One of the things I love about living in Spain is watching what happens when August arrives.
People leave the big cities. I mean mass exodus status.
They head to the coast, the mountains, smaller towns, family homes and vacation destinations. For many Spaniards, August isn’t just another month on the calendar. It’s vacation time.
And honestly? I love the idea.
Alicante, gets the opposite effect, but that’s a story for another post. 🙂
There’s one problem in August for many American families:
How are we supposed to afford taking an entire month off and traveling with our kids?
Right?!
We barely get two weeks of PTO a year, and most of us NEVER take them consecutively.
How in the world do you take an entire month off?!
Well, the answer isn’t necessarily making more money.
It’s learning how to plan for the vacation before the vacation arrives.
The Spanish have been planning for this month all year.
I don’t have a family vacation home, an abuela to visit and stay with, or my hometown Pueblo childhood home.
Yet, I took three vacations this August; but instead of being away for the entire month, I broke them into four- and five-day trips.
That gave us the feeling of a month of summer travel without paying for one expensive month-long vacation.
Here’s the simple system I tried and recommend:
Step 1: Decide What You Can Actually Afford
Before looking at hotels, flights or cute vacation rentals, choose your total August vacation budget.
Be realistic.
If you can comfortably spend $2,400, that’s your number.
If it’s $1,200, that’s your number.
If it’s $4,000, that’s your number.
The goal isn’t to compete with anyone else’s vacation. Flexing is not a thing in Spain.
The goal is to create a summer your family can enjoy without spending the next six months paying for it.
Step 2: Turn Your Vacation Into a Monthly Bill
This is the part that makes the whole thing easier.
Take your total vacation budget and divide it by 12.
Example:
$3,600 ÷ 12 = $300 per month
Instead of thinking:
“How am I going to come up with $3,600 for August?”
You’re thinking:
“Can I put $300 aside every month?”
That feels completely different.
Set up a separate savings account or savings bucket specifically for your August vacation and automate the transfer after payday.
Don’t wait to see what’s left over.
Pay the vacation fund first.
Step 3: Create Four Vacation Buckets
Once you know your total budget, divide it into four categories:
1. Transportation
Flights, trains, gas, buses, parking, etc.
2. Accommodation
Hotels, vacation rentals, campsites or staying with family.
3. Food
Groceries, restaurants, snacks and drinks.
4. Experiences
Museums, attractions, boat trips, amusement parks, activities and whatever your kids actually want to do.
You don’t have to divide the money equally.
For example, with a $3,600 budget, you might decide:
- $900 transportation
- $1,200 accommodation
- $900 food
- $600 activities
Now you have boundaries.
And boundaries are what keep a vacation from turning into a financial hangover.
For example; we went to Bilbao (less expensive than San Sebastián) and took a day trip to San Sebastián instead. I also decided to do free activities and spend more on food, because I heard the food was amazing. The food was truly amazing and surprisingly affordable, so we saved a lot of money.
Step 4: Don’t Assume “Taking August Off” Means 31 Days Away
This is where I think American moms can borrow something from the Spanish approach.
You don’t necessarily need one giant vacation.
You can create multiple smaller escapes.
For example:
Trip #1: 4 nights
Trip #2: 5 nights
Trip #3: 4 nights
You might spend $500–$1,000 on each trip depending on where you go, how many people are traveling and how you get there.
The rest of the month can be spent taking day trips, visiting beaches, exploring nearby towns, having picnic days, enjoying free activities and simply slowing down.
You still get that feeling of:
“We’re on summer vacation.”
Without paying for 31 consecutive nights of accommodation.
Step 5: Use the “Vacation Before Vacation” Rule
Here’s a rule I would strongly recommend:
Don’t put your August vacation on a credit card unless you already have the money to pay it off.
If you can’t afford the vacation without debt, you probably can’t afford that version of the vacation yet.
Instead, start planning earlier.
Book transportation when prices make sense.
Look for hotels or apartments with kitchens.
Travel during less expensive dates (Sunday-Thursday)
Choose destinations within driving or train distance.
And don’t underestimate how much money you can save by simply staying somewhere that allows you to cook breakfast and a few meals.
Step 6: Give Yourself a Daily Spending Limit
Once you’re on vacation, divide your remaining spending money by the number of days.
For example:
You have $700 for food and activities and you’re traveling for 10 days.
That’s roughly:
$70/day
You don’t have to spend exactly $70 every day.
Maybe Monday costs $40 because you’re at the beach with a packed lunch.
Saturday costs $100 because you take the kids somewhere special.
That’s okay.
You’re managing the average, not trying to make every day identical.
The Real Spanish Vacation Mindset
I think this is the biggest lesson.
A vacation doesn’t have to mean spending thousands of dollars, flying somewhere exotic and filling every day with activities.
Sometimes it’s:
A beach.
A train ride.
A small town.
A picnic.
Ice cream after dinner.
A few days somewhere new.
Then home for a few days before heading somewhere else.
That’s actually one of the things I’ve learned from living in Spain:
You don’t always need more vacation money. Sometimes you need a different definition of vacation.
Try This Before Next August
Pick your number.
Let’s say you want to have $2,400 available for August.
Divide it by 12:
$2,400 ÷ 12 = $200/month
Or approximately:
$46/week.
Do that for 12 months and you’ll have $2,400 waiting for you when August arrives.
Then you can decide whether you want:
- One longer vacation
- Three shorter trips
- Several weekend getaways
- A combination of travel and staycations
The point isn’t to copy exactly how Spaniards vacation.
It’s to borrow the part that makes sense:
Make summer with family a priority, plan for it ahead of time, and give yourself permission to slow down.
Because as moms, we don’t need another year of saying:
“Maybe next summer.”
We need a plan that makes next summer possible.
We also balanced expensive destinations like San Sebastián/Bilbao, with less expensive destinations, like, Oviedo/Gijón. We also went to Madrid, which is less crowded in August, making our hotel much more affordable than usual.
I already started saving for our December trip to Madrid, and the August 2027 fund started before we even left this summer.
How to budget for a family vacation?
Pretty much how you plan your move abroad. I always say, plan ahead, be prepared, and leave wiggle room for the unexpected.
For example, we walked from my friends apartment to the Atocha train station (35 minutes) through the beautiful Retiro park. Guess what? The money we saved on a cab there had to be spent anyways. Our train was leaving from the Chamartín station and I didn’t realize it.
We made it with less than 20 minutes to spare. Don’t ask me how! But the point is, sometimes, the best planned trips have their hiccups too. It was nice to have the money for the taxi and not have to stress about getting to the right station on time.
Now you know how to vacation like a Spaniard. August is their month away, and they spend all year planning for it. That’s the secret recipe. 😉
If you’re not yet in Spain, and you’re thinking of moving abroad with kids, book a personalized 1:1 consultation with me, or check out my Moving Abroad with Kids Blueprint for planning and executing a headache-free move. I made them both very accessible for moms.
Here is the link to my Stan Store: https://stan.store/yourmomfriendv
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Cheers to new beginnings!
xoxo,
V
