• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • About Us
  • Work With Us
  • Shop
  • Blog Coaching
  • Disclosures
  • Contact
  • Nav Social Menu

    • Amazon
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • TikTok
    • YouTube
After spending 48 hours in Osaka we went to Kyoto. After spending 48 hours in Osaka we went to Kyoto. Here’s how to get here and where we stayed (save + share this post):

1. You can take the Shinkansen (bullet) train from Shin-Osaka Station to Kyoto Station if you have the JR Pass and it will only take you 15 minutes. If you don’t have a JR Pass the Shinkansen ticket costs about 1,420 yen (right now that’s about $11). 

2. If you don’t have the JR Pass you can take the Hankyu Kyoto Line or Keihan Main Line. These are regular non express trains and will increase your travel time to from 15 minutes to 45-55 minutes but they only cost 400 yen (about $3) so you can save money, especially for a large group.

3. There is also a bus that leaves picks up at Hotel Keihan Universal Tower, Universal Studios Japan and Namba and goes to Kyoto Station. I’m not sure of the costs.

4. If you flew into Osaka you can also take the Haruka Express train from the airport to Kyoto Station. 

In Kyoto we stayed at The Chaper Kyoto which is a Marriott property. The rooms are on the small side but the hotel is clean and modern. There is a bus stop down the block which we could take to get to Gion in 9 minutes. The room was about $240/night since it’s busy season.

The weather this time of year is pretty sporadic. Some days it was hot and sunny and some days cool and gloomy so definitely pack a variety of attire and bring some layers and the weather changes throughout the day. Will be sharing our itinerary soon.

Have you been to Kyoto? If you have other accommodation recommendations please share them below to help others!

📍Fushimi Inari Taisha
Want to visit Super Nintendo World at Universal St Want to visit Super Nintendo World at Universal Studios Japan? You need to know this (save + share this post):

1. Just because you have tickets to the park doesn’t mean you’ll get into Super Nintendo World, it requires a timed entry ticket. These do run out so it’s not a guarantee you’ll be able to enter! If you get your park tickets in advance you might be able to grab an advanced booking in the app but if these are all gone by time you get your tickets you’ll need an area timed entry ticket. These are only available the day you’re visiting & you can only attempt to get it once you’re actually in the park! We got to the park when they opened at 8am & there were only two entry times left so arrive early! You can get them on the app (you must grant the app permission to see your location so they know you’re inside) or you can go to one of the ticket kiosks.

2. To really enjoy you’ll need a power band which are sold for about $35. If you don’t have one you can walk around & go on the 2 rides but you can’t play the games & collect coins.

3. The wait times for both rides are usually 1-3 hours! To avoid this you can purchase an Express Pass (most people said this reduces wait times to a mere 15 minutes). Express Passes were sold out the day we went so we only got to ride Mario Kart: Koopa’s Challenge but not Yoshi’s Adventure. To avoid the 2 hour wait for Mario Kart we actually went through the singles line. We did end up in two different karts but we only waited 20 minutes to ride instead of 2 hours. Yo Shi’a Adventure doesn’t have a singles line or we would have done that too!

4. If you want to eat at Kinopio’s Cafe you also need a timed entry ticket so be sure to grab this as soon as you get inside Super Nintendo World. It’s usually a 1-2 hour wait once you get your timed entry ticket.

5. Once you leave you cannot reenter (if timed entry tickets are required at the time) so be sure to do everything you want before leaving.

Universal Studio Japan is extremely popular & tickets do sell out often so buy in advance. The most popular sites to buy them are Klook (where we bought ours) & KKDay.

Hope this helps! Who has Super Nintendo World on their list?
How We Spent 48 Hours in Osaka (save + share this How We Spent 48 Hours in Osaka (save + share this post):

1. Kicked off the day trying soufflé pancakes, you’ll find restaurants all over the city that sell these. We personally had them at Belle-ville Pancakes.

2. Visit the Cup of Noodles Museum where you can make your own Cup of Noodles logo and then customize the flavor and toppings for your noodles. They also offer a ramen making class here in addition to the museum where you can learn the history of the company.

3. If you’re visiting in March check to see if the March Sumo Wrestling Tournament is taking place at Edion Arena Osaka. If so def try to get tickets in advance (they go on sale a month prior) or arrive early to get same day tickets. It’s a fun afternoon.

4. We also did a Tea Ceremony class but photos/videos weren’t allowed.

5. End the first day getting cheesecake at the infamous Rikuro’s for their jiggly Cheesecake.

6. The other day spend at Universal Studios Japan for thrilling rides, shows and to relive your childhood at Super Nintendo World.

Where to stay in Osaka? The W Osaka is gorgeous but a little pricey and the Fairfield by Marriott is more budget friendly with nice, modern clean rooms just less amenities and smaller rooms (will post stories of both so you can see).

