Money is the single most nerve-wracking part of getting a trip booked, so the anxiety you feel before dropping a massive sum to pay for the trip should come as no surprise. A deep breath can help with that. Remember, it’s an investment in your life. Enjoy it!

In terms of the practical, there are two ways to pay for plane tickets: with a credit card (paying later) and with cash (paying now).

The implications of each method are below:

Credit Card

If you don’t want to wait months or years to start your trip, your payment method of choice will likely be to put the money on a credit card and pay it off later. While some people do use cash, the greater majority still opts to pay with a good ol’ fashioned credit card.

Before you ring up a huge amount on your current card though, think about getting a new account for the express purpose of paying for your travels. This will help you organize and keep track of your expenses inside one account and also give you options. When looking for a new card, use a company that gives the most flexibility. Don’t pay more than the tickets were worth—look at 0% interest cards that allow 6 months or a year to pay the charge back with no finance charges. Also, make the transaction work for you—look into cards that give benefits such as airline miles, rewards or cash back.

Research credit cards at Creditcards.com. This site has a comprehensive list of different cards available. Which one you use should depend on what you want to make it do. Be advised though that reward cards don’t usually lean heavy on the rewards part—the cash in “cash back” is typically only about 1%. Cash back pioneer Discover Card gives the most favorable return, with occasional bonuses of up to 5 or 6%. Airline cards are the cash equivalent in tickets with a $10,000 purchase giving you a ticket worth between $100 and $150, again around 1%.

Be prudent with how much you throw on your card. It’s way easier to add money than it is to remove it. Beware the dreaded credit card hangover.

Also, some cards might not give you the limit you need. You may want to use your new card for a few months paying off the balance each time. This will allow time for the company to give you the limit increases you need to pay for the ticket all at once.

Saving

If the thought of dropping $10 grand on a credit card to pay for your tickets terrifies you, you’re not alone. People are rightfully hesitant to go all out on their credit card debt, even for something as valuable as travel.

The alternative is to pay for the trip in cash. This method keeps the debt hangover at bay and your conscience guilt free.  Of course, this method will require an equal amount of foresight and determination to get it done. After all, saving money is not the average American’s strongpoint.

So how to do you do it then?

In general, a comprehensive savings plan has five steps:

• Assessment - Hold your trip plan up to the reality of your financial situation. Is it feasible or are you dreaming too big? Make hard decisions. Once you have a general idea of your trip’s overall cost, you’ll need to compile a spreadsheet that lists your income vs. your expenses to see how everything stacks up.

• Setting goals – A savings plan should comprise several goals, some short-term and some long-term. List your goals in specific round numbers, in bold perhaps, and don’t be shy to shoot high but not to high it diminishes your enthusiasm.

• Creating a plan - The savings plan details how you’ll accomplish your goals. This could be removing unnecessary expenses, setting a strict spending budget or adding additional income in order to meet your goals.

• Implementation - Put your plan in motion and give yourself the opportunity to maintain it. Keep the goals in mind every day, especially during moments of weakness. Make your budgeting habitual, for example, instead of going to the movies every week, Netflix. Instead your traditional Sunday brunch, use your home breakfast nook. Again, having your travel goals in mind when removing these things from your life will make them less painful.

• Monitoring and reassessment - As time passes, your plan will evolve as your spending habits change. Take a look at your progress every month and scrutinize the budget for possible adjustments.

To help in your saving journey, our suggestion is to build a travel fund — a savings account, maybe with a nickname, set aside specifically for your trip and only for your trip. Every time you visit your bank’s website, transfer a little money into the “I’m Outta Here” fund. Look at it this way, money that may have been spent on a pizza now goes to feed your travel appetite!

A combination of the two

Probably the most practical method of paying for a trip is to use a combination of both the credit card and cash method. If you have some cash saved but not all, use it to keep from burning out your credit card. Or use the credit card for its benefits and immediately pay it off with your cash on hand. This keeps the money out of debt patrol while still giving the benefits of using a credit card.