Costa Rican Luxury for Under $100 (and Costa Rica Activities!)

Costa Rica has one of the most picturesque coastlines of almost any country. What could possibly be better than stepping out onto your patio and seeing a wild monkey swinging from the trees, while listening to the waves from the ocean? The best part about Costa Rica: the luxury you can get for under $100 per night.

And this one is my very favorite!!

EIGHTY DOLLARS A NIGHT!! For this incredibly gorgeous designer vacation rental home! I am left breathless every time i look at it.

Click me for vacation rental link!

Airbnb.com by far has the most impressive vacation rental deals in Costa Rica, as far as I'm concerned. Make sure you check them all out!!

Once you're in Costa Rica, holding a sloth is a can't-miss activity!

Most places in Costa Rica are very strict about holding the animals, however, at the Sloth Sanctuary in Costa Rica, if a sloth crawls onto you, no one is going to stop him. Cutest, cuddliest little guys, ever!

A Tip For Tipping...

I'm not the creator/owner of this awesome map/chart, I just came across it on Stumbleupon, originally from Mint.com. However, I think it is a great help for those wondering about tipping abroad, since it's clearly different in every country. If the it's not large enough, visit the original image here:
http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/1aYHDS/:EwxORg!_:mRfp92E3/www.mint.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/110302-MINT-TIPSa.png/

Rome: Under 25 Euros per day

If someone were to tell you that you could spend a week in Rome without spending more than $175 for food, activity, and transportation throughout the city, you would probably think they were loony. Well guess what...they aren't!! As someone who spent three months in Rome, I speak from experience when I say that this is very much possible. There are a few things to keep in mind when trying to budget in Rome:

1) Don't order water from restaurants! If your plan to save money is to drink water -rather than wine- when out...you should know that a glass of water is no cheaper than a glass of wine. Instead, utilize the drinking fountains! Rome is known for having some of the purest tap water around. You can find a drinking fountain on almost every corner, which has water constantly flowing out of the side. You stick a finger in the side hole and the water than comes out of the top, at a perfect height for you to drink out of. My recommendation would be to keep one water bottle and keep refilling it at the free-of-charge fountains.

2) A bus/metro ticket, good for 75 minutes of unlimited bus and metro travel, costs one euro. It is the law that as soon as you hop on your first bus, you must validate this ticket in the validation machine. While it is the law to buy a ticket and validate it yourself...it should be known that I have never actually bought nor validated a ticket to use the bus in Rome, and have never gotten fined. That being said...unless you are staying near Termini Station or going out clubbing in Testaccio, there is really no reason to use public transportation. If you are staying in the city center, everything is within a mile walk from your hotel. If you are on the outer-center, the farthest you will walk is a mile and a half. And with the countless unique shops and sights, walking is the best choice in my opinion.

3) Pre-gaming: Unless you are a girl, willing to do bodyshots or show a Drunken Ship bartender your boobs, drinks at bars and clubs can get expensive. However, there are always little cafes and random hole-in-the-wall shops that offer one euro shots of certain liquors, like Jager. Take advantage of these, or else you'll be paying 5 times as much at the pub next door.

Here are some cheap eats in Rome:

Outdoor market in Campo di Fiori- Fresh fruits and vegetables...great for breakfast where you can buy enough fruit to fill yourself up on for under 3 euros.

-Aristocampo, a panini cafe with locations in both Trastevere, by Santa Maria de la Scala, and also in Campo di Fiori, is basically the Subway of Rome. With dozens of different paninis and also a build your own panini, most of which are under 2.50 euro.

-Carlomenta is a great place for a real Roman dinner, off of Viali di Trastevere, where you can get an entire pizza Margherita, and glass for wine for under 6 euro. There are also quite a few pasta dishes, such as gnocchi and carbonara, under 5 euro.

-Blue Ice, which can be found on almost every corner in Rome, is like the Baskin Robbins of Rome. You can get gelato for 2 euro, as well as delicious Nutella crepes, and they are usually open into the late hours of the night.

-There are also little pizza cafes that serve pizza by the slice, for 2 euros, which is great for a quick lunch or a snack as you explore the charming neighborhoods of Rome.

Try not to eat in the ultra-touristy areas, as you'll pay double, if not more, than you should for a meal. Anywhere along Via del Corso is going to be almost three times as expensive as a non-tourist area. Also, keep in mind that most restaurants will add on a service charge to your bill. This is considered the tip. You can leave a few euros extra if you'd like, but it's not expected.

As for sight seeing; try to plan your trip around the last Sunday of the month, when you can enter the Vatican for free. When it comes to the Colosseum, most people say that going inside is a waste. Don't pay for a tour of anything. View it all on your own.

To me, the best part about Rome is the beauty and charm of the city. It costs nothing to take in the beauty, so wander the streets, it's free! I guarantee you won't be bored by the character of Rome!
Speaking of it's beauty and Charm, I shall leave you with some of my favorite photos of the city.

Ten Natural Beauties You MUST See In Your Lifetime.

Plitvice Lakes National Park

CROATIA

Good Lord I can't even handle the beauty of this place. There are some awesome bungalows in the park, if you want to stay in the middle of everything. It's difficult to reach by public transportation, so rent a car for easier travel. 

 Fairy Pools

ISLE OF SKYE-SCOTTLAND

These beautiful pools can be reached a couple of miles before Glen Brittle Beach. Best to go on a cloudy day...the colors are much prettier!

Aurora Borealis

ALASKA

There is no specific time of year when you have the best chance of viewing one, but they typically occur during the solar maximum. 

