I'd travel on 5k and put the rest in my investment portfolio. The 5k limit will make the trip a lot of fun and force you to get out of your travel bubble to me

I'd travel on 5k and put the rest in my investment portfolio. The 5k limit will make the trip a lot of fun and force you to get out of your travel bubble to meet people. It will also lead you to more interesting experiences and force you to get creative. If you really want to burn the cash, then spend another 1k on a day trading class along the way, and put the last 19k in a highly leveraged investment like options on GLD or something. Either way the investment goes, it'll make your trip a lot more exciting!