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How to See London on a Budget

London is a beautiful and unique city that has a lot of different attractions to offer. However, in one of the most expensive cities in the world, sometimes going out and enjoying yourself can become quite pricey and can limit your options. But don’t despair; here at Party Earth we’ve got you covered and have put together a few options of inexpensive or even free things to do in Soho, Mayfair, Central London and more!

 

I bet the idea of spending your Friday night at the London Natural History Museum has never looked too appealing, however, it might be time to rethink it! On the last Friday of every month (excluding December), Lates with MasterCard provides a unique experience in London’s Natural History Museum. The after hours attraction features a Dinosaur gallery and unique exhibitions that change monthly. Although it is free to attend Lates, you will have to buy tickets for select exhibitions and some special events, but prices are budget friendly. Live music and food is also provided, making this a fun spot to meet up with friends and enjoy something new!

 

Lavish and extravagant, Harrods is known worldwide for its high-end shops, exclusive boutiques, and expensive department stores. It’s certainly not a destination where you want to open your wallet too wide (or at all), but is still worth the visit to watch in awe as shoppers drop thousands of dollars on a “couture” or “vintage” item. The ancient Egypt inspired décor and elegant seven-floor building featuring over three hundred and thirty departments, makes it a spot more than worth your time to explore. If you happen to work up an appetite from all the window-shopping, the mega-store also provides an abundance of food halls. Take a gander at their amazing selection of produce and meats, eat at the sushi bar, or stop in on one of the many eateries on the floor. Believe it or not, an hour or two can easily slip away while wandering the Harrods food halls.

 

If it’s nice day out, why not spend it with some friends in Hyde Park? Located in central London, the park provides visitors a peaceful oasis from the busy pace of the city around them and it’s free! There are plenty of activities that you can do once inside the park, such as swimming in the lake, boating, tennis courts, horseback riding, cycling, and plenty of room for team games like rugby, cricket, and softball. If it’s wintertime, starting in November through January, spectators can enjoy ice-skating in the park. Also, why not catch up on some London’s history and visit some of the famous buildings and monuments that Hyde Park has to offer- including the famous Achilles statue, Diana Memorial Fountain, and the Serpentine Bridge.

 

Lastly, be a tourist for a day and hit the triangle of plazas between Leicester Square, Trafalgar Square, and Piccadilly Circus. This is the UK’s version of America’s Times Square and one of the most fun things to do in London. Firstly, Leicester square is considered the heart of London’s entertainment district and always provides great people watching. This spot will be buzzing with tourists, theatergoers, and a variety of captivating street performers. There is truly never a dull moment at Leicester Square. Where Leicester Square is rich in entertainment, Trafalgar Square is rich in London culture and history.  One can spend the day exploring statues and sculptures that are unique and iconic to London, including the busts and plinths of the royal British forefathers and a massive fountain that lights up at night. And last but not least, rounding out the triangle of plazas is the Piccadilly Circus. A world famous traffic circle built in 1819; Piccadilly Circus connects Regent Street to Piccadilly and is a common meeting place before heading out to neighboring burrows like Chinatown or Soho. The Circus has plenty of attractions to offer that will keep cinema buffs, musical theater lovers, and shopaholics occupied for hours on end.

 

Daniel Hogan is a writer at Party Earth - a global media and entertainment company that publishes reviews and listings of the best social experiences around the world including: clubs in Paris, beaches in Ibiza, things to do in London, bars in Los Angeles, parks in New York, festivals and concerts everywhere, and more.

5 Tips For Dining Out On A Tight Budget

Dining out is generally one of the leisure activities that is left off someone’s strict budget, as dining at nice restaurants and enjoying first class meals doesn’t come cheap. Budgeting can be a tough task to deal with, depending on how strict it may be, you may have to sacrifice favourable experiences that you regularly enjoy. However, there are ways of overcoming this. You don’t necessarily have to completely avoid dining out when budgeting, you just have to be reasonably smart about it. Here are 5 ways you can appreciate the restaurant experience while sticking within your budget.

Use Coupons and Discount Books

Most people will come across coupons and discount vouchers in their daily travels. They can be distributed on the back of supermarket receipts or even delivered in the mail. Please note, coupon booklets delivered in the mail, in this scenario, are NOT considered ‘junk mail’. You can even subscribe to online and social media deal sites that distribute daily discounts to specified products and services. Restaurants are generally in the mix of these and deals generally include ‘2 for 1’ packages. These are definitely to be taken advantage of.

Stay Local

When considering dining out for the evening, consider staying local and find a suitable restaurant close to home. Here you will be able to still enjoy a nice meal, yet you will avoid general valet and parking fees or other transport related costs that generally arise when you head out to more urban and CBD locations. Chances are there’ll be reputable restaurants in your area and they are generally more affordable then the locations in the CBD.

