Helpful Links to Solve your Food and Beach crave.

The husband and I were supposed to go to the beach this weekend for my first ever scuba dive but unfortunately, I am sick til now. I have yet to recover and recharge my body from all the exhaustion last weekend in Cebu. Anyhoo, I am hoping to feel well in the next couple of days and finally hop on the bus and ferry to an island next weekend =D

So I have been searching for islands/resorts near Singapore. I have been to Rawa Malaysia and I must say, the beaches there are awesome. Since then, I have been craving for more of Malaysia's islands and beaches. We've been planning for a trip to Tioman and again Rawa for the longest time but it's always cancelled for reasons I forgot :P Here are the beaches and resorts that we plan to visit very very soon.

1. Swiss Cottage in Tekek, Tioman Island. Of all the resorts in this island, this is the only place where I want to stay. I've read a lot of good reviews about this little resort. They are cozy and peaceful with friendly staffs. The only downside is they don't really encourage an overnight booking but if you do so, you have to wait like 2-3 days before your planned trip for confirmation of room availability. If you don't like the hassle, better book for a least two nights accommodation.

2. Alang's Rawa in Rawa Island. Because we were too impressed of Rawa Safari resort (another resort in Rawa island), we want to visit the island again but stay in a cheaper resort. Yes, there are only two resorts in this beautiful island - one expensive and one affordable :D And since, their rates are easy on the pockets, you have to make your booking like 3-4 months in advance to reserve your rooms. The bigger the group, the cheaper the package. Very good for a trip with friends and family.

When I celebrated my actual birthday last Saturday, no one bothered to buy me a cake :P I was fervently hoping I will blow some candles and devour on a chocolate cake but sadly there was none. So my craving for sweets and  chocolatey cake went on.

While searching where to buy that chocolate cake, I found these links of food bloggers based in Singapore. How timely! They provided honest reviews of each patissiere.

1. Lady Iron Chef. Apparently, this blog is written by Brad Lau. Yes, he is male :)

2. Indulgence after Workout. I love how motivating the blog title is ;)

And I can't wait to go to Laurent Bernard's chocolate factory. I prefer to visit their shop in Portsdown road.

When is your next food and beach trip? Where do you plan to go?

Who said traveling to Europe is expensive?

I guess a lot of you will agree :) Yes? Yes!

Air tickets, hotel, train tickets and of course shopping, will surely cause havoc in your entire savings. But who would want to miss shopping in Europe? Not me! :)) However, due to budget constraints, I guess I would have to think twice, thrice or a million times before even thinking of touching my wallet. It will cause me a lot of stress for sure. (Please pray for me that I will come out alive from every shops and boutiques that will catch my fancy.)

So we've been planning our upcoming trip. And how did I survived?

First, we booked our air tickets way way advance like 7 months before our scheduled trip. This is very helpful if you are planning to visit the place during the summer season. I tell you, price could really increase sky rocket high.

Second, we plot out our itinerary (if you are visiting other cities). This took me quite awhile to decide because I want to visit the whole place, as in the whole continent. Of course, I am aware that I can't do that in a 3 week trip. So the decision whether to visit this place or that place was really tough. Finally we decided on three major countries. Plotting your itinerary will help you find the right and cheapest transportation and number of days you are staying in a place. I know how convenient travelling by train in Europe but actually it also helps you to save money and time if you travel by plane. There are a lot of budget airlines in Spain, Italy and France. And they're all way cheaper than those train tickets :D

Third, we booked our accommodation through the cheapest hostels we can find. Hostelbookers was such a sigh of relief while searching for a place to stay. This website is very efficient and complete. In just a few clicks, they can show you different cheap hostels complete with reviews and maps. We booked a dorm type room shared with 4 people for only 17euros per head. Quite a deal, isn't it? I mean we are going on August and its a peak season because it is summer. 

Next on our list is booking the train tickets. I know its such a boohoo that we haven't booked this yet. You may ask my sister why :D I just hope we can still find a cheap deal because really the prices are unbelievable :( This is certainly on the books of stupid mistakes. Anyhoo, no choice for now but to wait.

I don't know if you find these information relevant but I hope in one way or another it does make sense to you. I've always considered myself a budget traveller. Any place I visit, I try to book the cheapest tickets and hostels. And I won't mind sleeping in the airport alone just so I can save a one night hotel accommodation :D I guess, I might be doing this in Barcelona. Wish me luck!