This is my third monthly update from the road, which means our Year Long Honeymoon is officially 25% over. I can hardly believe it, on one hand it has seemed to fly by but on another our road trip in June seems like another lifetime ago.
We spent August exploring four Central European countries, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, and Slovenia. Some of our favorite days this month have been spent hiking around the gorgeous countryside on the many well marked trails in the area. We have learned we much prefer the smaller towns with access to outdoor activities more than the capital cities we’ve been visiting (although we enjoy those too!)
Austria
Innsbruck - 3 nights
Innsbruck has been one of my favorite cities that we’ve visited so far this year. It has amazing hiking trails close to the city and it’s simply breathtaking to walk around and view the mountains surrounding the city. For an in-depth look into what we did, read my 2 Day Innsbruck, Austria itinerary.
Salzburg - 1 night
We were supposed to stay in Salzburg for three nights but we had our first bad experience with an Airbnb. We changed our plans and went to Vienna early. I don’t regret leaving Salzburg as it was packed full of tourists and pretty expensive, however I am sad that we had to cancel our Sound of Music Tour. If we ever come back to Austria I hope I can reschedule it!
Vienna - 4 nights
We started our visit to Vienna with a “Alleyways, Courtyards and Hidden Sights” tour booked through Airbnb Experiences. The guide was great and we saw some beautiful areas of the city we never would have seen on our own. We also visited the Albertina Museum. I don’t always love art museums but this one was excellent.
My favorite thing that we did in Vienna was not actually in the city, but in the Wachau Valley northwest of Vienna. We took a train to Krems where we picked up bikes, then rode along the Danube River to two different wine tastings and get lunch. I booked this through Airbnb Experiences too, and I highly recommend it! The valley was beautiful and the wineries were all small and unique.
Bratislava, Slovakia - 7 nights
After traveling with friends and family for two weeks in July, then hopping around Austria, we were excited to finally be in one spot for a whole week. We took it pretty easy in Bratislava, Andrew running a lot and me working on my blog. Our favorite day in Bratislava involved a lot of hiking, an abandoned missile facility, an observation deck where four countries are visible, and a 1,000 year old castle!
A week is more than enough time to explore Bratislava; you can see most of what the city has to offer in just a few days. Read my 3 Day Bratislava Itinerary and Budget post for more information.
Budapest, Hungary - 8 nights
Our first three days in Budapest were nearly 100 degrees Fahrenheit and the last five days were rainy. The weather definitely put a damper on our week, and we didn’t get to just walk around and wander the streets as much as I wished we could. We still did some fun activities and got to celebrate Andrew’s birthday, but I feel like there’s a lot more to this city that I want to see in the future.
We did more paid activities in Budapest than we’ve done in most other places. The food was pretty cheap but we didn’t stay in budget because of the activities, but they were all so much fun and we don’t regret it at all! On the days it was really hot we went on a cave tour and to Szechenyi baths to cool off.
Later in the week we did a Hungarian wine tasting in an old wine cellar that used to be used by monks. There are only four tables in the cellar, so if you’re interested in wine, make a reservation by email, the website is here: Faust Wine Cellar.
Our last activity in Budapest was on Andrew’s birthday and it was a lot of fun and very affordable! We went on a river cruise with free flowing sparkling Hungarian wine. The cruise lasts 90 minutes and you get to see the spectacular Parliament building (pictured) and Buda Castle all lit up.
Slovenia
Ljubljana - 4 nights
The day after Andrew’s birthday we took a six hour bus ride to Ljubljana, Slovenia. Ljubljana is one of the smaller capital cities in Europe, with fewer than 300,000 residents. It feels very walkable and quaint, but is becoming more and more popular with tourists, especially other European tourists.
We did a walking tour of the city that came with a boat ride, and a slice of Slovenian cake at a cafe. The cafe is on top of the town “sky scraper” and you get the excellent view of the city and the castle below. Ljubljana is a great city to visit but after our visit to Slovenia we wished we would have stayed longer in Bled than we did in the capital. We really loved this country a lot and are planning to come back one day but we’ll definitely spend a majority our time in the countryside.
Bled - 3 nights
We took a quick bus ride from Ljubljana to Bled, which is in the northwest of Slovenia close to the borders with Italy and Austria. Bled is a popular destination for two main reasons: the gorgeous blue lake with an island in the middle, and being situated at the base of the Julien Alps and Triglav National Park.
Our three days in Bled quickly became some of our favorite trip days so far. On our first day we walked all the way around the lake, which is about 6km and hiked up to the Malo Ojstrica viewpoint, where I took the photo below.
On our second day in Bled we woke up early and walked to Vintgar Gorge. It’s a stunning mile long boardwalk through the gorge which is located in Triglav National Park. In the afternoon we went back to Lake Bled and swam out to the island, which is about a quarter mile swim each way.
On our final day we did a full day 17 mile/ 27km hike in Triglav National Park. Read my full blog post on how to do this day hike from Bled here (coming soon!)
Top 3 Meals of the Month
Cheers to month two of this fun new section! The food in the four central European countries we visited this month is similar, but each country does have its unique flavors and dishes. We had a lot of goulash, potatoes, cabbage, dumplings and pork.
