You are currently browsing the category archive for the 'Travel' category.
Good News: I bought my plane ticket home for $224 and 10k miles. I actually bought two one-way tickets on different airlines to get the best price. Last week I budgeted $400, so this reduces the amount I need to save in my Travel Fund over the next six months to about $440/month. It also sounds like I’ll come in under budget for Vegas.
Bad News: It is the 23rd, and I’m pretty much out of money for the month if I want to stick with my earlier savings allocations. It’s not going to happen. And I’m thinking of using a 40% off coupon + $25 gift card at BR to get a classy jacket. But that would still be just over $100 out of pocket.
I’m also still obsessed with the idea long boyfriend cardigan, and willing to buy a cheaper brand because I’m not convinced that it is a style that will be popular in two years. Of course Old Navy is out of my size. I’m still liking the mustard color this fall, but black/grey/brown seems more practical for a layering piece.
I’m going to an outdoor concert next week, and I’m envisioning a long cardigan over a simple patterned graphic tee, skinny belt, skinny jeans, and tall boots. I own the bottom half of the outfit, but not the top.
But wait, didn’t I just say I was out of money for the month? I could just wear things I already own… Hmph.
Any outfit inspiration ideas? I’m still thinking boots (brown) and skinny jeans. I do own a longer cardigan with thick blue and white stripes (sort of like this one). I liked to wear it with yellow underneath last year. Hmmm… Then my only “need’ is a skinny belt, but that might not work with thick stripes anyway.
I’m putting way too much thought into this. (Avoiding homework. This is unacceptable!)
Thus far my travel fund has largely been a revolving account. I estimated how much I spend in a year on plane tickets home, small vacations, and backpacking trips, and I contribute 1/12 that to my Travel Fund each month. However, I’m going to need to start building this account up if I want to take a significant vacation (honeymoon!) next year.
Here’s what’s on my travel agenda between now and then.
Vegas Weekend in November: The cost is dependent on our ability to split a room with another couple, but I’m hoping to come in under $400. I’ll decrease this if we can get a hotel deal, but it should be doable if not.
Christmas ticket home: I should have bought this last month. Or two months ago. I’m looking at $400, or perhaps parting with some of my miles to knock it down a couple hundred.
Mini-moon: We have a (really tentative, perhaps not even going to happen) plan to take a very short and close-by honeymoon immediately following the wedding, then do a much bigger vacation later in the summer or fall. I’m hoping we can do this for $400.
Honeymoon: We don’t have a firm plan or a firm budget. The budget is essentially whatever it costs to do what we want (within reason!), but I’m going to try to have at least $2500 saved by the end of April. That will give me a few months (and perhaps an extra paycheck or tax refund) to make up the rest.
This also neglects little backpacking and hiking trips. I know I won’t have time for any until at least January, so i’m going to postpone thinking about them for now.
So… at the end of this month, my travel fund will be at about $900. I’ll have 6 more months until April to allocate the remaining $2800 towards travel. This means I need to be putting away close to $470 each month for travel for the next six months. I’ll make it $500 for good measure.
I’ll start working that into my budget in November. This month I used part of my extra paycheck to boost my travel fund, but I’m still a long way from where I need to be.
I spent one night and two full days in the central coast of California with some (mostly new) girl friends and wine. I’ve really been taking advantage of my month off of school, to the point where I feel busier than ever!
Here’s where my $212 got spent on this mini-vacation:
- Chipped in for gas: $12
- Charity Wine thing: $75
- Meals Out: $55
- Night out: $20
- Chipped in for hotel: $50
It is hard to believe we did a whole multi-day backpacking trip for less than that! I have a pretty interesting week ahead at work, and then home for a long weekend with my family — can’t wait!
T and I spent the past 6 days on vacation. The first day was a travel day, the next four were spent in the glorious high Sierra doing Rae Lakes Loop in Kings Canyon National park. Today was another travel day (sort of) — we drove to Visalia after exiting the trail around 10:30, and spent the night relaxing in a hotel. We finished the drive this morning, and spent the rest of the day getting adjusted back to reality.