Share Meals or Platters

When scouring the menu looking for suitable options that will satisfy your hunger, look through the shared and platter section of the menu. Most menus will offer a ‘platter for 2’ or of similar variety. These are generally cheaper than paying for 2 individual meals at full price.

Avoid Entrées and Desserts

In most cases the main meal is more than enough to fill your hunger. However, dining out provides many temptations that should be avoided when on a budget. Do your best to avoid the entrée and dessert tempters that the waiter or waitress will offer you. These are generally the items that ‘spike’ your bill total. Take advantage of any free offerings, such as bread or toast, which are available while you wait for your meal to be prepared.

Doggy Bag

If you have managed to order more than you can possibly devour, or in other terms ‘your eyes are bigger than your belly’, request from the server to take home a doggy bag. Here you can take home your left overs and possible have for lunch or dinner the next day. There’s no need to waste any left overs.

There are several ways that you can dine out on an affordable rate and stick within your budget. Be sure to allocate a specific amount for dining out when developing your initial budget. Utilise online services through providers such as Fox Symes, as you will be able to access budgeting planning templates and calculators to help get you started.

How to Economize on your Travel Budget

Traveling places for enjoyment does present a beautiful getaway from the humdrum of daily activities. With the increasing cost of traveling and hotel accommodation, it becomes necessary to think twice before embarking on a trip which will surely burn a hole in one’s pocket. You could consider the following suggestions to minimize your expenses during such a journey:

  • If you have decided to go on a holiday to a specific destination, check the route to reach there. Also, find the cheapest day of the week and time to travel and avoid rush-hours. If it entails an air travel, browse the comparative rates of airlines and zero down on the most economical one. If you can also travel by train and afford the extra time, opt for it, as it will save you a lot of money. Do not forget to bring along your packed food and water for your train journey. You will thus save money which you would have spent on the dining car. Finally, a road journey in which you can travel by your own vehicle will be the most preferred one, as you are your own boss and this mode of commutation will be the cheapest, though you will have to give vehicle-maintenance top priority and also carrying your own food water and other essentials will require personal attention every now and then. Travel insurance and vehicle insurance are musts during your journey. Also, if you can couple up with other groups of friends and relatives, you will save on your accommodation, insurance premiums and food and also stand to gain the benefit of large-number discounts.
  • Now browse the internet for accommodation. It would be wise to consider package deals which can also prove to be reasonable. If you can find lodges, inns or rental-based country homes, that are more economical than high class hotels, give preference to them. They will surely be decent and serve you modestly and you stand to save a considerable sum of money. And to fulfill that urge of tasting classic meals, you could spend a day or two, gorging on the most exotic fare. On other days, you could eat a decent square meal or even opt for places where they allow you to cook your own food. That way, you can be flexible in your choice of food too and not be out of touch of cooking. For breakfast, why not purchase bread, jam, butter and eggs from the local store and whip up a marvelous sandwich? It will prove to be really very easy on the pocket. And when you visit a certain place, be sure to sample the local cuisine. Eating food at the local joints will prove to be a more earthy experience and bring you closer to their way of life. Plus it will be cheaper and tastier.
  • As far as possible, avoid places that are frequented by many in the high season, for, this is the period when the prices are peaked. Instead, decide on an off-season trip if you can stand up to the off-weather conditions. You will find that there is a vast difference in the costs between the two periods. In addition, you will be assured of better service when the tourist rush is at a minimum and you will also enjoy the peace (devoid of the noise and chatter of fellow visitors); the very reason that you arrived there in the first place.
  • Going on a trip and clicking no pictures? Impossible, isn’t it? Choose a good quality digital camera with a large space memory card and another extra card if needed.
  • At some places, you get bicycles on hire. Leave your vehicles at your hotel and opt for this economical mode of commutation. The exercise will surely do you good.
  • Purchasing items at places that are a little farther away from popular destinations will many a time prove to be cheaper, so better check at both or more places before the purchase.
  • Generally, you tend to underestimate your expenses before your travel and end up spending more than what you earlier expected. It would be better to chalk out a proper budget plan and adhere to that strictly. Naturally, you will require the services of the automated teller machine from time to time during your travel. Choose the opening of your account in those banks that do not charge fees for your ATM transactions and whose centers are easily available and accessible during your period of travel. You could also give preference to using debit cards instead of credit cards during your journey. That way, you will be assured that you are not spending money beyond your fixed budget. In addition, you need not worry about any payments after your trip concludes. Or if you must use a credit card, use one which gives you miles.
  • There are many more ways to minimize on your travel budget, like opting out of activities like paragliding, snorkeling, etc. which cost a lot, but then you would miss out on the fun of the holiday mood. So I would advise you not to be so miserly that it would cost you your unadulterated joy!
  • Live life to the fullest on your trip!

