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How to work 9-5 and travel the rest of the time

A full-time job shouldn’t stop you from satisfying your wanderlust. The Local spoke to Travel After 5 blogger Alline Waldhem to find out her tips and tricks for travellers who only have 25 days of annual leave.

How to work 9-5 and travel the rest of the time
Photo: Alline in Lisbon, Portugal

Feel like your day job is thwarting your travel plans? Keep telling yourself you don’t have the time (or cash) to take a trip? Where there’s a will, there’s a way, says travel aficionado Alline Waldhelm.

“It’s really a mindset. I love to do it and, on average, I travel somewhere once a month. In the summer, I fly every single weekend.”

Alline, who is originally from Brazil, caught the travel bug when she first visited Germany 12 years ago. It’s a trip that changed her life; she resolved to live in Europe one day and sure enough returned several years later to study in Munich before settling in Vienna.

“I always really liked traveling to Europe. When I was living in Brazil, I managed to come four times before moving to Munich to study German,” she tells The Local.

Click here to discover more #LifeChangingPlaces

Photo: Alline in Budapest last year

Although she works full time as a financial analyst, Alline doesn’t let her job get in the way of her adventures. In Austria, she explains, overtime is discouraged so it gives her plenty of time and the flexibility to take a flight on a Friday evening and return on the Sunday night.

“It’s actually really manageable,” she says. “For me, it’s so important to have these breaks. Of course, you don’t disconnect from your life in two or three days but that’s not the point. There’s so much to explore; you might be physically tired but it’s a mental break and you go back to the office on Monday with a lighter mood.”

While she reserves the bulk of her annual leave for travelling back to Brazil, she still takes a couple of weeks over summer to plan a longer trip. This year, she’s heading to Costa Smeralda in Sardinia – “The beaches are unbelievable and I want to explore more parts of the La Maddalena archipelago” – before spending a week in the south of Portugal which she describes as “full of history and culture, welcoming people and delicious food.”

Photo: Alline in Sicily during summer 2018

Where to find travel inspiration

When looking for new places to travel, Alline often turns to her most trusted resource: her friends and ex-classmates who are scattered across Europe. Or, if there’s a specific city or country that she is keen to visit, she’ll follow news sites like The Local or Time Out to keep up with local events. She’s also an active member of Facebook groups like European Travellers #WhereToNext? that are dedicated to travel tips and inspiration.

Join The Local and Lufthansa’s Facebook group for travel tips and inspiration

When Alline is feeling really adventurous she’ll use a feature like Skyscanner’s ‘Everywhere’ search to find the best deals on cheap flights. It’s how she stumbled on a great return flight to Larnaca, a pretty port city in southern Cyprus, last Christmas. Often, she starts with the destination, whether it’s a recommendation or her own find, and then pads out the trip once she’s booked.

She believes it’s still possible to ‘get off the beaten track’ even if you only have a couple of days to explore. In her experience, the best way to do this is to not plan too rigidly. Instead, pick a couple of things you really want to see or do and then play the rest of the trip by ear.

Photo: Alline in Lake Garda

“I try to be spontaneous. I really enjoy arriving in a city and just walking around and seeing what people are doing. I don’t plan every minute because usually you can meet someone and they suggest something to do. Leaving your time open means you may run into something more interesting or discover something different along the way.”

Find out how to discover your own life-changing place

The best advice she can offer full-time workers who are keen to travel more is to think logistically when booking flights and hotels. For short weekend trips, Alline mostly sticks to Europe and limits flight time to under a couple of hours so that the journey itself doesn’t eat too much into her precious exploring time.

The same goes once she’s touched down at her destination.

“Take London, for example, there are five airports and some of them it takes hours to get from the airport to the city centre. So I always find the airport that is closest. If it’s a small saving but it means I I lose an hour getting to the hotel, that’s something I won’t do.”

Alline adds that although you may be able to find a nicer hotel further out of the city “it’s not doable” when you only have a couple of days. Instead, she advises staying somewhere that may not be as plush but is more conveniently located. This way, you won’t “lose time, which is very precious on a short trip”.

