1. Get off the beaten path.

Tourist areas are the most expensive to stay at. Therefore, the best idea is to stay outside busy city centres, a few kilometres away from all hotspots. You will not only be able to negotiate much cheaper price for your room, but you will also have an opportunity to get to know some locals, discover local areas and see what other holiday makers will not see. If you feel like going to the city centre, rent a bike for $1 or $2 per day and go there by bike – healthy, eco-friendly and affordable.

2. Go couchsurfing, accept invitations to stay with locals or go for dorms.

Once you get to Cambodia, you will realize how hospitable locals can be. Some of them will treat you like a family member, let you stay at their place overnight and treat you with some nice food. If you don’t trust randomly met people in the street, try to use couchsurfing. There are plenty of Khmer people who will be more than happy to host you and show you around telling some interesting stories. More often than not they will want to take you to their village and introduce you to people who never or rarely have met foreigners. If you go for couchsurfing (couchsurfing.org) make sure you start looking for a host at least 7 days before your arrival so that you have enough time to find an appropriate person, and allow them to read your messages and make the necessary arrangements. If you are not a big fan of couchsurfing, try to go for dorms and share a room with at least 8-10 other people. It’s extremely cheap and you can make new friends with fellow travellers. Dorm prices can be as low as $1 per night.

3. Try local food and avoid Western style restaurants.

Cambodia, especially Siem Reap, is full of really expensive Western restaurants where you can get a cheeseburger, pizza, fries and coke. You can treat yourself with amazing Khmer food instead. It is going to save you a lot of money as Western food costs up to 5 times more than traditional Khmer dishes. Would you fancy a plate of rice and vegetables topped with spicy sauce for less than $1 or a takeaway cheeseburger and coke for $5? Besides, what kind of traveller would you be to go to Cambodia and stick to Western food?

4. Keep your partying in check.

You are on your holiday and you obviously want to have fun. However, the alcohol in Cambodia might cost an Earth especially when you are out off limits. It all starts with a $0.5 draft and by the end of the night you find yourself broke. Going clubbing every night is not the cheapest entertainment option so you should always keep your partying in check. Some locals can take advantage of you being tipsy or drunk and rip you off. If you feel like you might overspent on alcoholic, take a friend or two with you to keep an eye on your tap.

5. Avoid guided tours.

Do you want to see Angkor Wat or ride an elephant? Do it on the cheap and avoid all guided tours which are way too expensive. You can rent a bike and go to Angkor Wat on your own terms saving $20+ per day, get a local bus to take you o elephant orphanage saving at least $15. If you insist on travelling with a guide, find some other travellers happy to share the bill. Guides charge per day ($20-$25), regardless of the group size. If they say otherwise, go and look for another guide.

Moreover, in the tourist areas, make sure to haggle and not to set on the initial price. You will probably notice right away everything in Cambodia is negotiable. The first price you hear from locals is most likely up to 5 times higher than the typical price so don’t be shy and push yourself to get some bargains.

After a week you will see how much less money you have spent in comparison to other fellow backpackers and tourists you meet on the road!

Author Bio: Agness is a Polish vagabond who, after graduation, left her comfort zone and set off for a journey of her lifetime to China in 2011. She has been constantly travelling the world since then (slowly, but surely as she says), living like a local for less than $25 a day. She became a photography passionate and adventure blogger sharing her life enthusiasm and travel experience with everyone around.

Website: eTramping
Twitter: @Agnesstramp
Facebook: eTramping
 

Choosing accommodation is ultimately the most important part to any holiday. The question is, would you prefer to be in the middle of town amongst the hustle and bustle? A short walk away? Or somewhere so cosy & hidden away amongst the woodlands? Once you’ve decided on your preference, it’s then a question of which area to habituate.

