, so people can just click and find you there. So, to finish off, share your bucket list destination, maybe one that's like top of mind right now.

Danielle: Okay so I'm gonna say An accessible one I feel like I could have done it like in two weeks we're decided So we actually decided to cancel

Um we were going to germany that's been on my list for so long um to be able to go but unfortunately we have to cancel But it's a postponement I feel like it's know That's something else i'm really big on in terms of my travel mindset is that I will go like I will go Or I will go again So don't cry over spoiled bagel
milk Um so pretty big um not Iceland I love Iceland but uh is big on my, on my wishlist right now and hoping to make that, make that trip number 28 or vacation destination 28 soon.

Meggan: Excellent. That's a good choice. I, I've seen a small portion of Germany and I, I loved it there. I'm sure you'll make it soon. Danielle, honestly, this has been an amazing conversation. I can't thank you enough for taking the time out of your busy life to speak with us, about all this important information and also have some fun.

So thank you so much, uh, for your time. Thanks to all of our listeners for tuning in as usual. If You can find us on our website, travelmugpodcast. com and on social media at travelmugpodcast. Leave us a review, of course, on Spotify or Apple, and you can buy us a coffee, help support the show, links are in the show notes, and again, Danielle, we appreciate your time and your expertise, and, and we're honored to have you as maybe 101, uh, podcast guests, um, on our show, so thanks so much, , and, uh, have a great evening.

Danielle: You too. Thank you.

Meggan: Bye.