Gen Z Guide to FI

Total cost: $3055. All round AMAZING trip!!! Strong memory dividends from this experience.

I’ll break down some of the costs. Things that went well & things that I could have planned better.

I think I made some financial mistakes with this trip but overall it was worth every dime. Here are some anyway for my self-reflection:

1. Flights: I bought my flight in March 2023 for dates in September 2023. It was pretty expensive from everywhere, but I ended up flying out from LAX (cheapest option at the time). This proved to be a challenge since I live in Butt Fuck, CA. I had to travel 6 hours to LA to stay with my friend so I could avoid spending money on parking. The extra money I spent traveling to her place & Ubers to and from LAX was about $200. Another reason to not live in the middle of nowhere if you haven’t read my post on that already.
2. Hotels: I really liked my hotel, but I probably could have stayed in an Airbnb and enjoyed it the same. I didn’t really look into that option for a single room in a house with a host. Next time!!
3. Planning Oopsies: I booked some Airbnb for all my friends on the trip. One was partially refundable, and the other was completely refundable except for travel insurance. Since we ended up wanting to do different things, I canceled the Airbnb, but I ended up paying the non-refundable $38 insurance for 1 place & $24 for my portion of the partially refundable Airbnb.

As I write this, I realize I didn’t Venmo charge my friends for the $38 non refundable airbnb insurance. If you’re reading this (@ my friends), I’m coming for y’all!!! You already know.

The biggest lesson here is that I should move ASAP near an airport. The second takeaway is that when planning with a group – ALWAYS BOOK REFUNDABLE.

XOXO Gen Z Fire Baby