Your budget
Include everything you’ll spend on this trip — lodging, food, tickets, getting there.
Kids 3–12 are weighted lighter for food and ground costs. Under 3s contribute almost nothing. Park trips use specific child ticket pricing.
Sets the round-trip airfare baseline. Pick “driving” to zero out flight costs.
Leave all unselected to see every trip type.
Fill in your budget and hit “Show me what fits” — we’ll rank every trip type that works for your number.
Free
Got a number? Keep it honest.
I’ll email you the Vacation Math Starter Pack (a printable 13-page PDF on hidden trip costs, how to fund a trip without debt, and what points are actually worth) plus the Tuesday brief: one real trip with the math worked out, every week.
What can we afford? Start with the cash.
A percentage split (30% lodging, 35% food, and so on) does not tell you whether Disney, a cruise, or a drive fits. This page runs the other direction. You type the all-in number. It ranks real 2026 trip types that survive that number, with flights from the airport you pick. If you already know the place, use Trip Plan. If you only know the weeks, use Trip Finder.
| All-in budget | The question this page is for | What usually changes |
|---|---|---|
| About $3,000 | What still fits after flights are real? | Drive-distance trips and short city stays stay in. A moderate Disney week and a weeklong all-inclusive usually fall out for a family of four. |
| $6,000 (the default on this form) | Which trip type, not which brochure? | A couple can often hold a mid cruise or all-inclusive. A family of four is choosing a value Disney week, fewer nights, or a drive. |
| About $10,000 | Can we hold the trip we already want? | A family of four can often hold a moderate Disney week or a longer all-inclusive. The ranking still drops deluxe resorts and heavy add-ons when they blow the number. |
Those rows are the map. The ranked list under your inputs is the math. Read how much to budget for a vacation for the longer version, then come back and run the number.
What can we afford — common questions
What can we afford for a vacation in 2026?
Start with the cash, not the destination. The calculator ranks Disney, cruises, all-inclusives, city trips, road trips, and theme parks that fit the number you type, using the same 2026 prices as the other tools. A $3,000 trip and a $10,000 trip are different products.
How is this different from Trip Finder and Trip Plan?
Reverse budget starts with the money and ranks trip types. Trip Finder starts with a date window and ranks destinations. Trip Plan starts with a place you already want. Use this page when the question is what the cash buys.
What does a $6,000 vacation budget buy?
The form defaults to $6,000 because that is where the ranking usually changes. A couple can often hold a mid-range cruise or all-inclusive. A family of four is usually choosing a value Disney week, a shorter trip, or a drive. Run your party size. The result is the answer.
Should the vacation budget include flights?
Yes. The number should be everything you will spend: getting there, lodging, food, tickets, and the fees people add later. Pick the departure airport so airfare is inside the trip totals.