Finally, she says: “Always be half ready to travel”. Alline always keeps a bag packed with the essentials like her passport, camera and tripod. This way, it only takes half an hour to pack so she can set off at short notice.

“If you have these things in your suitcase, you won’t forget anything. Everything is in the same place, half the work is already done.”

Alline’s top travel tips

  • Keep a bag packed with all your travel essentials

  • Check flight comparison sites to find new destinations 

  • Ask friends who live locally for insider tips

  • Look to Facebook groups and local news outlets for inspiration

  • If a public holiday falls on a Tuesday or Thursday, take a ‘bridging day’ to turn it into a four-day weekend

This article was produced by The Local and sponsored by Lufthansa.

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CULTURE

Five music festivals happening in Denmark this summer

Summer is the season of festivals in Denmark, so if you've been patiently waiting for nice weather, exciting line-ups, and being part of energised crowds, here are some events worth knowing about.

Five music festivals happening in Denmark this summer

Northside

Northside is an annual three-day music festival in Eskelunden, Aarhus. With between 35,000 and 40,000 people attending the festival over the course of three days, plus four stages and sideshow events, it is one of the largest music festivals in Denmark.

NorthSide wants to become the most sustainably driven and environmentally conscious festival in the Nordic countries. In 2022, the festival ran on electricity from the grid for the first time and became the first festival in Denmark to go plant-based. 

When: 6th-8th June 2024

2024 Lineup: There’a a wide range of music genres from rock, indie, electronic, to hip-hop. This year’s line up includes Pulp, Massive Attack, Kaytranada, St.Vincent, The Smile, Troye Sivan, Royal Blood, Love Shop.

Tickets: The current price for a three-day ticket is 2,395 kroner. These tickets are substantially cheaper the earlier you book. A day ticket costs 1,295 kroner. A two-day ticket costs 1,995 kroner.

Accommodation: There isn’t any camping or accommodation at the festival, or parking for cars. But the festival is accessible by public transport, walking or bike and there are camping or other accommodation options close by.

Northside Festival

NorthSide in 2023. Photo: Mikkel Berg Pedersen/Ritzau Scanpix

Tinderbox

Based in Odense, Tinderbox hosts a mix of international artists, Danish musicians and electronic music, playing out from Magicbox, the electric stage.

The festival is held in the Tusindårsskoven nature reserve in western Odense, which you can walk to from the city centre.

The festival bills itself as encompassing electronic music, nostalgic 90s in the Groove box, comedy acts, Ferris wheel rides, a champagne hill, local culinary experiences and sustainability.

When: 27th-29th June 2024

2024 Lineup: Raye, Avril Lavigne, David Guetta, Benjamin Ingrosso, Bryan Adams, DK Sashi, Kind Mod Kind, James Arthur, Miss Monique, Kaizers Orchestra.

Tickets: 2,595 kroner for a full three-day pass, 2,295 for a two-day ticket and 1,395 for a one-day ticket. You can also upgrade to a VIP option.

Accommodation: Camping, glamping or something called a sleep box with a foam mattress are the options. Outside of the festival, there’s accommodation in Odense but it gets booked up quickly. Alternatively, there’s camping at Dyrskuepladsen.

Crowds enjoying George Ezra play at Tinderbox in 2023. Photo: Helle Arensbak/Ritzau Scanpix

Vig Festival

This is very much a family festival, over three days in Vig, which is located in the northwestern part of Zealand. The music ranges from rock, pop and blues and there are activities for all ages.

When: 10th-13th July 2024

2024 Lineup: Infernal, Gobs, Zar Paulo, Mads Christian, ISSE, Gabriel Jacobsen, Rasmus Seebach.

Tickets: A one-day ticket costs between 925 kroner and 1,025 kroner depending on the day you attend.

Children up to the age of 11 can enter for free, as long as they are accompanied by a paying adult.

A full festival three-day ticket costs between 1,375 kroner and 1,825 kroner, depending how early/late you buy.

A full festival family ticket for one adult (18+) plus a child aged 12-15, costs 2,125 kroner.

Accommodation: There are various camping options, from the free site, where it’s first come first served and pitch your own tent; to pre-booked and paid for camping sites with or without electricity, or without music. There’s the option for a tent to be pitched for you, which you then take home, or you can stay in a caravan or a room at the nearby højskole.