Here is a small snippet of the beauty.
Hike summary (hey, I don’t have a backpacking/hiking blog, so this pf blog will have to host these tidbits):
Day 1: A brutal day, we hiked 14-15 miles from Roads End to Castle Domes Meadow, starting at 8 am. We saw four bears (they are actually not very dangerous at all, though we were very cautious) and some beautiful waterfalls and mountains. We were super tired by the time we got to camp around 5.
Day 2: A “rest day” according to T, we hiked “only” 8-9 miles and the elevation gain was manageable. Starting around 7, we made it to Rae Lakes around 1 pm and had the rest of day to relax. I attempted to swim in the gorgeous alpine lake — I made it up to my waist before retreating. It was ice cold, freshly melted glacier! We had the best campsite in the world, right on the lake.
Day 3: We started the day with some serious elevation gain, hitting nearly 12000 ft in elevation at the top of Glenn Pass. It was all downhill from there, which was much easier, but hard on our feet. This was another stunning day, filled with panoramic vistas. We went something like 13 miles and camped at Charlotte Creek Meadow. The steep downhill hiking wasn’t exactly tiring, but our feet were really really sore.
Day 4: This was a shorter 7 mile day, mostly flat with a couple steep sections. I alternated from being anxious to be out, to savouring the last few hours in the beautiful backcountry. We made it out by 10 a.m. We drove to Visalia, CA and took long long showers, then soaked our tired muscles in the hot tub.
Personal finance? Budget was posted a few days ago and the trip cost just under $200 each. I think we were slightly over.
Camping Budget: $392 for two
Lodging: $177
- Overpriced tent cabin near trail: $62
- Hotel for final night: $100
- Wilderness Permit for camping 3 nights: $15
Transportation: $90
- Vehicle Entrance Fee: $20
- Gas: $70
Food: $125
- Backpacking Food: $65 for two for 4 days. (includes 3 freeze dried meals at $6/each, jerky, oatmeal, dried fruit, peanut M&Ms w/nuts, flat bread and peanut butter, lots of Cliff/Luna bars, cheeze-its, Gatorade mix, energy sport beans, Cliff shot blocks). All stuffed into a (rented) bear canister.
- Food on the road: $60 (?) One meal while driving up, plus another dinner after we get off the trail, plus some food on the way home. Likely nothing fancy, so could be much less.
Total (per person): $196
Compare that to last years summer vacation, per person: $540
Of course, this is a totally different kind of trip than last years trip to Vegas/Grand Canyon (and I want to go back to both!). We could have cut costs by not staying in a hotel, or making the drive back to L.A. the day after we finish hiking, or even just camping the first night. But this is our main summer vacation for this year and the most challenging trip we’ve ever done — 4 days, 3 nights, 44 miles, loads of elevation. After all that, I think a night in a decent hotel is well worth it!
It is too bad that a lot of the really great backpacking trips require 5+ hours driving — it makes them hard to do, even on a long weekend. Just wait for the photos — this place is beautiful!
We might take a a fall mini-vacation to Vegas too — my cousin is supposedly planning something for my uncle’s birthday there, and it would be silly to skip a chance to see my relatives/parents/siblings or whoever comes. I haven’t heard any details. Vegas is ultra cheap lately, so I’m not worried about it yet.
I would like to get my Travel Fund to $3000 by the end of next March. The Travel Fund has been a revolving fund to use for plane tickets and backpacking trips rather than a fund I really try to build up. But 2010 will bring some major traveling. Finally!
We may not go on a big honeymoon immediately after the wedding, but certainly by the end of the summer. My main concern is getting what I want out of our first major trip together since 2006, so if I want to to to the French Alp, I’ll wait until the season is right. If we wait, perhaps we’d do a mini-honeymoon around here, like a long weekend in Santa Barbara or something.
Additionally, we’ll need to buy plane tickets to T’s home state for the reception there, and to my home state to visit my grandparents and the rest of the relatives that decide not to come out for the wedding. Those could run $500 each (though I hope not!).