#3 Firkász Restaurant, Budapest
Facebook: Firkás Restaurant
We went to Firkasz for Andrew’s birthday before we went on the river cruise. It’s close to the touristy parts of Budapest, but just far enough away on a quiet street that it felt local and authentic. The prices were more than reasonable for US standards (about $10-$15 for an entree), but a little pricier than other meals we had in Budapest. I would say it was worth the money though, Andrew’s duck leg was amazing and my veal paprikash was so filling and delicious! Thank you Scott and Michelle for this wonderful dinner!
#2 Slovak Pub, Bratislava
Website: Slovak Pub
Slovakia is famous for mini potato dumplings and soft sheep’s cheese. These two are combined and topped with crispy bacon for a very indulgent and memorable National dish, Bryndzové Halušky. That was combined with pierogi, and mini potato dumplings tossed with sauerkraut and bacon to form the “Slovakian Dumpling Platter” pictured below from Slovak Pub. We added some hearty cabbage and sausage soup and beer to round out the meal. Everything was delicious and cheap, and the decor and atmosphere were great too!
#1 Monstera Bistro, Ljubljana
Website: Monstera Bistro
We really splurged on one meal this month, and it was definitely worth it! Mostera Bistro does a tasting menu for dinner each night, but at lunch offers a three course meal for €29. I had beef tataki for my appetizer and slow roasted beef cheeks with mashed potatoes for my main dish. Andrew had gazpacho with mozzarella foam for his appetizer and ribs with roasted potatoes and slaw for his main. Everything was really good, included the dessert course (not pictured.) Even though we’re over budget for the month, it’s good to splurge every now and then. If we’re not enjoying our Year Long Honeymoon to the fullest, what’s the point?!
Budget
Our budget for the month was $3,700 and we spent $4,647.22, so $947.22 over budget. About $300 of that is from our last minute change of plans when we did not feel comfortable at our Airbnb in Salzburg and went to Vienna two days ahead of schedule. Even though we were over budget for the month, I think we’re doing ok for the year overall because I built in a buffer, knowing we’d probably go over budget. So does that mean we’re not actually over budget? Hmmm I’ll have to think about that one! Our average daily spend by country is below:
Austria: $264
Slovakia: $96
Hungary: $110 (we stayed four nights at the Crowne Plaza free with points, not included in the budget)
Slovenia: $141
Credit Card Points Update
New Point Gains
Andrew hit his Venture X sign up bonus so he received 75,000 points there, and I got another Chase Sapphire referral bonus, so 15,000 points for me! Nothing else major this month, besides continuing to strategize credit card spend to get the most points possible for each transaction.
New Point Redemptions
I made two point redemptions in August, one for a hotel stay, and one for flights.
Hotel – I booked a four night stay at a Holiday Inn in Istanbul. When you book reward nights with IHG, the 4th night is free, so I always use my IHG points in four night increments. The four night stay is costing me 40,000 IHG points, and the hotel room would have cost about $315 if I was paying with cash, so I’m getting a .78 Cent Per Point redemption. IHG points are worth less than most other airline or credit card points, so typically anything over .5CPP is a good redemption.
Flights – It was not in our original plan to come back to the States for Christmas, but I was looking at flights and found a good points deal that I couldn’t pass up! We’ll be flying round trip from Singapore to Los Angeles on Singapore Airlines. I transferred 168,000 American Express points to Singapore Airlines and paid $120 in tax and fees for the redemption. The flights cost $1,420 each, so we’re getting a CPP of 1.6. We’re so excited that we get to see our friends and families in December!
Updated Point Totals
Kailyn American Express: 99,044 points worth ~ $1,189
Kailyn Chase Ultimate Rewards: 34,263 points + Andrew Chase 66,876 points worth ~ $1,517
Kailyn IHG: 37,679 points worth ~ $188
Kailyn Delta : 39,296 points + Andrew Delta: 20,800 points worth ~ $780
Kailyn United: 6,452 points + Andrew United: 21,037 points worth ~ $310
Kailyn American: 4,253 points + Andrew American: 13,595 points worth ~ $214
Kailyn Citi Thank You: 4,146 points worth ~ $62
Kailyn Capital One: 139,433 points + Andrew Capital One: 84,990 points worth ~ $3,366
Total Rewards Points Remaining: 571,856 redeemable for about $7,628
What's Next For Us?
September is going to be a very exciting month for us! We’ll be spending the first 3 weeks exploring Croatia, my 20th country! After that we’ll be heading to Germany for Andrew to run in the Berlin Marathon. After the marathon we’ll be heading to Munich to partake in Oktoberfest! We have a big group of friends joining us in Germany and we can’t wait to party it up with them!
Until next month,
– Kailyn (and Andrew)
2 Comments
Central Europe is a great spot to explore in August. You planned a long stay for Budapest. Always sad when weather hits for a major time on a travel stop. But I am sure you got out on the water for the great night views. Slovenia definitely needs to get put on our travel planning board.
Yes it does, I think you’d love Slovenia!