All options come with varying prices which includes the price of the festival ticket. 

There’s parking on site and a festival shuttle bus.

Smukfest 

Located in a forest in Skanderborg, the name Smukfest comes from its beautiful location. The main stage is set in a national amphitheatre, surrounded by old beech trees.

Running since 1980, the festival is more than music and celebrates being together, with young, old and families all welcome. It sells itself as a festival with social, environmental and economic sustainable values.

The festival is big, second in size to Roskilde, with around 60,000 people attending. There are over 200 acts across 6 stages plus art installation and other activities, over five days.

Smukfest

Smukfest in 2023. Photo:Helle Arensbak/Ritzau Scanpix

When: 4th to 11th August. Smukfest is unusual in that it is a five-day festival with three warm-up days. 

2024 Lineup: The festival includes rock, pop, folk, heavy metal, hip-hop and electronic music.

This year’s artists include Diana Ross, who is performing on Saturday, Example, Sam Smith, The Prodigy, Faithless, The Darkness, VETO, Zara Larsson, Moonjam, Ankerstjerne, Mads Langer, Rasmus Seebach, Sanne Salomonsen with The Antonelli Orchestra, Abba tribute, Queen Machine and the Aarhus Symphony Orchestra.

Tickets: Access to the whole week (partoutbillet) costs 3,495 kroner. This includes being able to camp in your own tent, ride the shuttle bus and use the cloakroom.

A one-day wristband costs between 1,695 kroner and 495 kroner depending on the day. Children’s day tickets cost 150 kroner.

If you’re staying, you pay for accommodation as part of entry.

Accommodation: There’s a variety of places to stay for different budgets and festival goers, in various festival ‘neighbourhoods’.

You can camp on site, or a shuttle-bus away in a forest, stay in a hut or luxury cabin house (5000 kroner), or bring your caravan or camper van on site (950 kroner). There is the option for the festival to set up a tent for you that’s ready and waiting when you arrive and you get to take the tent home with you afterwards. The price for this is 1,200 kroner and 2,400 kroner depending on tent size.

Smukfest

Drew Sycamore playing at Smukfest in 2023 Photo: Helle Arensbak/Ritzau Scanpix

Roskilde 

The big one – in fact the largest music festival in the Nordic countries and one of the largest music festivals in Europe. To give you an idea of scale, the 130,000 festival goers who attend, would rank the festival as Denmark’s fourth largest city. 

Created in 1971 by two high school students and a promoter, it’s now run as a non-profit organisation with approximately 30,000 volunteers.

There are eight stages and around 200 music acts, plus artists, authors, performers, speakers, graffiti artists and architects.

The festival is also famous for its annual naked run on the Saturday. Started in 1999 and organised by Roskilde Festival Radio, runners dash around a fenced-in track around the camp site, completely naked. The male and female winners receive a ticket for the following year’s festival. 

When: Sat 29th June – Sat 6th July 2024 (music starts on Wednesday 3rd July).

2024 Lineup: From rap, pop, alternative rock, neo-soul, jazz, and electronic, there’s a whole range of artists. Danish hip-hop star, Lamin, will open the Orange Stage. Other acts include Foo Fighters, Ice Spice, Omah Lay, Bondshell, Aurora, Gilli, PJ Harvey, Tems, J Hus, Medina, Jane’s Addiction, Overmono. 

Tickets: Full festival tickets cost 2,400 kroner, one day tickets cost 1,200 kroner.

Accommodation: The festival campsite covers nearly 80 hectares (200 acres) and access to it is included in the ticket price. It usually opens on the Saturday afternoon and you can turn up and pitch your tent.

You can upgrade your camping experience with the festivals ‘special camping’, which includes a reserved site, tents that are put up for you that you then take home, quiet camping, tent houses, places to park your motorhome, caravan or an area for those with motorbikes.

There’s also something called Community Camping, where you get to create your own community by applying to a specific area/community beforehand and you give something back by looking after the area and helping with the clean up.

Roskilde Festival

Roskilde Festival 2023 in front of the Orange Stage. Photo: Torben Christensen/Ritzau Scanpix
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