How to get to Osaka from Tokyo: We took the Shinkansen bullet train which takes 3 hours but is such an experience as it goes up to 199mph. Be sure to sit of the right side of the train for views of Mt. Fuji. You can also take a quick flight!

Other things to do in Osaka we didn’t travel time for:

1. Visit the Osaka Castle

2. Go to the top of the Umeda Sky Building

3. Go out in the Dotonbori

4. Walk around Kuromon Market

5. Watch a show at the National Bunraku Theater

6. Explore the Sumiyoshi Shrine

Which activity would you most want to do? If you’ve been to Osaka before what other recommendations do you have?

#osakajapan #travellingwithkids #cupofnoodles #universalstudiosjapan
6 Ways to Earn Delta Skymiles without flying! (SAV 6 Ways to Earn Delta Skymiles without flying! (SAVE + SHARE this post):

1. Link your Lyft and Skymiles accounts to earn 1 mile per $1 on US rides and 2miles per $1 on airport rides.

2. When booking Airbnb stays go to delta.com/Airbnb instead and you’ll earn 1 mile per $1 spent on airbnbs.

3. Order groceries online with instacart? Go to instacart.com/delta to link your accounts and earn 1.5 miles per $1 spent. If you’re new to instacart you can also get 3 months free.

4. Link your Starbucks account with your Skymiles account at delta Starbucks.com and you’ll earn 1 mile per $1 spent at Starbucks. Plus on days your flying with Delta, you’ll earn DOUBLE stars at Starbucks.

5. Sign up for SkyMiles dining at  Skymilesdining.com and is link your credit or debit card. Every time you use your card at a participating bar or restaurant, you’ll earn between 1-5 miles per $1 spent.

6. And nope you don’t have to use a Delta credit card to get miles for any of the above, no matter how you pay you’ll earn BUT is you do pay for them with a Delta co-branded credit card (there are several and depending on which one you have) you can earn anywhere from a additional 1-5 miles per dollar spent on purchases, even if they aren’t Delta airline tickets.

The cash price for the flight we took to Tokyo was $2,600pp so it would have cost me over $5,000 for this since it’s peak travel to Japan (never in my life would I pay that, we would have went somewhere else). Instead I only paid $118 total by using all of these ways to earn Delta miles over the past few years which gave me enough miles to redeem even though we don’t get to fly Delta on a regular since they don’t have the strongest presence at MIA airport as it’s American’s hub.

Do you use travel credit cards and/or points and miles from loyalty programs to offset the cost of travel? If so what are your favorite ones? Let’s all travel for less!
Konnichiwa from Japan! So excited to be spending s Konnichiwa from Japan! So excited to be spending spring break here with Jordyn on our annual mommy and me trip. Here’s everything you need to know about visiting Japan right now (save + share this post):

1. US passport holders don’t need a visa to enter Japan for stays under 90 days but if you hold a different passport you may, so definitely check as passport holders from only 68 countries can visit visa free! 

2. Japan still has panini restrictions. Adults must have 3 doses or provide results of a (-) test taken no more than 72 hours before departure. Children 6-18 are exempt if the accompanying adult has 3 doses or they have 3 doses themselves. If the accompanying adult doesn’t they too require - test results. Children under 6 are exempt from all requirements.

3. While Narita airport is well known, Haneda is actually the closet airport to Tokyo.

4. Everyone regardless of age needs to fill out a the questionnaire on Visit Japan Web (https://vjw-lp.digital.go.jp/en/). It is used for Immigration and Customs declaration procedures and will speed up your process on arrival to the airport in Japan.

5. Japan uses the Japanese Yen and the current exchange rate is $1 to ¥132 but this fluctuates so be sure to always check current exchange rates. Credit cards are widely accepted including AMEX but always travel with a Visa or Mastercard as a back up in addition to cash.

6. The train system in Japan is extremely functional and the main mode of transportation even to get in between cities. You have to ride the bullet train (Shinkansen) at least once while here! Walking is also popular and Ubers are available.

7. The rainy season is officially June-Mid July and very humid while spring and fall are the most popular times to visit. When visiting in March and April especially since it’s Cherry Blossom season expect lots of crowds and be prepared to book hotels well in advance.

I first visited Japan in 2015 and so excited to see how it’s changed since then and do some things I didn’t do before. We’ll be visiting Osaka, Kyoto and Tokyo. If you have any recommendations especially on the best places for ramen and mochi ice cream please let us know!

Have you been to Japan?
When I tell you the #GalaxyS23 Ultra has it all an When I tell you the #GalaxyS23 Ultra has it all and I haven’t even scratched the surface of all the features this phone has. Can’t wait to share more but I promise you don’t want to miss out on these amazing features. 

