SoFi Blog

Winter travel is something most of us begrudgingly undertake. We brave the cold, the snow, the sleet, and face down Jack Frost himself to get from point A to point B. Nearly 100 million Americans hit the roads or took to the skies to catch up with family over the 2017 holiday season.

But once the family obligations are done, travelers—including you—could be taking advantage of the colder weather to do something epic: Actually go on vacation. Here’s why winter travel really does reign supreme, a few tips on saving big, and just how you can afford to celebrate the holidays and go on your own vacation all at once.

Traveling the world is high up on the bucket lists of many. And in today’s social media age that desire comes to life via endless accounts detailing idyllic tropical havens, bustling cityscapes, and high-adventure destinations.

From skiing the Alps to visiting Machu Picchu, there’s so much to see and do—but with all those adventures comes a price tag. Millennials are one of the most travel-focused generational groups. While other segments of the population are cutting back on traveling expenses, millennial families continue to spend on travel. According to the 2018 to 2019 Portrait of American Travelers Study , millennial families intend to spend 15% more on travel in 2018 than they did in 2017.

Millennials place a strong emphasis on travel, but they’re often left with the question of how to pay off student loans fast. According to the Pew Research Center , about four in 10 American adults under the age of 30 have student loan debt. While the amount each individual holds varies greatly, on average those graduating from a four-year college have approximately $32,731 in student loan debt.

All that said, we’re here to let you know that traveling the world while paying off student loans fast could still be an option. Here are our nine tips for how to pay off student loans fast while still traveling the world at the same time.

Donating to a good cause can be one of the most rewarding and humbling experiences when it comes to personal finances. But, how do you know your money is actually going to help? While the goal of charitable giving is to do good, choosing a charity can be daunting.

As is always the case when money is involved, you want to apply some strategic thinking, in this case, to ensure that your donation is going to a cause and organization that feel right for you.

There are so many worthy charities in need of funding that chwoosing just one can be a difficult task. We’ve compiled some tips to make the charity evaluation process a little easier and help you feel confident about your decision. And don’t forget to talk to a tax professional about how to deduct charitable contributions.

As the end of the year approaches, many of us find ourselves staring at our annual “to-do” list and wondering how none of it got done. Resolutions and to-dos have a funny way of building up at year-end like that, don’t they?

Luckily, there’s hope for us procrastinators. There is still plenty of time left in the year to take some action and feel accomplished by the ringing in of the new year. Cue the victory champagne (or hot chocolate, if that’s more your thing).

Below, we’ll cover some ideas for DIY projects for home that you can work on before the year comes to a close. Hopefully, this will help get the juices flowing on end-of-year projects so that you can finish the year on a high.