Year round-up & 2017 Travel blog goals!

This year- as usual, has flown by in the blink of an eye and boy has it been a good one!
(Aside from all of the celebrity deaths- let's not even go there).
I thought it would be a nice way to finish up by having a look through and doing a quick summary of my year and some of the things I got up to.

As well as reading this blog post I made a YouTube video of my 2016 extras and highlights which you can watch here if you're interested:

Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam Travel Diary

I recently returned from an incredible two weeks in Vietnam and this is the first of my travel diaries. Here is my second one from Hanoi which includes thoughts and reflections from my time in Vietnam, and Halong Bay will be coming very soon.
My travel diaries share a basic overview of what I did each day including particular highlights, prices and any good tips I discovered, as well as my favourite photos from the day! Here is Ho Chi Minh City (formerly known as Saigon), as that was the first stop:

Ho Chi Minh City is in the south of Vietnam

Rarotonga Travel Diary in pictures

Hey all,

Unfortunately with such a small window between the Cook Islands and my next trip to Vietnam (tomorrow morning), I just haven't had the time to write up my promised Rarotonga Travel Diary. 

I do however have many notes from my trip so I will be editing this post in the future into the proper intended travel diary, much like my last one from Bali. For now- here is my week in Rarotonga in pictures!

I have had time to write my previous post: Best Places to eat in Muri, Rarotonga and make my travel vlog for YouTube which you can watch here if you're interested:

Best Places to eat in Muri, Rarotonga

I'm back fresh from my week in Rarotonga and I couldn't wait to start writing. As well as a travel diary and hotel review - one thing I particularly wanted to write about was the food!
I am starting 'Food'/ 'Best Places to Eat' as a new category on my blog as I am such a big foodie and I always love reading other people's suggestions of where to eat too.

As I was so busy with wedding stuff most of the time I only ate around Muri which is the area I was staying in, but I was more than happy with that. Every single meal was so good it surprised me!
Food is a big part of Cook Island culture and that was reflected everywhere by being readily available, fresh, tasty and lovingly prepared.

I'm getting married in the Cook Islands!

Hey all,

This is a quick post to let you know that I will be away from here for a little bit as I am off to Rarotonga in the Cook Islands to get married!

I will be away in tropical paradise for just over a week and when I return I plan to write a travel diary blog post of my time in Rarotonga as soon as I can!
Then I will be off again a few days later to Vietnam with my then husband (the word seems so strange to me at the moment!) for a fun and adventurous honeymoon.
We are spending two weeks there starting in Ho Chi Minh City, then venturing north to Hanoi where we will be visiting Ha Long Bay which is one of my bucket list dreams!

Travelling on a Budget Tips

Travelling can be rather expensive - with long haul flights, visa costs and accommodation being just the beginning. There is such an enormous variety of places to go and so many things to see - it’s natural to think you might need to take out a second mortgage to get it done in a way that truly does it justice.

Travelling on a budget, however, is easier than you might expect - so many people are doing it and you don't have to be a young backpacker to do it yourself.
Here are a few of my top tips for anyone travelling even on the tightest of budgets.

Krakow on a Budget | Travel Guide

Continuing on in my budget travel guide series, (so far I have done Berlin and Barcelona), it is now my pleasure to write about Krakow.

This beautiful city in southern Poland truly surprised me and quickly became one of my top five favourite cities in Europe.

How to plan a Destination Wedding: My Experience

Choosing the destination

First things first! Choose the right destination! Do you have somewhere in mind you have always dreamed of getting married? If it is somewhere that you truly want- then make it happen!
Make sure you have heard the place is known for weddings and that it's a good fit for you.
Whether it's one or two years away or even a few months, it should be an affordable price you can manage.
Pick somewhere that gets you excited thinking about it, where you can imagine tying the knot and having the best day of your life.
Is it on a tropical island on a beach? Perhaps it's in an exciting city in a grand church, or on a vineyard in Tuscany.
Wherever the place, try to pick somewhere that's relatively easy to get to and keep in mind your guests that you wish to come too.

Sublime stay at The Breezes Bali Resort & Spa

After my fiance and I decided were in much need of a nice, relaxing getaway together, we excitedly booked our first trip to tropical Bali, Indonesia.

Top 20 Things To Do in New Zealand (From a Kiwi!)

Are you heading to New Zealand for the first time? Or maybe you're already here and wondering what to tick off your travel bucket list? Even though we’re tucked away at the bottom of the world, New Zealand packs a punch when it comes to epic scenery, unique adventures, and local experiences you won’t find anywhere else.

Ultimate Travelling Essentials to pack!

You've booked your flight, accommodation, worked hard to save your money and probably waited for what seemed like forever - now the time has finally come to pack for your upcoming travel adventure!
Some people love packing, some people hate it.
I'm the former as I get so enthusiastic whenever I'm about to jet off and I love the excitement of getting everything prepared and ready to go.
(So much so that usually I can't even sleep the night before!).

Favourite beer-drinking spots in Europe!

Hi, my name is Krysti.
And I love beer.
And travelling.
I love trying new beers while travelling.

I am currently sitting here reminiscing that this time last year I was at Munich Oktoberfest- so I thought combining a post about my two favourite things (travelling and beer!) was inevitable!
Europe was an absolute pleasure to travel around anyway, let alone whilst offering the tantalising delights of their top-knotch, world-class beer.
Beer that comes in one litre barrels and has delicious foam on top. 
Beer that is cheaper than water and where you can enjoy on the streets, in parks- out in public! (It is illegal in New Zealand and Australia)... yes, it is fair to say: 
I was in heaven.
Let me share with you some of my favourite beer-drinking spots I have enjoyed around Europe (so far), along with the particular beers that impressed my socks off. 
I'm getting thirsty already.

