Month: March 2017

Big dreams, small budget

–What happened that lately before any bigger trip we shall function in a ‘saving mode’? asked our pappy one of these days when I decided that I do not really need yet another dress (which I really loved though!)

–Well, my dear, our kids grow, and so do the travel expenses.

Indeed, our little explorers are not babies anymore and since Elin turned four last year we entered the period when we have to pay for 4. Luckily, the child fares still apply in most of the cases (we should be ‘safe’ for the next four years before Tilius turns 12). So how do we fit our big travel dreams into a modest budget?

In order to profit from the flight deals, we embrace the adventure – instead of first deciding destination and then looking for the flights, we start by checking where the flight offers would bring us and then decide if it sounds interesting. The place shall be safe and not visited yet and then, I believe, there is always something worth discovering. By the way, I think the best time to hunt for a bargain flight is in January.

Accommodation is a next big line in the travel budget and it takes some patience and research to find a nice and cheap place. The problem is that many hotels are not equipped to accommodate four people in a room but luckily the latest trends in apartment sharing and renting, such as Airbnb, allow for the families to get the best price and comfort combination. Plus having kitchenette is a real saver when travelling to different time zones. It allows having breakfast at lunchtime or making quick pasta dish well after midnight if internal clock requires some supper then and not before. It also allows saving few euros to be used for amusement park rather than paying hotel breakfast. But holidays are holidays so we shouldn’t spend them cooking!

As for the entertainment expenses that also eat up some important part of the budget, I usually check for offers or discounted tickets on the Internet. I think the most expensive way to get to an amusement park, a zoo, a tour or a museum is to buy the tickets near entrance! There are many offers on the web so some research is needed again especially because some websites have better offers in one country or region while not so good for the other places. But you will surely get some discount buying online, even if small, but when multiplied by all family members and by number of places to visit, it gets to a nice dinner saved.

Finally about food. I wouldn’t say we are saving on food when we eat at the street markets or street food stalls because we love trying new dishes and discovering new tastes. Saving is just a side effect of the experience. And when the kids get very tired of all the exotics they want to go to ..McDonalds which definitely does not break the bank.

So small budget should not preclude you from dreaming big and travelling far and away. But it is true that it requires more planning and more research than a weekend trip to a countryside. On the other hand, hunting for bargains may be addictive. I am already not sure what I enjoy better – going on a trip or organising it. So beware, you may actually like it!

Photo: infinity pool with the view over Kuala Lumpur that came with our rented appartment (48 euros/night!)

Remembering Hong Kong. Kids’ top 5

Our little world explorers really loved the trip to Hong Kong. Even though it may not seem at first sight as a good destination for family holidays, it does offer quite some fun and our week long trip last November was a hit. So I asked our explorers to tell their top five and here it is.

  1. HK Disneyland. It is said to be the smallest of all Disneylands but it was of a perfect size for us. Admittedly, it could seem not thrilling enough for   older kids, but it was just custom fitted to our then 4 and 7 year olds. They were allowed to go on all the rides (Elin was too small just for one of them) and had loads of fun. In fact it is very frustrating when because of the height restrictions the kids cannot go on some rides and get upset, or, even worse, one is allowed and the other has to wait. So HK Disneyland was great as we could go everywhere together.

The place was not at all crowded  (nothing to do with Orlando resort over Christmas) and the park itself is not very big which for us was a big plus as we managed to see everything in a day including some shows which were wonderful. In some bigger parks we get torn choosing what to see and what to miss and usually the shows get sacrificed for the benefit of the rides (or rather standing in the lines for the rides). So this time it was really great to see the Lion King show, the street parade and also some special Halloween shows without missing on the rides or photos with characters (how could we miss all the princesses).

Overall we had such a great time that decided to repeat the experience and went for the second time. Oh, one funny story about this: Our first visit was on October 31 so the park was in full Halloween swing – everything decorated with pumpkins, ghosts, spider webs and similar (and the park had special opening hours until 11 pm). It was a really big territory adorned with loads of decorations. Very nice and impressive. But how much more impressed we got when we returned in two days on November 2 – everything was prepared for Christmas! Not a sight of a pumpkin or ghost but a huge Christmas tree in the central square and Christmas decorations all over. I still fail to see how they managed to transform everything in one night!

  1. Glass bottom Ngong Ping cable car. Well, we actually loved the whole day spent going by cable car, climbing Giant Budha, visiting Po Lin monastery and checking out some attractions that were included in our tour. It was very different from what HK ordinary is. The kids best remember cable car and … burning incense in the monastery.

We booked the tickets for the cable car ride on Klook app (which was a revelation both for saving money and time) and it also included some shows (5D movie and a show about action movies) that I probably wouldn’t have chosen myself. But as overall price was really good, we also got the shows and they were OK (still wouldn’t buy them specifically).

My advice for those who want to go on the cable car (or any attraction in HK for that matter) is to come early. Our mistake was to rely on the fact that we already had cable car tickets booked so we thought we will avoid queuing. While we indeed cut the (enormous) queue by two thirds, there was still quite some standing and waiting involved. On the one hand, we were not the only smart ones who had online tickets (which had to be changed to paper ones anyway) and on the other hand there was a long queue to get into the cable car, as only every third or so has glass bottom (but it is absolutely worth to pay a bit more and wait for the glass bottom one. The whole fun is in that. Otherwise it is a just an ordinary cable car). So once we reached the top it was already afternoon and we had no time for a visit to Tai O fishing village.