I also intend to buy a plane ticket home in September, and another one in December. In May I scored a fantastic deal for about $120 RT, but right now tickets are more like $320, so I’m waiting. I could book my Christmas tickets today for $313 (maybe I should??). Typically they are $500+, but a new airline started flying in the past year.
Current Balance: $486
Expected Expenditures before March: $600
Total to save: $3115 ($3600-$486)
Per Month: $390
I’ve been saving something like $225 and intended to increase that to $300 when I’m done with the wedding fund. Clearly that isn’t enough, and I’ll have to cut in other areas to make it up. I will use a portion of my “extra paycheck” to boost the savings, which means I only need about $350 a month built into regular savings. Hmm… where to find that?
I’m totally over wedding planning (note: that doesn’t mean it is done!) and have moved onto the more exciting event of… Honeymoon planning!
If I had to choose a wedding or a honeymoon (+ courtroom marriage), I’d choose honeymoon, hands down. Selfish, but it’s the truth! Luckily, we can do both. Though imagine the kind of vacation we could go on if we had no wedding!
Budget: Starting with $2k a head… We’ll see, this is our first “shot in the dark” number. We haven’t gone on any major (read: international) vacations since 2006, so this is going to be a Big Deal.
Length: As long as I can possible get off work for. I want to do 2 weeks, but that may not be realistic. But maybe!!!
Style: Adventure + budget + at least a couple nights in a more luxurious setting. I’m not too snobbish for hostels (private room please) and five star travel seems so ridiculous/silly. Don’t want Caribbean style resorts/beaches, as we have a beach a stones throw away. (Though not as nice, I must admit.)
I’m very wary of tours and cruises, but may be open to a cruise, depending on ports (like Greek Isles, not Caribbean/Mexican). We do like to explore cities and see “the sights”, but we are considering trying to do some trekking as well, since it is what we are really into right now.
Initial ideas:
Thailand, etc.: Tickets are pricey, but once we were there, we could live like kings. Tropical, beautiful, could fulfill my dream of Cambodia/Laos or other nearby awesome destinations. But… we’ve been there! Who goes to Thailand 2-3 times, yet barely has seen Europe??? Also, there is other stuff to do, but it is most famous for beaches.
South America (yes, very specific, huh?): Nearby (tickets are expensive still), cheap (I think?), mostly Spanish speaking (??) which T claims he knows. Honestly, I don’t know much about S. America yet. We’d have a lot of research to do before. Safety? Where to go? Argentina?
Europe: So many options here! And the countries are all smashed together, so if we do a long trip, we could see at least two, or see many cities in one. Italy, France, Spain and Greece top my mental list right now.
My Backpacker magazine profiled a gorgeous trek in France (Pyrenees Gr10), and you stay in little cottages along the way (so not so grungy), then maybe we could also swing by Paris and Italy or Spain? I was looking at The walkers Haute route, but it seems to be more days than I want to spend on a trekking portion (1 week max). Anyway, I need to do some research on this. We also probably would have to wait until July (wedding = April)…
Africa: Probably waaay too expensive, but we used to talk, way back when, that our dream was to be married on a beach and then go on a safari. I’m not so sure this is my dream anymore though. I want to to Kilimanjaro some day, but not for a honeymoon.
What thoughts do you guys have, world travelers and world traveler wannabes? I’m leaning towards Europe, because… I’ve just been to Germany, and I was 17. But I haven’t got as far as picking the countries… And I imagine Europe would be a bit of a budget challenge (food + lodging).
I remember it vividly. It was just last summer. I had ordered two California hiking books from Amazon, and T and I were sitting on the balcony in my old apartment going through them, drinking white wine. Trekking California captured us. I’m certain I didn’t realize how hard core a lot of the hikes in this book were when I purchased it, but the pictures were SO stunning I couldn’t get it out of my mind. Something inside me said “I need to do that”.
