This week on For the Love of Blank we are featuring an amazing blogger Brittnay Sharman of The Nut Butter Hub. Check out her blog, we love how great her photos are and her recipes are extremely delicious! I cant wait to try her pomegranate and chocolate scones this year for Christmas morning! Brittnay has shared some great tips for budget travel in Europe! But first we have asked her a few questions to introduce herself…
Brittnay is an Aussie who lived in London for the past two years before making the move to Dublin. She managed to squeeze in 21 trips to Europe & Africa in that time (including lots of cheese & wine). Her love of travel and food is captured on her blog.
What is Your Blog’s name and what is it about?
My blog is The Nut Butter Hub, it a collection of my favourite recipes and travel tips. I have been travelling for the past three years and finally starting to document my travels.
What was your inspiration to start blogging?
I really love taking photos of what I make so rather than continually filling my phone I decided to fill a blog with my food pictures 😊
What is your best piece of advice to anyone trying to start their own blog?
Don’t give up after 6 months. You need to keep posting and make it a habit!
What and/or where is your dream vacation?
My dream vacation is in the any snowy mountains. I love log cabins, mulled wines and hot tubs.
What is the best Budget Travel Tip you can give?
Get an Airbnb with a kitchen. Then find a the local farmers market. You see what the locals actually eat and how they interact. It will save you a ton of money and you will eat really well!
What is your favorite cocktail
Ohhhhh I could drink espresso martinis all night long however, I don’t think I would ever sleep again.
Top Tips for Budget Travel in Europe
Traveling to Europe doesn’t have to be as expensive as you might expect it to be. In fact, there are a number of ways that you can save money without missing out. We have put together our tips that has allowed us to visit over 21 countries in the past two years! Using these you are able to experience the cities and towns you visit more like the locals do.
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These are our favorite top tips for budget travel in Europe:
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Saving Money on Food
Food will be a big expense as you’re traveling, especially since you will likely be eating out far more often than you normally would. Fortunately, there are a few ways that you can save money on food while traveling.
Having a picnic by buying food from a local grocery store or farmer’s market that you then prepare yourself is a quick and easy way to enjoy a public park while saving some money. All you need is some bread and sandwich fillings along with fresh fruit for a cheap, easy meal.
Looking for small family-owned restaurants will also help you save money while eating out because many of these have cheaper food options in the form of daily specials. They also tend to offer larger portion sizes which can keep you full for longer, or even let you take some leftovers for later.
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Saving Money on Traveling
Getting around Europe is another expensive part of your trip, but it doesn’t have to break the bank. There are plenty of budget options to choose from that will help you save money whether you’re just getting around the city or heading to another country.
If planes are the only way you’ll go, look for smaller, local airlines that will get you from place-to-place much more quickly compared to others. You can also save more money on flying by booking your tickets further in advance, and by traveling in the off-seasons.
While traveling around a city, the best way to save money on transportation is by getting a city card. Most bigger cities in Europe will have one and many of them offer free public transportation for as long as you have the card, as well as discounts on other fun things to do around the city.
The best way to travel and save money on both transportation and accommodation is to take the night trains. Purchasing night tickets will help avoid paying to sleep somewhere for the night as you can just sleep on the train.
You will be able to reach any city and small town via the train system in Europe. Night train tickets are generally cheaper than traveling during the day. Plus, it gives you more time during the day to explore all the new cities and towns.
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Saving Money on Accommodation
One of the biggest and most unavoidable expenses of traveling anywhere is accommodations, but you have to sleep somewhere! If you’re traveling in the off-seasons, then you’ll be able to save money on hotels, but there are other options that are even cheaper.
Hostels offer cheap accommodations for travelers, and usually have shared kitchens that you can use to prepare meals with food bought from a grocery store. Be careful when choosing a hostel as they are not generally as well-maintained as hotels.
To really save money on accommodations, you can stay anywhere in the world for free by house sitting. When a local family heads out on holiday, they’ll need someone to watch their house, so by taking care of a few things for them, you can stay in your dream home for free while on vacation.
It can be complication process to get started, research first and see how to become a house sitter so you can reduce your cost and have the opportunity to stay in some luxury homes!
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Other Ways to Save Money
Planning ahead will help you save money on nearly everything, which includes how you get cash. Most ATMs will have high fees for foreign withdraws, so you can avoid this by either bringing cash with you or by using a credit card that doesn’t have foreign transaction or ATM fees.
Visiting the city welcome center when you first arrive to a new city or town is another way that you can save money. They will not only have a list of cheap and free local events that you can enjoy, but will also have coupons and other ways to save money during your time there.
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Free Walking Tours
While many historical sites and cities alike will offer paid tours that you can also find free tours in many cities, where you only have to pay a tip to the guide based on your experience. These free tours will not only help you save money, but provide you with more knowledge about the city you’re visiting.
