As a Capricorn, I tend to stick to my budgets and goals. However, when I heard the news about Malaysia will reopen its international border on 1 April 2022, like many people, I wasn’t immune to revenge travel.
But I have no regrets 😛
My impulsive travel bookings happened on 11 March 2022.
The night before, I had a small misunderstanding with my mother. After things straightened up, I looked at her photo and suddenly realised that… my mother was getting old.
When my mother was in her 30s, she was very beautiful. Well, she still looks beautiful to me now. But she sacrificed a lot for me, and surviving two cancers does take a toll on her body…
On that night, I realised that all this time I’d been travelling solo, but what about my mother? The furthest she’d been to are Singapore and Hong Kong.
Thankfully, up until now, she doesn’t get Covid-19. But who knows what kind of pandemic will appear in the future?
I’m working and earning my own money, so what am I waiting for? Waiting for me to be rich so I can take her to see the world with me?
What’s the definition of “rich” and what if it’s already too late?
Therefore, I decided to make another travel goal for myself: to create beautiful travel memories with my mother.
I may not be able to fund a Europe trip for two people. But if I work a little harder and save for at least a year, Asia, Middle East, and Australasia territories seem doable 💪✨
Making Our Luxury Bali Dream Trip Come True
I couldn’t sleep the whole night because I was too excited about planning for a year-end trip with my mother.
The next morning, on 11 March 2022, I made bookings for:
- 1 Night at a 5-star hotel in Nusa Dua = RM1,225 (paid, including breakfast)
- Fine dining dinner reservation (around RM350/person)
- 1 Night at a villa with a private infinity pool in Ubud = RM440 (super deal — normal price is around RM1,035, including breakfast and welcome drink)
- 1 Night at a resort with a private terrace and common infinity pool in Ubud = RM268 (including breakfast and tea time)
- Car, driver and petrol for 12 hours = RM63 (down payment, paid)
- Flight tickets = around RM800 (paid, price after deduction from existing AirAsia points)
Alright, maybe for some of you the itinerary above isn’t luxurious but to me it is. That RM1.2k per night hotel and fine dining are going to be the highlights of our trip 💖
Making some bookings for my Bali dream trip was exciting. My mom, who never asked anything from me and my sister because she didn’t want to burden us, finally opened up about her dream trip.
Apparently, she always wanted to stay at a villa with a private infinity pool overlooking the lush forest in Ubud, like the ones she saw online. At one point, she got so excited when choosing the villa!
As for me, I have never been to Nusa Dua and always wanted to experience staying in a luxury hotel when in Bali because the view is gorgeous.
To double up the happiness, my sister suddenly said that she wanted to join the trip! 🎉
It was all exciting and then a few weeks later, I’m like, “Oh… I forgot that we need to do a PCR test before boarding the flight. That would be RM500 for 2 people.
Plus the RTK-ag test when we arrived at KLIA.
And the pending hotel payments, food, massage, hair spa (creambath), travel insurance, a little bit of shopping, tips…
Oops… okay, I better work hard to fund the dream trip!!!” 😅😅
How to Feel Less Guilty About Your Impulsive Travel Bookings
What about you? Did you get impulsive too like me, after hearing the great news of the international border reopening?
If you’re thinking to do it, here’s my two cents:
- Travel with your loved ones (for example, RM1.2k/night luxury hotel for 4 people doesn’t sound too bad)
- Travel to celebrate something (birthday, surprise, new year, etc)
- Do not take any loans to fund your trip
- Do not use your investment profit to fund your trip
- If you should use a credit card, make sure to minimise the usage
- Some people choose revenge shopping or buy a new car because they’re worried they’ll catch Covid-19 and die without enjoying the fruit of their labour. That’s fine, it’s their passion. If travelling is your passion, remember that you’ll carry the beautiful memories to the grave ✈️❤️
- Because the international border is finally reopened it’s worth celebrating!!! 🥳🥳🥳
Alright, this part is for my own satisfaction and justification of my action. In reality, it’s best not to be impulsive when you make travel bookings.
So, where will you go next?
Also read: “Wanderlust, Behind the Scene”
Also read: “On Finance — Should You Prioritise Your Family or Parents?”
Also read: “Treat Yourself at Rockbar and AYANA Resort & Spa, Bali”
