Shereen Rayle's Blog, page 79

Get 300 bonus SB when you sign up for Swagbucks in September

All throughout September you can earn large bonuses when sign up as my referral on Swagbucks. Swagbucks is a rewards site where you earn points (called SB) for things you're probably doing online already, like searching the web, watching videos, shopping, discovering deals, and taking surveys. Then you take those points and exchange them for gift cards to places like Amazon, Target, or PayPal cash. 


When you sign up through me this month, you can earn a 300 SB bonus! Here's how: 
1.&n...

Halloween Travel Planning

So, we've talked about a great Halloween trip I planned, which I'm only going to get to do part of, and awesome packable costumes, but maybe you want to travel to places where Halloween is really celebrated. If that's you and you don't want me telling you what to see and do, this infographic has some fun facts and places where Halloween is big around the world.

Will you stay home or travel for Halloween? I'm doing both! I'll be doing Halloween festivities in Philly and then coming ho...

Your Next Halloween Vacation

A few years ago, I found out that Chestnut Hill, Pennsylvania (a suburb of Philly) had a Harry Potter Weekend in October and I planned an entire trip around this activity. I've had to change up my plans and the weekend has been changed to Witches and Wizards Weekend, due to Warner Bros cracking down on anything with the name Harry Potter in it and my own one-week limitation of a vacation. Either way, I still think all these activities sound awesome and can make a fantastic Halloween trip, or...

The September Swago Board is Here!

The digital rewards site Swagbucks is offering big payouts during on their September Swago Board, which runs from September 10th through September 17th at 9am PT! Swago is just like bingo, but in this case you're filling out squares as you earn points on their site for doing things you already do online.

If you're thinking of trying Swagbucks, this is a great chance to learn all about how the site works and earn bonus points while doing it, meaning you can get more gift cards faster. Here are...

Packable Halloween Costumes

I love travel in the fall and this often takes me to new places near or over Halloween. Whether it's a Mickey's-Not-So-Scary-Halloween-Party at Disney or a Harry Potter festival, I'm always up for putting on a costume and having a good time. As a budget traveler though, I'm not willing to pack much extra where I have to check a bag to my destination, so I look for creative costumes that I can make out of things I can easily pack or am already taking with me. 


In the past, Eric and I have...

Three Birthday Gift Ideas for Your Favorite Cook

Do you have a spouse, a friend or a sibling who loves to cook? If so, you have a lot of creative birthday gift options for that loved one. Food can bring back memories of travel experience and transport you to a another destination. Food is very powerful and a great way to travel when you don't have the money to actually travel. 


If you have the need to purchase a gift soon, check out three birthday gift ideas for a favorite cook or chef in your life.


A Recipe Book Written by a Famous Chef...

We're Going Back to Hogwarts

So, we had our annual Harry Potter party, did a bunch of fun wizarding-related things, and then I went back to Hogwarts. As all of you Potterheads know, today's the day all those little witch and wizards board the Hogwarts Express from Platform 9 3/4 at King's Cross Station. While I don't get to be there today (sad face) and get in on all the awesome back-to-school stuffs happening, I was able to beat most of the crowds getting robes and wands in order to tour the castle.

First thing's fi...

My Portland Coffee Tour - Part 16

You probably thought this series was done, but no. There are are still a bunch of coffee shops in Portland for me to get to. I got to two in the last two months (sorry, but my life has been super busy with no time to go out for coffee), but I also went to an awesome place in Anaheim while my friend and I were at Disney.
Photo credit: Nathan DumlaoI've spent a fair amount of time planning brunches and shuttling my mom to doctor appointments, so I was able to check out two shops in close proximi...

Free Art in Los Angeles

Los Angeles is full of culture and art and, even though the city is expensive, a lot of it is free. I went into planning a trip to Disney with some partial days in the city that didn't cost a fortune. I asked for help from my friends online and they offered a few great ideas. 

While walking around the city to go to brunch and hit up a gallery we found some awesome street art. We also found some great murals downtown while wandering back to our car. I loved this skeletal cat. It pays to lo...

Our Visit to OUE Skyspace LA

A few years ago I heard about the opening of OUE Skyspace, which offered a 360-degree view of Los Angeles from the top of the US Bank building. I'm all for an amazing view and something different than the Seattle Space Needle (which just got an overhaul). Skyspace boasted a glass slide on the side of the building and I just knew I needed to visit.

We were going to have some free time before we hit up Universal and Disneyland on this most recent trip and we were flying into LAX, so I contacted...