Budget tripping in Belgium

My mind had gotten the better of it again,

I had just reached Paris a few days back. I was still stupefied. It was taking me a while to sink in; the thought that I had left my country and come here, to France.

After the 20 days of the work in the beginning, I got my first vacation. Everyone had planned a trip and there was me, fighting the battle in between my mind and heart which seemed to be a daily ritual.

As for my housing situation, I lived in a little room in the attic of a house. It was exciting but also depressing. I was alone. There wasn't much light in my room so I used to spend most of my time in front of the screen. It was making me more nervous.

The vacation was approaching and everyone was starting to prepare. I hesitated and asked a few friends if I could join them, and they agreed. Although I was still skeptical.

I hadn't made any reservations. The vacations started and I didn't go anywhere. I spent those 14 days looking around Paris, going out everyday and exploring a new place. After the vacations got over, I felt I had missed something I shouldn't have. I booked my first trip ever all by myself to Belgium that was scheduled within the next 10 days. I had planned for 4 cities starting from Bruges to Brussels and then back to Paris.

On 14th Nov. I packed my bag and left. I was supposed to reach Bruges in the afternoon. I was excited for my trip. I reached around 3 pm and got down the bus to start something that I had never imagined I would do so soon.

My itinerary wasn't long but the list of my wishes was.

Here are some ways you can cut down on your expenses -

1. Travel through cities during the night. If the distance isn't long, take an early morning bus so that you can spend most of your time discovering the place and not in a vehicle.

2. Look for hostels on Hostelworld and book in advance (trust me; I've made the mistake of not booking in advance and it cost me a lot)

3. Generally, all the public monuments across Europe are free or have a reduced entry fee for people younger than 26 years of age so get that discount and visit the best art works of some great people.

4. Almost all the cities in Europe are accessible on foot. The cities are small and thus you can explore them even without a public transport. So, do that cardio and walk as much as you can because it not only gives you the freedom to go wherever you want but also saves you time of waiting at the bus and tram stops !

5. If the city is a big one, like Paris; first make a list of the places that you're interested in visiting and check if you need to get a transport. Then, buy a daily pass or a pass for the days you're going to be there for. It's much cheaper than buying separate tickets.

6. Ask for a map of the city at the reception of your hostel. They'll help you with the most of the things. On the map you'd have details of free walking tours that are a great way to go around a city and know the insights about the places from the experts. The tours are totally free but the guide asks if you could appreciate their efforts in any way and it's completely upto you.

I wasn't a professional in traveling alone either but I was just starting and these hacks helped me and my pocket from getting ripped off.

Hope you would try these and let me know on my Instagram handle. :)