My One Black Friday Purchase- I'm Excited!

So of course, Black Friday is today.
Some people are in love with it and take advantage of all the sales they could find and stock up on things for the holidays and the rest of the year even. Black Friday, if done properly, could really help you save money for the rest of the year, if you buy only things you would have had to buy later, only at a lower cost, because of of the sales.
But for some people, Black Friday puts a lot of pressure to buy, buy, buy now, even if you don't have the spare cash. And sometimes, people buy things on Black Friday that they wouldn't have bought otherwise, simply because its on sale.
Hint- if you buy something you wouldn't have otherwise gotten because its on sale, you haven't saved money, you spent money. Its only saving money if buying it was a given and you spent less than you would have otherwise.

Anyhow, my friend Michelle was telling me what she was buying for Black Friday, and I mentioned that I have a problem finding shoes I like, so she sent me some Black Friday deal sites for shoes, and I was looking and looking through them, trying to find something I liked, and then it hit me. Even with the deals those shoes cost more money than I want to be paying for shoes right now. And I wasn't even in the market for shoes specifically now, any more than I usually am.
So then I decided to not buy anything for Black Friday. I wasn't going to look to see what I should spend on when I don't need anything specifically.

And then my sister Violet called me up and told me about RyanAir's Black Friday deals on airfare- 5 euros, or $5.93, each way on tickets to many cities. I looked it up and those 5 Euro tickets seemed to originate only in Great Britain... but I found tickets for 10 Euros each way to Cyprus!


I checked it out, it's legitimate, if no frills. I paid 20.38 euros, or $24.98 for round trip airfare to Paphos, Cyprus.
That might seem like I am just spending money on something I wouldn't have otherwise, no matter how cheap, but no.
My 30th birthday is coming up this February and I've been dreaming of going to Switzerland and Italy for my birthday with a group of friends, but even though I found cheap airfare, everything else there is so expensive that financially it isn't an option for me now, and I was really bummed out because I was so looking forward to that trip.
This trip to Cyprus is much more affordable than even that cheap trip- I'll be going for 8 days in February, and found accommodations via Airbnb for under $50 for the whole trip. We may not go with the cheapest, but either way it'll be under $100 for sure. Definitely something we can swing financially.
In Cyprus I've been doing research about costs, and found out that buses are between 1.5 and 7 euros, depending on whether they're city buses or intercity, so that is also affordable. And most tourist attractions are 2.5-5 euros.
My goal is to keep the total trip under $175, ideally under $150. We'll see. Totally doable, in my opinion.

So that's that- my one Black Friday purchase. No, it's not Italy or Switzerland, and no it isn't a place I've dreamt about going to for years and years, but Poland wasn't either a place I'd dreamed of going, but my cheap trip there was so much fun and worth it. I'm sure Cyprus will be the same way.

One friend is for sure coming with me, and possibly another.

This'll be fun!

Are you buying anything/did you buy anything for Black Friday/Cyber Monday? Why did you buy those things? Do you think you bought those frugally? What are your tips for dealing frugally with Black Friday?
Ever been to Cyprus? Have any suggestions of things I must see and do while I'm there, on a budget? Possibly off the beaten track type stuff? Suggestions of websites that might give me good suggestions? Other than Tripadvisor, which is a given?

Penniless Parenting

Mommy, wife, writer, baker, chef, crafter, sewer, teacher, babysitter, cleaning lady, penny pincher, frugal gal

9 Comments

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  1. How wonderful! Good for you! Enjoy!

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  2. Awesome purchase - and I'm totally with you on not buying things just because they are on sale. I haven't been to the blog in a while - but LOVE your new picture! So cute!

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    1. Thank you, I like it too! The picture was only updated within the last week, so even if you were here beforehand you wouldn't have seen that.

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  3. Penny, it is hard to believe you are not yet thirty- you have the wisdom of someone much older!

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    1. Awwww thanks! If you can believe, I started my blog when I was 22.... How old did you think I was?

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  4. very nice. happy you can get away with friends.

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  5. I've always been a little nervous about trusting deals that good. An airline that can afford to operate at the costs that RyanAir does is either really good at selling markups for service that you'd normally pay for, or else it's taking shortcuts that no airline company should.

    That being said, have fun and I hope you'll be able to enjoy yourself in Cyprus. You've earned it!

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  6. Yes, love the new picture and your one Black Friday purchase. We are the same age, I'll be 30 this upcoming May, but you do seem much wiser than your age ;-)

    Hope you have a blast on your trip!

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  7. That is an unbelievable deal!! I hope you have a fantastic time.

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