She has always loved to travel and still can but not by herself as she needs help with everything and has mild dementia. She lives with me full time. I take care of her with no payment. How can I afford to take her on trips? I personally live on a small pension but she does have money.
Maybe look at the price of the trip and let her know an approximate cost. See how she responds. If she can afford it she may offer to pay for it.
Your trip would have to pass the smell test. If it was somewhere your loved one could get some pleasure from (not some all inclusive Caribbean resort) then maybe you could justify it. If you are her POA just be prepared to justify it if ever questioned about it. If you are truly doing the right thing everything will be ok.
After a year of us paying for everything, I realized it was unrealistic for us financially. And although she has the money, she never offers to help out and acts offended when I ask for her card to pay for her needs. So I drew up a care contract so that Mother pays me a small amount weekly for full-time care and when we travel back to her state a couple times a year, she pays for that -- car rental, gas, meals, groceries there.
Set your boundaries, get this straightened out, she needs to start paying you for her share of the expenses.
You should have a caregiving contract in place that outlines all of this, so if there are any questions down the line you are covered.
I just got my current electric bill, my son moved out over the summer. My usage is 44% less than this time last year. Think of that, I paid 44% more when he lived at home.