We’d only hiked very casually and had virtually no gear. I always liked hiking in theory, but there were more corn/wheat fields than forested nature trails and mountains where I’m from. “Can we do this?!?” I asked.
I doubt I would’ve had the guts to take the plunge and buy all the necessary gear if it weren’t for T’s excitement about the idea. He had the same feeling, the same desire to trek out into the woods, away from cars, away from the internet, away. There’s something absolutely romantic/adventurous/exciting/thrilling to us about carrying everything we need on our backs, going to the tops of mountains, and seeing some of the most stunning vistas in the country.
So, we decided to do it. The book (which now seems to be available for much more) was only $12.89. But it was the driving force behind the thousands of dollars worth of equipment, and ideally, a lifetime of adventures and memories.
Have you ever purchased something, seemingly small, that ended up being very very expensive (and maybe, that ended up changing your life)?
[Photo by Mat Honan]
I just got back from a long weekend in Portland. We stayed with my friend, who has a fabulous apartment downtown. She described it as small, or even tiny, but apparently she has never been in the (one bdrm/studio) apartments of 20-somethings in L.A., because it seemed pretty spacious to me (700 sq ft or so, I think).
Hardwood (laminate) floors, totally modern decor, nice kitchen. It still was a studio, but the bedroom was partitioned off (that’s kind of how my apartment is). Best of all, it is right in downtown Portland and has an amazing view of Mt. Hood in the distance. Or so I’m told, it was actually too cloudy and gloomy to see it while we were there. But I could image it. [Pictures aren't actually their place, to protect privacy.]
I didn’t ask, but I would guess the rent is about what I pay for my apartment, plus or minus $200. I tried to look it up online, but didn’t come up with a very good answer. T liked it as well, but I think he was more envious of their super nice (and giant sized) puppy, which we are totally incapable of owning any time soon.
We’re going apartment hunting very soon, and I think we’ll be able to do better than my current place (for the same price, or less), but there is no way we’ll be able to live in a trendy high rise in the best location in the city. I’ll probably have to give up my super duper easy beach access, but I think we’ll still have relatively easy beach access. More to come on this!
It turns out Miss M and I were both at the same state park on the same weekend! We had been planning to go out for a couple weeks, and last weekend not only fit with my schedule, but with the wildflowers schedule. Two friends tagged along, and neither had ever heard of Anza-Borrego State Park. I hadn’t either until T decided we’d go there, but it is a huge park and I think it must be well known in the wildflower crowd.
My favorite hiking site recently profiled two hikes in the area, so check it out if you plan on going. We hiked the pictograph trail, and also drove on the sandy unpaved roads (in my two wheel drive sedan, ha!) and checked out the wind caves and see the “elephant knees”.
The whole trip was a bit weird, because there is a bunch of short little < 2 mile hikes, and we didn’t get in any serious hiking (could of, had we been prepared to go off trail). There was a nice 6 mile hike, but we opted to get home a little earlier Sunday rather than conquering it. We had boring stuff to do, and two friends along–I couldn’t gauged their interest level in doing some serious hiking. On the way home, the hills we drove past were spotted with orange, and I bet in a few days, they will be covered.
We were expecting the weather to be about 45 degrees at night (weather.com said so!), but I’m pretty sure it was in the high 20s in the valley we chose. My sleeping bag is “rated” to 30 degrees and I had “adds 10 degrees” liner… that was a lie. T traded with me (under the assumption I was being a wuss), and froze. We both crammed into his larger bag in the morning for awhile, but sleep obviously was not possible. Anyway, looks like I’m going to retire this bag a summer-only and pick out a fancy new 3-season down bag rated to at least 15 or 20. Buying gear is so much fun, but I’m going to hold off for a little while to really know what I want. See the frost on our tent? Brrr!
Costs:
Gas: $35 or so, minus $20 chipped in by friend. So, $15.
Food: $20, but we didn’t eat it all. Plus In-n-Out, so $28
Map: $8
Camping/Park fees: None, free to camp wherever you want!
Decision to get a new sleeping bag: $$$$
Total: $51 (+ $$$)
Recent Comments