The 5 best cities to visit in Australia

Australia is a nature-lovers paradise- being an enormous country made up of bush, wildlife, desert, sandy coastlines and coral reef, but it also offers many excellent modern and vibrant urban cities too.
The main capitals are very different from each other, but what they share is a warm welcome, easy precincts, great food, wine and events as well as plenty of access to nature and wildlife.
As mentioned in my Adapting to the Aussie way of life tips post, Australia is incredibly large- and not one that you can fully explore over a few weeks, not even a few months!
If you are heading here just for a short time, here are the five biggest and best cities to choose from if you need some help deciding!

Barcelona on a Budget | Travel Guide

Barcelona is a beautiful laidback city sitting on the Mediterranean Coast. Much of the cities architecture is famously designed by Antoni Gaudi and it is incredible to see in real life.

30 Countries before I'm 30

I only recently heard this was a thing- and I am more than excited to put my hand up for this challenge!
It might not seem like such a big goal to some- but I only started travelling when I was well into my twenties and lets just say, time's-a-ticking!
I currently have been to 22 countries already, and by the end of the year it will be 24.
From 2017 I will have less than two years to complete this new challenge that I am now partaking in-- 30 countries before I'm 30!

Bangkok: My Experience | Guide & Tips

Thailand was my first proper foreign country I travelled to, and it was a life-changing experience. I had only been to Australia twice before- and although I enjoyed travelling there to a new country and visiting new cities and places, it wasn't much of a difference as it is so similar to my own country New Zealand (except a lot warmer!).

Bangkok was my first taste of a world so completely different from my own.
It was this trip that truly solidified my wanderlust and passion for travelling and learning about different places and cultures.
My partner Gareth and I travelled to Thailand for three weeks around three contrasting areas of the country. The entire trip was an incredible experience and I have been wishing to return ever since I left.

Berlin on a Budget | Travel Guide

I absolutely love Berlin. The city has an infectious energetic vibe to it, full of rich history and a dark past from which the city has completely turned itself around and become, well, cool. It's an eclectic melting pot of culture and creative talent.

My Ultimate Bucket List

I have always had an informal 'Bucket List' of ideas floating around in my head- but I hadn't got around to writing it down before now.
Putting everything to words on my blog I thought would be the perfect way to keep me accountable, and to see as well those big things that I have already achieved so far.

 
I enjoyed writing this list, and the majority as no surprise turned out to mostly be travel related - as that is absolutely my biggest passion in life.
This shows just how much more of the world I have yet to see and look forward to (which is so exciting!). I counted just for fun when I had finished and I have exactly 100 things on my list!
Here goes, in no particular order:

Travel Diary | Bali, Indonesia 2016

I recently got back from an awesome holiday in Bali, Indonesia. It was a really spontaneous trip- we only booked 2 and a half weeks before we left which was so exciting and fun!
It was our second time there- the last time was only in November last year, but we liked it so much we couldn't wait to go back.
We had 9 nights and 8 full days and this time stayed in Legian (last time was in Seminyak).
Here is a little summary of what my fiance and I got up to while we were there:

Summer holiday: Travel packing essentials | Bali

I'm so excited that I'm off travelling to Bali, Indonesia today!!! My fiance and I were there only 8 months ago which was our last proper holiday, but we loved it so much that we spontaneously decided to go back. We booked our tickets only 2 and a half weeks ago... I think that's so cool and exciting doing fun impulsive things like this!
We both love to travel and as it's mid-Winter here and my fiance has a bit of time off work, it was the perfect time for a quick getaway to unwind.
We looked into a few options like Malaysia and Thailand as well, but they were a lot more expensive in comparison and take more than 13 hours flying time to get there.

P A R I S | Top Things To Do!

Bonjour!

If you are planning on heading to Paris anytime soon, or if you just want to read about me gushing about the beautiful city - read on!
What excites me most about Paris is the beauty of it, the history, the magnificent architecture, the gorgeous bridges across the river Seine, the food, and the fashion and shopping are incredible, world-class.

This is my first post on Paris which are guides, particularly for first-time visitors. For my top travel tips check out my second post: P A R I S | Top Travel Tips!

LONDON | Top 10 Travel Tips

Aah, London. I had always wanted to go to London, more than anywhere else in the world - it was a big dream of mine since I was a child.

It was the first place I visited on my first big trip to Europe in October 2014, and since then I've been lucky enough to visit three times. Being all in the last two years, the memories and feelings of excitement arriving for the first time are still very fresh.

Solo Travel | My Top 20 Tips

Why You Should Travel Solo + My Top 20 Tips for First-Time Solo Travellers

As some of you may know, last year I spent six unforgettable months living in Germany while on exchange at Konstanz University. During and after my semester, I took the opportunity to explore as much of Europe as possible - much of it solo. You can read more about that here: Solo Travel | My Experience & Thoughts.

Solo travel | My Experience & Thoughts

My Travel Story: From Small-Town New Zealand to the Big Wide World

I didn’t grow up with a passport full of stamps. Unlike many lucky Europeans who have a buffet of countries right at their doorstep, I grew up in beautiful, but faraway New Zealand - literally at the bottom of the world. 

Top Travel Tips for beginners

As a self-confessed wanderluster, I love sharing my favourite travel tips and honest insights to help fellow adventurers, especially those heading off on their first big trip. Over the past three years, I’ve had the pleasure of exploring more than 20 countries, and while it feels like yesterday I was boarding my very first flight, I’ve learned a lot along the way.