Those who are interested in history, calming lakes and stunning backdrops will have no doubt heard of Windermere, the largest town within the Lake District. With its haunting halls, 12th century boar stories or of course the famous Lake Windermere itself, Windermere is nothing short of history and beauty. Choosing Windermere hotels is key when thinking about how you’d like to spend your break away.

Image of Blea Tarn in Lake District by Steve Lacy

Here are our top 5 tips for things to do in Windermere:

1. It may seem obvious but those looking for pure relaxation away from the world would love taking walks in the woodlands and taking in the beautiful surroundings. Short walks, long routes or explorations by the Lake – it’s your choice on the day.

2. Visiting the famous Lake Windermere is a must! Being the largest lake in England the site is just breathtaking. Take a cruise on the river or a family picnic, just relax and enjoy the views.

3. There are so many historic and magical museums to see. Whether it’s taking the kids to the world of Beatrix Potter, enjoying the Steamboat Museum or reliving history through the Arts & Crafts House it’s sure to bring history and adventure to life.

4. Rowing, sailing & swimming are available in abundance for water lovers. There are so many routes, hop off and hop back or just sit back, relax and enjoy the endless view of the mountains and greenery before you.

5. Treks and tours are plentiful, whether it’s tours of the lakes or the mountains, treks in the woodlands or activity days for the whole family, what better than a day out with nature.

Explore the sites and surroundings whilst being at one with nature in Windermere, take a stroll with the other half or a picnic with the family, you’re sure to make it a holiday to remember.

Lifecruiser Love Lake District
 

The Scandic Victoria Tower Hotel is designed by the architect Gert Wingårdh, 117 meter (384 ft) and did cost SEK 600 million (around USD 90 million) to be built. The hotel building is totally covered in glass – I just love this unusual patterned architecture!

My photo above doesn’t quite do it justice. I don’t exactly love it less when also discovering that the inside interior is decorated with design furniture from Vitra, Montana and Flos…

If you happens to be nearby: take the elevator up to the skybar at 34th floor and sit down and sip on a glass of Champagne with a view over Stockholms Silicon Valley.

This is the tallest hotel building in Scandinavia, but the tallest building in Sweden is actually Turning Torso in Malmö which I also adore and wrote about earlier.

©Lifecruiser Love Victoria Tower
 

Photo By: khowaga

Malaga

Climb aboard the Refre railway to experience the laid-back atmosphere of this coastal Spanish town while enjoying beautiful scenery along the way. The journey takes two and a half hours and winds through the some spectacular landscapes. Once in Malaga, you can tour historic sites like the Alcazaba, a Moorish castle built in the 11th century, or learn more about Picasso by touring his birthplace at the Picasso Museum.

Photo By: Tab59

Sitges

Catch some rays on the beaches of Sitges, refered to as the Saint-Tropez of Spain, on a three hour ride aboard the FGC (Generalitat de Catalunya) railways. This artsy town has year-round attractions but really gets hopping during Carnival that begins on Fat Tuesday or the Sitges Film Festival in the summer. Known for its tolerant attitude, it is a popular destination for gay and lesbian travelers and has an abundance of fine dining establishments.

Cordoba

Depart from the Madrid Atocha station on Rail Europe for a one hour and 44 minute ride to this charming sun-drenched area that was one of the largest cities of the ancient world. Explore Old Town where you can still see the Roman walls standing and visit the Fernandina churches like Santa Marina which houses work by local artist Antonio del Castillo y Saavedra.

Photo By: Cruccone

Figueres

Travel through the Catalan countryside from Madrid to the birthplace of Salvador Dali aboard the sleek double-deck French TGV high-speed trail that passes through Madrid. Relax in their state-of-the-art cars that whisk you to sites like the Dali Theatre and Museum where you’ll find the largest collection of his work in the world.

Paris

Be in Paris in just two hours aboard the daily high-speed TGV Eurostar that whisks you to the City of Lights in record time. If you’d like an overnight adventure, the Elipsos train hotel departs Barcelona each evening for a 12 -hour trip with a la carte dinners and 4-bed sleeper cars. Embark refreshed and spend the day exploring the Louvre and dining on Paris delicacies before taking the high-speed train back to Madrid.

