A CHRISTMAS enthusiast is stunned at how much £20 got her at a famous Christmas market.
Jane Corscadden who works for Belfast Live set herself a challenge to only spend £20 at the Belfast Christmas Market.
GettyBelfats’s Christmas market is the longest-running in Ireland – attracting tourists for the last 18 years[/caption]
Inflation added to lower wage growth has seen many people arrive at Christmas markets only to be greeted with eye-watering prices.
Reports of hot chocolate costing market goers almost £10 and sausages priced at £8 have been the biggest complaints of Winter markets this year.
But, Jane was pleasantly surprised by how far her money went at Belfast’s Christmas Market.
Jane wrote: “I ventured into the city for my first visit to the market this year on Friday afternoon, November 24, making sure to go slightly later in the afternoon to miss the lunchtime rush.
“The slight delay seemed to have paid off, as although it was busy, the queues weren’t too bad and I was able to get everything I was looking for fairly quickly.”
With her £20 Jane set out to buy a ‘main lunch’ with a ‘dessert’ and ‘drink’.
And, depending on how much she would have leftover she’d also try to buy ‘something a little extra’.
She added: “Every time I go to the market, especially if it’s my first visit of the year, there are a few must-visit stalls for me so I made sure to stop by at those on this trip.”
Her first purchase was a £7 ‘chilli bratwurst, served with a baguette, crispy onion, ketchup and mustard’.
Jane thought the price of her ‘chilli bratwurst’ was a lot but still managed to get more treats including ’15 mini-pancakes covered in syrup’ costing her £6 ‘and a mocha with whipped cream’ which cost £4.
This left Jane with £3 left and she admitted: “I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to get anything with £3, really, but then a stall selling “chocolate kisses” caught my eye.
“One of these sweet treats was £1.50, so I could get two for my remaining money.”
She added: “These German chocolate sweets have a crisp wafer base with a soft and creamy filling, and are covered in different chocolate flavours.
I opted for the peanut brittle and white chocolate flavours.”
Jane overall was happy with her experience at the festive market and felt she was able to treat herself without ‘completely breaking the bank’.
She concluded: “All in all, I love the Belfast Christmas market and make sure to stop by once or twice every year.
However, many of the stalls are expensive, and stopping by is definitely more of a once-in-a-while thing than something I’d do regularly.”
She later added: “I was surprised at the amount I was able to get for £20, not thinking I’d have anything leftover after buying a main, dessert, and a drink.
“I now feel sufficiently in the Christmas spirit, and am looking forward to a wander around the stalls – and the beer tents – on an evening visit sometime soon.”
GettyMarketgoers can expect over 100 exhibitors from 28 counties[/caption] Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