Tap the link in my bio to learn more about the Galaxy S23 Ultra and consider switching to @SamsungMobileUSA! 

#SamsungPartner #TeamGalaxy #WithGalaxy
3 Ways to Get Good Pictures of Your Kids (save and 3 Ways to Get Good Pictures of Your Kids (save and share this post)!

Because spring break, Easter and graduations is coming up I’m resharing my tried and true tips of taking good photos of your kids.

Have you tried these? What trips do you have coming up that you can test these out on?

#phototips #travellingwithkids

The Traveling Child

If kids live there, kids can visit!

  • Affording Travel
  • Destinations
    • Africa
      • Kenya
      • Morocco
    • Asia
      • Singapore
      • Thailand
    • Australia
    • Caribbean
      • Aruba
      • The Bahamas
      • Barbados
      • Cuba
      • Grand Cayman
      • Jamaica
      • Puerto Rico
      • Trinidad
    • Central America
      • Costa Rica
    • Europe
      • Austria
      • Belgium
      • Denmark
      • France
      • Italy
      • Spain
      • The Netherlands
    • North America
      • Alaska
      • Arizona
      • California
      • Colorado
      • Florida
      • Georgia
      • Hawaii
      • Idaho
      • Illinois
      • Kansas
      • Louisiana
      • Mexico
      • Nevada
      • New York
      • South Carolina
      • South Dakota
      • Tennessee
      • Texas
      • Utah
      • West Virginia
      • Wisconsin
    • South America
      • Brazil
      • Colombia
  • Travel Tips
    • Tips on Traveling with Kids
    • Trip Planning Tips
  • Reviews
    • Airline Reviews
    • Hotel Reviews
    • Product Reviews
  • Lifestyle
  • Buy Our Book
  • Blog Coaching

Tips for Attending Trinidad Carnival

February 27, 2020      Caribbean, Destinations, Trinidad

This post contains affiliate links. If you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small commission at no cost to you. Please see our disclosure policy for more information. All opinions are my own.

So you’re looking to attend Trinidad Carnival? It’s one of the biggest and best Carnivals in the world. If you’ve never been you need to be prepared! Here are my tips for attending Trinidad Carnival.

When Is Trinidad Carnival?

Trinidad Carnival always takes place the Monday and Tuesday before Ash Wednesday. Here are those dates for the next few years:

2021: February 15th  and February 16th

2022: February 28th and March 1st

2023: February 20th and February 21st

2024: February 12th and February 13th

2025: March 3rd and March 4th

Save Your Money Because Carnival Ain’t Cheap

Attending Trinidad Carnival and getting the full experience, fetes and playing Mas, flights and hotels can easily add up to $5,000 or more depending on how fancy you are. So start saving now so you won’t get hit with everything at once.

Do Your Own Makeup and Buy Face Gems

One of the biggest expenses of Carnival is getting your makeup done professionally. Instead of spending extra money on this I bought face gems to enhance my look. This saved me a lot of money and was super easy to apply. Honestly it is very hot on di road and you will sweat so to me I decided it was best to save money by eliminating this expense. If you choose to get your makeup done know you need to make an appointment immediately. Artists book well in advance and you’ll most likely have a 4AM appointment!


Book Your Flight As Soon As They Go on Sale

Flights go on sale via Caribbean Airlines a year in advance but if you’re flying JetBlue you’ll have to wait until 6 months before. If you purchase your ticket when Caribbean Airlines releases their schedule you can score tickets from Miami for as low as $200 round trip. However, if you wait you can easily spend $700-$1,000 or more depending on where you are flying from.

When Should You Arrive in Trinidad for Carnival?

While Carnival is technically only two days there are plenty of Carnival festivities happening from even the day after Christmas. To enjoy it to the max I recommend arriving the Wednesday prior to Carnival Monday & staying until the Sunday after. You won’t stay in Trinidad this whole time though, you’ll want to head to Tobago on Wednesday after Carnival Tuesday. If you have the PTO to swing it you can even arrive the Monday before Carnival Monday for the fullest experience possible.

What Do You Do the Days Before Carnival?

There are tons of fetes (parties) to attend. When I say tons I mean you can go to 3 a day if you’re about that life! Ones not to be missed are Soca Brainwash, Beach House Cooler, Beach House All Inclusive, A.M. Bush, Vale & jouvert being my favorite! Global Carnivalist is a great resource for finding out what days each fete is on, costs and the links to purchase tickets. Prepare yourself because these fetes aren’t cheap, remember that $5,000 budget I mentioned earlier? Some fetes cost $250, yes $250 for one party but keep in mind most are all inclusive of not only alcohol but food as well.

My favorite Carnival party, Jouvert.

Where Should You Stay for Trinidad Carnival?