Photo By:  ComunicaTI

Zaragosa

In just an hour and a half, the high-speed AVE can deliver you to Zaragosa (also known as Saragossa) so you can spend the day exploring this charming city. Try out the tapas bars or their famous regional dish, Bacalao al Ajoarriero (cod-fish with garlic and eggs) in between visits to the romantic castles and monasteries scattered throughout this picturesque city.

You’ll find the rail services also offer package deals that include hotel accommodations, public transportation or rental car deals, dining coupons and comprehensive passes to museums and attractions.

Lifecruiser Love Spain Train Travel
 

• Yurts – In this modern day and age, camping has begun to become more glamorous as opposed to sleeping rough for a few days. Yurts are the way forward when it comes to camping as it provides some of the comforts that are found in your own home including, separate bedrooms, hobs and even plumbing! Yurts are perfect for the whole family and the experience is bound to be one that you will never forget.
• Holiday Cottages – This type of accommodation is perfect for both couples and families, more so for families as these cottages usually have plenty of bedrooms. Luxury cottages can be usually found in the beautiful countryside away from the hustle and bustle that the city usually brings.
• Holiday Villa – Villas are great for families as you can let your kids run wild by the pool whilst also having a relaxing time out to relax and rejuvenate. If you are wise about it, you can usually find plenty of deals on villas online on several sites. As well as families, villas are also ideal for friends as they are usually away from nearby housing, so you can make as much noise as you want.
• Hotels – Hotels are usually cheap and easy to book at short notice. Make sure you are careful though as not all hotels are the same. Once again, make use of any review sites that you can look at that will indicate whether the hotel is up to your standards. Another thing to bear in mind is the location of the hotel. Make sure that it is nearby to local transport links and close to entertainment.

Guest post by James Taylor from Travel Maestro

Author bio: James Taylor is a fellow travel blogger who just like us love to travel and discover new places as well as sharing his experiences with us. At Travel Maestro you will find travel guides for travelling around the world, encouraging readers to share their travel stories with us and give us more travel tips.

Lifecruiser Love Travel Tips
 

Image produced by: Javier

The first part of the trip started from La Coruña, a busy harbor city occupying a small peninsula that protrudes out into the Atlantic. La Coruña was established thousands of years ago and is very famous for the ‘Tower of Hercules’, a Roman lighthouse from the 2nd century which has been operating for over 2000 years. To avoid the unpleasant walk along the main city roads they took a bus to the Alcampo hypermarket, from here on out the initial leg of their journey would bring them to Hospital de Bruma. Into their first hour of the trek the team of three began to recognize the unreasonably hot heat therefore slowed down the pace, and hydrated often while winding along the ancient path. The slower speed gave them the opportunity to appreciate their surroundings and to take in the never-ending country side with its spiritually unique history.

Image produced by: Christine

After a restful night’s sleep in rustic little hotel in Meson do Vento (a neighboring village to Bruma) they refueled their bodies, laced their shoes and headed back out to the pilgrimage trail. For thirty kilometers they cantered on along a trail that passed by various small farms, basic villages and wooded areas until they reached the small Spanish town of Sigüeiro. This night they stayed in a basic cottage rental were they cooked some warm food, shared a few laughs and had a long nights rest. The following morning, they persevered on to their final destination Santiago de Compostela. During this last 16 km of this journey they were engulfed by a remarkably noticeable spiritual feeling as they took in the beautiful surroundings. This was their concluding destination, so they had booked a local apartment rental through wimdu.com and spent the following days exploring the cathedral and well-preserved historic city center. The remains of Apostle James are what make this city so famous within religious circles and attract spiritual seekers from all corners of the world take part in such a pilgrimage that finalizes in this remarkable destination.

