What I learned from my first financially independant holiday - food budget


Tips for your planning your next adventure


  
In April I embarked on my first financially indpenedant holiday. Having family overseas and by overseas I mean the other side of the world (germany to be exact) I have had an abundance of experience travelling with and to family and on my own. This has made me the confident and abitious traveler I am today. However, as I am a spring 18 year old children I never needed to pay for the entirety of my trip huh lucky right. Thus there were some lessons to learn when embarking on my first financially indpendant trip to Dunedin. The main lesson being that sometimes a trip can seem inexpensive but when you take into account shuttles, accomidation and flights on top of food and activities its not so cheap. I hope that the optimistic traveller can learn from my mistakes and triumphs and live a life of travel and abundance regardless of budget


Take advantage of the supermaket as well as the cafes - On my short holiday I balanced food expences by shopping at the supermarket as well as going to markets and cafes. I love snacking so on holiday when plans can sometimes be a little unpredictable it is necessary for me to have snacks on hand. My favourite snacks are dried fruit, nuts, fresh fruit and on some occasions snack bars. I also purchased some quick oat saches for a easy at home brekkie and single serving vacume packed soup for a couple of nights in. 

Cheap and healthy eating out - markets and sushi. When travelling I take advantage of local markets as you can often by fresh juice, pastries and best of all COFFEE. However, when stripped for cash but in need of a quick takeaway I almost always opt for fresh sushi.

Coffee for me is a priority. I am an absolute coffee snob. Whilst you can bring your own coffee and tea and a keep cup and utilise hot water facilities my favourite part of holidays is exploring coffee shops and people watching. It’s where I plan my next move and have some time to appreciate what I have already had the pleasure to explore.
Brunch can really break the budget. It’s become quite the trendy occasion. I love brunch but on holiday by the time you have a coffee as well that’s nearly $30.00!!!! So I recommend either finding cheap on the go brekkie places or getting some musli or quick oats that can be eaten and kept in the accommodation kitchenette. I planned one really nice brunch for my last morning and appreciated it all the more.

Entertainment budget - We all know the struggle when you head out partying only to be horrified by the remanents of our bank account the morning after. I recommend saving enough for allocating a seperate entertainment budget so cheeky drinks or a movie won’t interfere with the remainder of your holiday.

Balance - all these tips encompass the rule of balance. You are on holiday after all enjoy it!!! The idea is to retreat from daily life and enjoy some of the things you don’t get to do all the time. Feel the fear and do it anyway.

Last tip of all enjoy your holiday regardless of budget or destination. Some of the best holidays are in the simplest of places and on the smallest of budgets.

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