  1. Dim Sum. Yes, for us Dim Sum has a status of an attraction and merits a special mention as HK must-do. It just tastes better and comes in more varieties in HK than in other places where we have tried it. Plus it was reasonably priced and kids just loved it. So there was never a discussion on what to eat and the plates normally got empty. They still dream of a nice dim sum dinner.

4. Halloween. HK takes Halloween seriously. As for us it is not such a big festivity, it was even more impressive the effort people and places put into decorations, dresses and celebration. Especially impressive where the shows in Ocean Park. Unlike in Disneyland, the height restrictions in Ocean Park were high and the place was crowded with teens, so we concentrated on watching animals and shows. It was fun to see that even penguins or seals had pumpkins in their aquariums while the shows were great and the abundance of ‘trick or treat’ candies made our explorers to list Halloween as their favourite holiday.

5. Ocean Park. It is half amusement park and half zoo. Because of the height restrictions we could not profit much from the amusement park part but we still loved the zoo part and those few rides we could get on. However, overall I find the mix a bit odd – attractions are more suited for teens while they are hardly interested in animals, on the other hand pandas and koalas are the highlight for small kids who cannot get on the rides. Well, maybe I am not very fair, some rides are still suited for smaller kids and there is a cable car which is a great fun. And the zoo part is wonderful. Worth the visit even if you don’t like the rollercoasters.

Here I stop even though there were more fun things to remember – tropical fruits, double deck trams, light show on the skyscrapers and street markets. Kids really loved the markets and especially torturing us with ‘can I have this’. We got away with just few shiny stickers but lots of great memories.

Photos (from top to bottom): Disney Halloween transformed overnight into Christmas; flying over Lantau island in glass bottom cable car; burning incense in Po Lin monastery; Dim sum party; Halloween night at Ocean Park where everyone celebrates, even animals.

Travel with little kids

So now you are convinced to take your kids along and go on a trip together. Great! … But?

Oh yes, that famous BUT! … great idea BUT later… , … I would love BUT they are too little…, …we will go BUT when they get older…

Well, you can always find a reason not to go, but I’ll intend now to offer a million one reason why you should. And why you should not wait until your kids get older. Believe me, there is a reason why people say ‘small kids small problems’!

To start with, travelling with kids before they turn two is cheaper. You don’t pay their flight ticket so it is a good occasion to go far away (no coincidence we visited Easter Island before Elin’s second birthday), they are not counted when booking a hotel room and all entrance tickets or public transport are for free. You actually get some benefits such as priority or simply better attention. And what I mostly miss now – you may avoid travelling during school holidays! School holidays mean you don’t find flight deals, you overpay hotel rooms and you have to bear with crowds. In addition, there are so many nice destinations (I’m dreaming Argentina…) that are just not good to visit during European summer. So profit well before!

In addition, traveling with small kids does not require you to change much your itinerary. For them it is virtually the same where to take a nap so you can easily spend your day in Louvre or watching ancient coins in a local history museum. You won’t be disturbed by that weeping sound ‘I am bored’. You may also run as fast around the place as you want (and can while pushing the stroller) without hearing that sobbing ‘I am tired’. So one advice – get along a stroller as long as your kids fit in one.

As far as the ‘difficulties’ of travelling with babies are concerned, I would dear to say they are all just in your head. I somehow believe that kids also get tired from routine: same room with the same toys every day, same tired parents, same morning stress when they leave to work… The trip changes all that. First and foremost parents are around all the time and likely they are happy and relaxed – a reason good enough to enjoy the trip. And the views around change faster than on TV. So many reasons to be a happy little child:).

Finally, the earlier you start travelling the easier it will be later, both for you and for kids. I bet it may be difficult to convince older child to try frog legs or eat at the plastic street food table. But small kids have less prejudices and once they tried it, they don’t find it strange later. 

So the only one who needs to put the prejudices and fear aside is you. Don’t say that famous BUT anymore.

Photo: During our one month long trip to Chile Elin was 1 year 10 months old and Tilius 4

Travel with kids

We love travelling. We always did. And we always do it as a family, with kids – first only in our minds, then in my belly, then snuggling in my arms, sleeping in a stroller and now whining they are tired to walk. And I will never understand those who leave home without kids or who wait until ‘they are older’. For me there is no better bond for us as a family than a trip together and then sharing the memories “you remember that time…”.

I won’t say that having kids changed nothing in our trips. Of course they did.

First, now we try to choose destinations that are safer and that can offer adequate medical care in case of need (thanks’ god so far we did not have to test it!). But no, we are not stuck in Europe. In fact there are so many places worth visiting in the world that correspond to this basic requirement that I have plans for next 10, no, 20 years at least (pity not enough money or holidays to implement them).

Second, we travel slower. No more sightseeing from dawn till dusk trying to cover entire region in a week. Now we take time to accommodate jetlag, to find local shop selling best yoghurt and ice-cream, to see what playgrounds are in the area. So now we have time to sense the place, to see local life besides museums and UNESCO sites. In fact, there is no better place and better occasion to chat with locals than kids’ playground. And there is no better education for yourself and your kids that all people in the world are the same – all kids love playing and all parents love them watching and cheering and being proud.

Third, … well, there is no third. Or if there is, it is just for a better. So next time you start hesitating that maybe your kids are ‘too young’ to travel, just don’t hesitate, book a flight and go. You will all profit from it and remember it as a wonderful family adventure. And you may actually be surprised on how your kids behave better in the trip than at home:)!

Photo: watching KL Symphony lake with new friends