Image produced by: year of the dragon

For many this expedition is done as an opportunity to seek religious connections, however for this group it was only curiosity and adventure that drove them here, enabling them to partake in an unforgettable experience!

Lifecruiser Love Spain
 

Explore Uluru

Also known as Ayres Rock, Uluru is one of the most recognisable sights in Australia. Located in the Northern Territory, Uluru can be reached by plane from most Australian cities, or if you’re feeling brave, head off on a 4WD adventure. Accommodation in the area ranges from budget to luxury, so you will have no problems booking a stay at any number of great hotels. Take a guided tour of Uluru, Kata Tjuta, and the National Park, and learn more about the Aboriginal cultural significance of the area. Get your camera ready at sunrise and sunset – you’ll need it!

Dive the Great Barrier Reef

One of the seven natural wonders of the world, the Great Barrier Reef stretches over 3000km along the Queensland coast. Containing more than 400 kinds of coral, the reef is home to over 1500 species of tropical fish, more than 200 types of birds, around 20 types of reptiles, and an array of other sea creatures. Stay in any of the coastal towns running parallel to the reef, where you can take a boat tour, snorkel or scuba dive to explore this natural wonder.

Drive the Great Ocean Road

Stretching from Geelong to Port Fairy, the Great Ocean Road is one of the world’s most scenic coastal drives. Driving along this beautiful stretch of road, you can see the iconic Twelve Apostles, say hello to furry koalas in Cape Otway National Park, and find out more about Aboriginal heritage and the colonial settlers. Stay overnight in any of the pretty coastal villages along the way, and enjoy a few rounds of golf, a pampering session in a day spa, boutique shopping, and explore the stunning natural surroundings.

Explore Wine Country

Australia produces some truly excellent wine, which means the country’s wine regions are a must-visit for all wine connoisseurs, or even for those who just like a tipple! Most wine growing and production is concentrated on the country’s south-east, in New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania and Victoria, and further west on the southern coast of Western Australia.

Many regions are famous for certain wine varieties, such as Semillon in the Hunter Valley, Sauvignon Blanc in Margaret River and the Adelaide Hills, Pinot Noir In Tasmania and the Mornington Peninsula, and so on. A trip to wine country makes the perfect relaxing weekend trip, with overnight stays available in hostels, B&Bs, affordable hotels and luxury resorts.

Sail the Whitsundays

Made up of 74 tropical islands, the Whitsundays offer the perfect getaway for those who want to explore the natural beauty of area, or those who just want to take some time out to relax. There are dozens of cruises offering day tours and longer trips around the islands, catering to families, seniors, backpackers, and everyone in between. Travel the Whitsunday Coast to discover secluded beaches, sunny seaside villages, and spectacular wildlife.

Lifecruiser Love Top Travel Tips
 

There are over 500 homes to choose from, and each home comes with its own iPhone loaded with information gathered from the host about the best things to do in the local area. Each home unique, but here are a few that have that extra little something:

The Boat House

Life doesn’t get much more luxurious than this. This stunning home with its lavish decoration is certainly a sight to behold and sleeps up to 12 people. Original Georgian features are complimented by elegant and sophisticated décor making this the perfect riverside house to drift away and dream the days away. Beyond the garden, which boasts a hot tub, barbeque and adventure playground, is the River Thames, perfect for an afternoon stroll to explore some of London’s finest waterside cafes.

Albert Terrace

This home is steeped in history having been built for a doctor of Queen Victoria. A wonderful mix of original period features in the sitting room, carefully blended with modern style in the kitchen, this house is as grandiose as it is comfortable. Stay here for your own slice of history in Primrose Hill.

Russell Garden Mews

For the more modern minded, this four bedroom family home is the residence of a DJ turned architect, and it shows. Clean lines and sleek style characterise this house, and if you head downstairs to the basement you even have your own dance floor! Located in west London it is perfect for visiting the famous Portobello Road market.