Amazon Rainforest 

SOUTH AMERICA

It's always been my dream to volunteer in the Amazonian Rainforests for a year. Maybe one day I'll make it out here.

Ballynoe 

IRELAND

Can you not just imagine strolling though, holding hands with your significant other?

Blue Lagoon

ICELAND

This Geothermal spa is one of Iceland's best known attractions. The minerals in the water, which cause the icy-clue color, are said to contain cures for all sorts of skin problems. 

Kawasan Falls

PHILIPPINES

This lesser-traveled country has SO much beauty hidden inside of it, that's often overlooked. 

Red Beach

PANJIN, CHINA

This beach is like no other. Can you imagine running through these fields? 

Valley of the Mills

SORRENTO, ITALY

It kills me to say it, but I've spent time IN SORRENTO, and did I even know this existed? NO. WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME?!?!

Watkins Glen State Park

New York

It's hard to imagine this type of nature can be hosted by the state known for Times Square and subways. 

Eurail Pass vs. Flying for Spontaneous Travel

Good morning wanderers! As I talked about in my last post, Ryanair and easyJet can be your best friends when flying within Europe and planning properly. However, what happens when there is no plan? When the plan is to arrive in Europe, and just go from there. Many backpackers like to fly into London (because it tends to be cheaper to fly into Heathrow from the states, than flying into anywhere else), stay for a few dyas, and decide from there where to go next. Buying a last minute flight, especially if your mind is open as to where your next destination will be, can prove to be surprisingly rewarding in the money saving department. Then there are the times where oil costs have just shot up, of there is a national security threat, or any maybe just now sales going on, and you'll be hard pressed to find a flight under $80 USD to the origin of your choice. While to most Americans, this seems insanely low, this is actually high for intercontinental flights. And once you're abroad, already putting 10x more money on your credit card than you initially planned, this can add up after couple of times. So when does it become smart to lay off the flights and buy a Eurail Pass? What is a Eurail Pass, some of you may ask? A Eurail Pass is a pre-paid train ticket for x-amount of days in x-countries to travel throughout, at any time in the specified duration of your pass. But, is it really worth it? Well let's weigh the options:

A Global Pass starts at $497, allowing you to travel every day for 15 days. This means that you would have to travel at least 7 times in two weeks for the Pass to equate to the cost of the most expensive plane tickets. Being that it's global, depending on where you go, time spent on the train might take up for of those 15 days. It just doesn't make sense unless you are seeing one city a day, and sleeping on the train at night while it delivers you to your next destination.

Another one of many options for the Global Pass is to travel 15 days within 2 months for $770. This just about equals out to what you would pay for 15 last minute flights on the expensive end of the spectrum. If you don't like flying, and don't like airports, this would be a situation when the Global Pass would be the right choice for you. Also, train stations tend to be easier to get to than airports, so that is always another plus.

Eurail also offers a Select Pass, where you get to choose 3, 4, or 5 connecting countries to travel for your choice of days, all of which prove to be more expensive than the higher priced flights. A Regional Pass, good for your choice of two connecting countries, which also proves to not be worth the price.

Lastly, is the One Country Pass. While I'm still iffy on weather this pass is worth the price or not; it most definitely worth not having to deal with airports when your destination is a mere 2 hour train ride away.

One thing to remember with the Eurail Pass, however, is that for some trains you will need a seat reservation. This can be done either by calling the train station in advance, or if it is a route that leaves from your stations many times per day, can be done half hour before departure, at the platform. Rule of thumb is to have common sense about it. If you're traveling from Rome to Florence, you can make your seat reservation 20 minutes prior to departure. If you're going from Basel to Interlaken, you're going to want that reservation taken care of 24 hours prior.

All in all, it is completely dependant on the travelers plans, and personal preferences as to whether the Eurail Pass is worth it. It is fun to pull out the pass years later and remember what you were doing at the time of each hole punch in each city!

Hope this info was helpful to some of you!!

Safe travels!!

Make Ryanair and easyJet your best friends.

     If you have ever traveled within Europe, you have surely heard of, or even utilized, one of these blessings from above. If not, then let me introduce you: reader, meet the two cheapest airlines in the world: Ryanair and easyJet!!

     So now that you're acquainted, let me tell you a little about these two incredibly cheap airlines.
Ryanair is based in Dublin, while easyJet is based in London. Fares have been known to drop as low as £3.99 (about $7USD) one way. While this is very rare, it is not uncommon to see one way flight from Ireland to London, London to Berlin, or Paris to Madrid for under £15.99 one way.
     While the rule of thumb for backpacking is always to pack light, only what you can carry on your back, this goes even more so when flying these airlines, as it's the baggage fees that can rack up the debt on your credit card. Your first checked back will run you about £16, but the upside is that they aren't too strict about the size of your carry on, so just don't check your bags, and you're good to go.
     The best way to find these cheap flights is to sign up for email alerts. When you register for these alerts, you have the option to stating which flights you are most interested, so you will be alerted whenever your flights go on sale. These alerts make it possible to fund the inter-Europe airfare of your seven country tour of Europe after only one day of work making the California minimum wage. Pretty nifty, I'd say!
     Here is where you can sign up for email alerts for easyJet: http://www.easyjet.com/en/Register
And here for Ryanair: http://www.ryanair.com/en/about/register-for-offers

Safe travels!

Random First Post?

I promise you that this blog will be about seeing the world on a minimum wage budget; and this video is about these lucky ass boys whom did all of this on Nike's budget, but it's still an incredible video.

Call me cheesy, but it literally gave me chills.

Safe travels all :]