How much does a 31-day trip cost?

This email is the last in a travelogue series I’ve been sending during (and after) my travels in December and January. Regular editions of Wishful Working will resume later in January. Or maybe February, idk.

Well, I’ve been home from my big vacation for a week now. The jet lag has worn off. The bags are (mostly) unpacked. I’m chipping away at my inbox. I’m getting back into the groove of working, reflecting on 2025, and planning for 2026.

As promised, I’ll share a bit about the final leg of our journey (London), as well as a by-the-numbers recap.

London

After returning our rental car at Heathrow, we lugged our suitcases and ourselves to our hotel in the Southwark district of the city. Because of the considerable weight of our (read: my) luggage, I planned this journey to be step-free, strategically selecting Tube lines and stations based on elevator access. (Not to brag, but I executed this plan flawlessly.)

After a quick breather, we picked up takeout from a burger place near the hotel, which we ate while watching The Traitors (we’re newly addicted). The next morning began our first of three full days in London.

I love London. 

Not only is it impossible to run out of new things to see and do there, but I also never get tired of my favorite things: Big Ben, the Tube, Trafalgar Square. Also, for a rural-dweller, the big, walkable city experience is always so novel! I felt the same way in New York. Public transportation! Convenient amenities! Culture! So much good food! You city people take it for granted!

During this trip, we had enough time to check out some of the city’s museums, including several I’d never visited before: the National Maritime Museum, the London Transport Museum, the Imperial War Museum, and the British Museum. They were all amazing, and most were free (LTM charges admission). We only saw a fraction of the British Museum and IWM, so we’ll definitely be back to those someday.

Other highlights from London include:

• Going inside the Palace of Westminster

• Sitting in the public galleries to view an actual session in the House of Commons (free to do!)

• Enjoying a meal and sightseeing tour on a glass-ceilinged double-decker bus

• Seeing Van Gogh and Monet paintings at the National Gallery

• Shopping for books and art prints

• Sipping drinks at a very cool 1940s themed cocktail bar 

• Sailing down the Thames on a River Bus

• My first Nando’s (lol)

It was an absolute blast. We also really loved our hotel, The Hoxton (Southwark). I’m normally more of a Holiday Inn Express girlie, but I thought I’d splurge a little on a cute boutique hotel for our four nights in London. Our booking ended up being only slightly more expensive than the Premier Inn down the road. 

Vacation Stats

Days on vacation: 31

Flights: 5

Nights aboard QM2, crossing the Atlantic Ocean: 7

Top Beaufort scale wind force experienced at sea: 7 (moderate gale)

Closest proximity to Titanic wreck site while aboard: 35 miles

UK countries visited: 2/4 (England and Wales)

Miles driven around the UK: 1,007

Board/card games learned: 3 (Clank!, Spicy, Splendor)

Museums visited: 6

Bookshops visited: Too many to count

Books purchased: 17 (mine + my husband’s)

Souvenir enamel pin badges purchased: 15 (all mine)

Sausage rolls eaten: At least 6 each

Overweight luggage fees: $0 (!!!)

Approximate total cost: $15k USD (30% on airfare, car rental, other transport costs; 27% on cruise fare; 23% on hotels; 14% on food and drink; 6% on souvenirs and misc.)

By the time our final plane touched down in Saskatoon, we were more than happy to be home. I’m so happy we had the time and money to take such a big trip, but at the end of the day, I am a homebody and an introvert 😂 I’m very pleased to be back in my house, with my own bed and my cat and my routines.

Thus concludes my travelogue series! I hope you enjoyed it — I haven’t done much travel writing before, so this was a lot of fun for me. Now, I’m taking a few weeks off to give Wishful Working a revamp/rebrand/makeover. 👀 Stay tuned!

See you soon,

Kara

Kara Detwiller is a writer and creative based in small-town Saskatchewan. She specializes in long-form content writing for enterprise SaaS, cybersecurity, and manufacturing clients. She is also working on her first novel, among other creative pursuits. To connect, reply to this email or find Kara on LinkedIn.