Lifecruiser Love Unusual Stays
 

Sorting and uploading all the photos from all those countries will take too long time and I know some of you are very curious of how our very long road trip went, so better to start with this summery with conclusion in the end.

10 Countries were visited by us during this Europe road trip: Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, France, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Austria. We have now been to at least 30 countries together since 2004.

I’ll start with the good things, so if you don’t want to know the bad and the ugly, you can skip the middle part and jump directly to the end of this post and click on the link to see our photos so far.

The Good with the European road trip

Except from the useful travel experience, which always are great to have, and lots of great times here and there, I’ll list the absolute highlights of our European road trip below, not in any particular order.

1. Meeting a lot of friends were one of the main reasons for us to go on this trip from the beginning, a meetup once again in the French Riviera at Claudie and Pierre’s house with the Norwegian blog friends, but also to meetup with several other online friends along the way. Many of them which we never had met before, but that was no problem – very pleasant meetings all of them!

2. To visit the Champagne district and especially Moet Chandon wine cellars & gorgeous vineyards is of course a must when going to France for us Dom Perignon Champagne lovers and it did not let us down as a terrific travel experience.

3. The Netherlands lovely countryside at first and then the west coast with long, gorgeous beaches and actually 2 different blogger friends meetups turning out really good despite quite windy weather conditions.

4. The French Grand Canyon recreation area with it’s marvelous Emerald green lake which we definitely will go back to some day to stay for several days or a week. Also the fantastic French Alp views is really worth exploring more even in the summertime I tell you!

5. The Austrian Alps, gorgeous even in the summertime, but maybe we will even go back there some time in the wintertime even though I normally don’t like the winter. It’s very special with the Alp tops and the people. I did miss any yodeling though… ha ha…

6. The International Sandsculpture festival with incredible sculptures, quite big ones, but actually not as many as we thought there would be, but still worth visiting. Fantastic artists involved from many countries.

7. Certain hotel’s or B&B’s we had booked were surprising us with being even better than we had thought they would be. You never know until you see them in real life!

8. Trying different beer or wines that are not even available in our home country. Every day was a party!

I’ll come back in later travel blog posts, to write more about the different highlights in separate posts and divide the different places into separate photo folders too, making it easier for you to have a look at the special travel experiences.

The Bad with the European road trip

There was too little time and a too small wallet. We spent too much time on the roads, some of the hotels did not match their description or our expectations, some places were not really worth spending time within (like the Rhine Valley in my opinion).

The promised WiFi at too many of the hotels were not working well – if at all, making us unable to keep in contact with people as well as unable to upload photos even from the iPhone many times. That was something we did not like at all and worth thinking of if going on a trip.

The food creation around Europe is in bad shape, it’s really too much french fries to every dish with very little variation, too little vegetables served in the meals, not creative enough if you go to normal restaurants and not the real gourmet or classy ones. I can’t call them budget restaurants since they’ve not really budget prices nowadays.

We had packed two big suitcases which really didn’t fit for the too many steep stairs in the hotels we had booked (or our disk problems), so we had to rearrange a bit, taking out clothes in advance and put in smaller bags to be able to cope during the driving around. It was quite a puzzle sometimes, ha ha!

We had not really great summer weather on this trip, making it very difficult to take photos. It was either unusually cold and gray or way too hot to be outdoors, nothing in between until we did reach Denmark in the end. (We were unusually white this summer actually…)

Both lucky and unlucky: in the end of our trip, when reaching the south of Sweden again, hubby suddenly got ill with dizziness which forced me to do some heavy things I shouldn’t which made my back crack again, which created severe problems when continuing up in Sweden.

We stopped to sleep half ways home in hubby’s childhoods summer home and went home from there the day after that, despite that we had plans to continue our journey within Sweden. It was not meant to be obviously – it has been unsteady weather since.