Any hotel or Airbnb of your choice near the Savannah. This is because this is where all the main events are near. Believe me you do not want to be far when traffic is insane after each fete. People rave about the Hyatt and other big box hotels include the Hilton and Marriott!

Hire a Driver for Your Time in Trinidad

You can get a recommendation from your hotel or Airbnb host. Our driver has several trusted employees & I highly recommend him. His name is Mark & his contact info is +1 (868) 739-9136. Another recommendation from a friend is Sheldon +1 (868) 681-7616. Our driver took us to/from the airport, every fete and anywhere else we wanted to go. Expect to pay about $50-$100 a day for a driver for up to 4 passengers in your car. If you have a larger group you can get a driver with a mini bus.

Hire a Courier Service to Pick Up Your Costume

Depending on when you’re arriving to Trinidad you may not have time to pick up your costume on your sections designated day. If you’re like me you might have gone straight off the jumbo jet, straight from the airport to the fete! For a stress free arrival I hired Kasey’s Costumes Courier to handle my costume pick up. It was great to have one less thing to worry about and the service was exceptional!

How Do You Play Mas and What Does That Mean?

Playing Mas is when you wear a carnival costume and jump in the parade. You play Mas with a specific band who makes and sells you your carnival costume. These bands are all inclusive so you don’t just get a costume but goodie bags, meals on Monday & Tuesday, and unlimited alcohol. They even have a truck that follows along with porta potties.

One of the lunch options at Monday Mas. It was so good!!

I played Mas with Rogue, other bands include Tribe, Yuma, and Bliss. Playing Mas will cost you $500-$2,000 depending on if you’re front line or back line. You only wear your costume Tuesday, Monday you create or buy your own. I’m not creative so I bought my Monday wear from Vapzz By Kai. A lot of people hire a make up artist to do their make up on either or both days. However, I sweat a lot so instead I opted to just put some eye shadow on and used face gems to spruce up my attire.

My Monday Wear
I played Mas with Rogue and this was the Kitana costume.

Get Your Workout On- At Least Two Months Before Carnival

Trinidad Carnival requires some serious stamina. You will easily walk 12-20 miles a day so start those work outs now! Besides walking you’ll be jumping up and down and dancing for up to 12 hours straight! I personally completed Massy Aria’s 60 day challenge leading up to Carnival to prepare me.

Come Prepared on Di Road

Attending fetes and playing Mas is an all day event. You will get very little sleep and no time to re-charge your phone so bring everything you need. Ladies a fanny pack is a must, while Rogue, the band I played mas with did provide two in my goodie bag this isn’t a guarantee. You’ll want to bring a waterproof one for Jouvert but understand you might have to throw it away afterwards, so don’t get an expensive one.

The aftermath of Jouvert, a paint party!

Other important items are a portable battery pack for your phone, sunscreen, and comfortable shoes. I know a lot of women wear boots on the road but just make sure if you choose this option over sneakers that they are very comfortable ones. Also when I say sneakers, leave the Converse at home, you need shoes with great support and maybe even some Dr. Scholls.


Everyone should attend Trinidad Carnival at least once in their life. It is truly a bucket list trip. I’ll be attending Jamaica Carnival in April and can’t wait to share tips for it. Did you find this article on tips for attending Trinidad Carnival helpful? If so please share it!

The Traveling Child is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com, amazon.co.uk, amazon.ca. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.

Share51
Tweet
Pin338
Email
Share
389 Shares

Newsletter Subscribtion

 
Join Our Mailing List
You'll get tips on affordable travel, flight deals and detailed itineraries for every trip we've been on (family, girlfriends getaway, baecations and solo) to make your planning process easier.
Thank you for subscribing!

Primary Sidebar

  • Amazon
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • TikTok
  • YouTube

Hi! We’re The Hambricks

Hi! We’re The Hambricks

If kids live there, kids can visit! That's our motto and you'll often find us exploring destinations most don't find "kid friendly". We've traveled to 35 countries on 6 continents with our children since they were 10 weeks old and share tips to make it easier and affordable. But mom and dad are people too so we also write about solo travel, baecations and girlfriend getaways.

Newsletter

Subscribe to Our Newsletter
You'll get tips on affordable travel, flight deals and detailed itineraries for every trip we've been on (family, girlfriends getaway, baecations and solo) to make your planning process easier.
Thank you for subscribing!

Recent Posts

  • The Best Christmas Markets in Europe
  • The Best Christmas Markets in the USA
  • The 11 Best Eiffel Tower Photo Spots
  • The Best Places to Go for Halloween
  • Things to Do in Southern Idaho

LIKE US ON FACEBOOK

Facebook

FOLLOW US ON PINTEREST

Copyright © 2023 The Traveling Child, LLC.