Time to pack; ready, get set, go!

By www.investmentcontrarians.com

Why Contrarian Investing

How to Travel on a Budget

You want to go on a much-needed vacation, but you find yourself tight on budget. So what do you do? Money shouldn’t stop you from getting the break you so deserve, so here are some tips for you to meet a compromise between budget and travel.

1. Make an Advance Booking

If you plan to go out of the country or just somewhere very far, booking a plane may mean more cost – if you book for a flight that’s bound to leave the next day. To save up, you can make your travel plans months ahead, or even up to a year before you intend to go. These airline fares can be cut almost in half if you do, letting you enjoy your anticipated trip with more money to spend. You can also make use of any seat promos or sale as there are airlines the frequently use this as a marketing and business strategy. These rates are cheaper as well so watch out for these.

2. Pack Lightly

One of the biggest things a traveller can spend too much on is excess baggage. Sure, you’ll be away for a week or two, but it’s no excuse for you to lug around with everything in your house. Only bring a few sets of clothes that you can wear in many different ways, some lightweight pants or shorts, and an all-around pair of footwear. Just make sure you’re packing for the weather though – you wouldn’t want to end up in a bikini at Alaska.

3. Go Food Hunting

Spending money on food isn’t a bad thing, but if you’re on a tight budget, you shouldn’t try to go overboard. Eat only until when you feel full, and not when you start to feel nauseated with all the excess food you’ve consumed another trick in scrimping down on the food expenses is trying out the local cuisine. Go out and explore, ask the locals, or even get to dine with them. you can immerse yourself in their culture and who knows 0 you might even score a free meal.

4. Do what the Locals do

Getting around the city or the place where you intend to go can be confusing. With this, we know you’d rather hop into the next taxi that comes your way instead of getting lost for hours trying to figure out where is where. But getting around the place in the same way the masses and locals do is a cheaper alternative. For every train or bus ride, you can significantly reduce your costs, plus get to see sights you might never see had you hailed a taxi or private service. And if it’s feasible, you can even just go barefoot. This can make your experience truly enriching and worth-it as well.

Bio:

Chris Zuckerman enjoys backpacking around the world in his spare time. He is the President at his b deck and steel deck fabrication facility located in Atlanta GA.

How to Dress Well on a Budget

Christmas shopping, woman's clothing store, ethnic lamp, University Village, Seattle, Washington, USA

Stretching your dollars is simple to do if you know what you’re looking for when it comes to buying clothes. There are several expensive brands of clothing that don’t really need to be purchased, because they don’t really make you look any better than some “lesser” brands do. The best way to find out exactly what will fit you the best is to go to many different stores where the sell great labels at great prices, like TJ Maxx. You can also try to find formal clothing for discounted prices at the Goodwill store or Salvation Army. Here are 5 tips you can use to make sure you can dress well on a budget.

1. Don’t buy clothing with exotic patterns. Buy solid colors instead. There are two reasons for this. First of all, solid colors are much easier to mix and match with each other, so you can buy less clothing to begin with, but it will appear to others that you have more clothing than you really do. Another reason is that it’s easy for people to think that patterned clothing doesn’t look that great. The worst they could say about your solid-colored clothing is that it’s boring, but at least they won’t call your clothing an eyesore.

2. Make a list of clothing and only buy from the list. You can make a list buy surveying your closet to see what you don’t have and what you need. This will cut down on impulse buying, and you’ll be able to make more room in your budget. The list you make should be your budget, and it’s up to you to stick to the list.

3. Stay away from accessories. These will add up quickly. Designer sunglasses, certain hair accessories, jewelry, and other aspects of dressing well will drain your budget quicker than you can blink. Only buy clothes that you really need to wear.

4. Try to find 2 or 3 colors that really look good on you and construct a wardrobe around those colors. This will make it so you only have to buy a certain amount of clothing, and you’ll always be wearing something that you know looks good on you.

5. Only buy things that are on sale. This may seem like a no-brainer, but a surprising number of people don’t trust clothing items that are put on sale. They think something is wrong with the clothing items. Sales are just designed to push certain clothing because the store needs to make room for other shipments they have received. Clothing on sale is as good as any other clothing.

No matter what the reason may be for your smaller budget, you can work around it by taking advantage of sales, determining your best 3 colors, making a list, avoiding accessories, and avoiding clothing that has patterns. You can find great bargains anywhere you look, and you get to keep your budget as long as you can avoid impulse buying. The time to buy the bargain clothes is now.

Author Thomas Hathaway is a financial consultant and suggests there are times when cash loans may come in handy while waiting for your regular paycheck date.