The Ugly at the European road trip

The highways in Switzerland were the most boring part of our road trip and I think from all our earlier road trips too. I have never seen such a boring motorway ever. I don’t know if it were the fact that we had been on the roads for so long, but the highway never seemed to end…

Our look after being exhausted made me not wanna be on the photos… ha ha… We were looking so darn worn out both of us, like 10 years older suddenly. Our photos and videos, ugly ones I tell you!

Surprisingly enough, we had hard time finding interesting things or beautiful views to capture. We do have lots of interesting photos, but also uninteresting ones and too many deleted ones to be honest. Normally we always find so many things to photograph, but not at all as many as usual on this trip, strange enough.

Conclusion of European roadtrip

If going on such a long road trip, you need at least to double the time (and your wallet!) to get a more satisfying experience. We did know this before we went, but we had no choice, this was what we could manage at this time, so we had to take it or leave it.

We’re satisfied with our experiences as we thought about it as a tour to look around and get a quick view over a lot of countries, to know where we want to go back again in the nearest future. We now know that we want to go back to The Netherlands, The French and the Austrian Alps for sure.

I would not recommend going to the French Riviera in August when it use to be too hot and crowdy and we would never have gone there at this time, if it were not for the fact that our hosts had vacation then and the meetup there with our friends from Norway.

Since all Europe’s holiday period occurs in August, there use to be lots and lots of holiday people out on the roads normally, but we were lucky this year: no severe traffic jams in the directions where we went – only in the opposite directions all the time. Maybe also the economic crises has left some traces, making people staying home more.

Continue to keep an eye on Lifecruiser Europe roadtrip 2012 Flickr Photos, there will be new photos uploaded there now and then until I’m done with them all.

©Lifecruiser Love European Roadtrips

Earlier posts about Lifecruiser Europe Trip 2012:

Ending a long Europe road-trip
Europe roadtrip: in the Alps
Europe trip: leaving the Champagne district to go to Provence
Europe Road short update
Europe Road: leaving Bruges
Europe trip: blogger meet in Wijk aan Zee and IJMuiden, The Netherlands
Europe Road Trip Day 2-3 Goodbye Germany Hello The Netherlands
Europe Road Trip Day 1-2
Europe 7500 km roadtrip start!
 

Breakfast were excellent at our B&B, we even managed to make picnic sandwiches and off we went, in time and everything, arrived to the ferry lines. And… I had of course forgotten the whole folder with all our hotel vouchers AND the ferry tickets… Nowadays you can’t trust my brain at all!!!!

So we had to return to the B&B and get our papers and then go back to the ferry to catch the next one, luckily you can miss one ferry and your tickets are still valid… phew. And luckily our B&B were close enough to make it! Lesson learnt: always triple check that you got everything with you!!!!

This day was just a transport distance, so no real sightseeing, just driving through Germany, no particular photo opportunities either. The real holiday starts after this…

Our Hotel for the night, De Oude Smidse, was in the countryside, very quiet and exactly what we needed for this night, to just relax, have a very bice, local dinner, take a walk in the countryside and go to bed.

When you read this it’s Saturday and we’ve been driving from Westernieland to Wijk aan Zee to meet Ginnie and Astrid!!!

©Lifecruiser Love European Roadtrips

Earlier post about Lifecruiser Europe Trip 2012:

Europe Road Trip Day 1-2
Europe 7500 km roadtrip start!
Europe Trip Preparations: Video Camera GoPro Hero 2
Europe Trip Preparations: Double Trip Packing
Europe Trip Preparations: Camera Gears
Europe Trip Preparations: New Notebook PC
Another meetup for the Europe road trip
Europe Trip Preparations: Champagne Coolbox Snacks
New car for the Europe trip
Europe Trip 2012 Summery
Europe Trip Accommodations
Mapped Europe Roadtrip Route 2012 by Lifecruiser
Routes and stays booked for our Europe trip 2012
Planning our Europe trip 2012