If you’ve ever taken a group vacation with friends, you know how difficult it can be to accommodate different spending styles and budgets, and split costs fairly among the group. And that’s just a few of the challenges that can create financial stress on group trips.
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Each generation handles those challenges differently, with some giving in to the pressure to overspend while others are less likely to overshoot their budgets. Here’s how much each generation has overspent on group vacations and some ways to save.
Group Travel Overspending
The financial pressure of a group trip may persuade you to spend more on a trip than you originally planned. In a June 2025 Experian survey, 40% of Americans shared that the most they’ve overspent on a group trip was 11% to 25% over their budget. Another 22% said they’ve always stayed within 10% of their budgets, which is admirable, but not always possible when unexpected costs arise.
A small sliver of respondents (2%) shared that their budgets nearly doubled on a group trip. Across generations, those numbers vary widely, with some generations demonstrating more susceptibility to overspending while others never set a budget at all.
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Gen Z Navigates Money and Travel
Many Gen Zers are at the beginning of their adult lives, and understandably, they face group travel planning challenges like friends with different budget ranges, misaligned saving and spending priorities, and having open conversations about money.
As they navigate those challenges, 31% are reportedly going over budget by 11% to 25%. Just over a quarter of Gen Z reported that they’ve exceeded group travel budgets by 26% to 50%, making them the largest group in this range.
Gen X and Millennials: Budget-Aware, but Overspending Anyway
Gen Xers and millennials were more likely to share that the most they’ve overspent on group travel was 11% to 25% over their budgets. Gen X has a slight lead over millennials, who responded at 43% and 42%, respectively.
Gen Xers are the most concerned with splitting costs fairly (25%) and accommodating different budgets across friends (29%). Meanwhile, millennials far exceeded other groups in their concerns around friends with varying budgets, with 35% citing that as a major challenge. Twenty-one percent also cited challenges around openly discussing money without awkwardness.
Millennials were more likely to go significantly over budget for group travel than other generations:
- 25% overspent by 26% to 50% of their original budgets.
- 10% went over budget by 51% to 100%.
- 2% said their budget more than doubled.
While overspending seems prevalent for this generation, they were also the least likely to say that they never set a budget.
Baby Boomers Don’t Budget, but Aren’t Busting Budgets Either
Of all the generations, baby boomers were the most likely to say that they’ve never set a budget for group travel. And if you’ve never set a budget, then there’s no benchmark for whether you’ve overspent or stayed within your means. This generation also had the largest responses of “I’ve always stayed within 10% of my budget” at just over a quarter.
Baby boomers and Gen X were the least likely generations to say that they’ve spent over double their original budgets, with just 1% for each. Interestingly enough, boomers were also the most likely to say that they’ve never had a financial challenge when planning group trips at 26%.
How To Save on Group Vacations
If you’ve been a victim of overspending on group vacations, here are a few tips you’ll want to keep in mind the next time you get added to the “Aruba 2026” group text.
Set a Budget, Then Share It
Talking about money is hard, but it’s necessary. By communicating your money boundaries early and often, you can be clear about what you are and aren’t willing to spend on this trip.
That might sound like this: “I’m capping this trip at $X, so I can still pay rent and eat after we get back.”
Use a Shared Expense App or Tracker
Track group costs transparently by using apps like Splitwise or TravelSpend. No one wants to be the one who paid for everyone’s Uber XL to brunch and wasn’t reimbursed. Be clear about which expenses you plan to split versus the ones you plan to share.
Prepare Your ‘Nope’ Script in Advance
“That sounds fun, but it’s not in my budget. Catch y’all after?”
You don’t have to be ashamed to opt out of overpriced outings if it’s not in your budget. In that scenario, have alternative solo plans (like exploring a free museum, walking around the city or visiting a coffee shop) ready so you can still enjoy yourself.
Suggest All-Inclusive or Bundle Options Early
Proactively solve for larger costs by suggesting bundle options, all-inclusive packages or other cost-effective alternatives. Doing so could help you and the rest of your group save money.
Avoid Last-Minute Bookings
Last-minute bookings for hotels, major transportation and activities can wreck almost any travel budget since you’ll likely run into higher costs the closer it gets to your travel date.
Plus, when you have more time to analyze your options, you can make the smart choice instead of panic-spending.
Don’t Split Everything Equally If You Are Not Doing Everything Equally
Splitting expenses fairly is a lot different from splitting them equally. For example, if someone ordered a $150 steak while everyone else had a $30 meal, then it wouldn’t be fair to split the bill evenly between everyone. That person should be responsible for their $150 meal while everyone else pays for their fair share.
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This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Here’s How Much Each Generation Has Overspent on Group Vacations: Where Do You Fall?
