Tranquil surrey spot with 'hidden beach' perfect for a picnic

If you're looking for a fun weekend activity or date-night idea that won't cost you the earth, I have just the solution for making the most of the summer weather. When you're

watching the pennies, it can be hard to find things to do in this economic climate. When you're saving for a holiday, home improvements, or are simply cutting back on spending, you

don't want to miss out on summer fun. Instead of sitting in a beer garden and splashing our cash on an expensive dinner and drinks out, I gave myself a £30 budget to spend on trying

picnic items from Aldi. I discovered I could easily have spent less, and we went home with surplus food. To my surprise we managed to cobble together a main dish, with plenty of delicious

snacks and even a dessert on my budget, as well as some delicious alcoholic beverages to help us unwind on the weekend. While Aldi is renowned for slashing prices and keeping customer costs

low, I was still taken aback at the value for money. In terms of quality, the food I picked up was delicious too. THE DESTINATION When it comes to choosing the perfect picnic spot, there are

a few things to keep in mind. And the destination we selected ticked all of our boxes. Firstly I love anywhere with waterfront views and my partner, Owen, fancied a stroll, so we chose

somewhere accessible on foot. Of course we had to bring our Goldador, Rupert, so the destination needed to be dog friendly, with plenty of space for him to run around. Located in between

Walton-on-Thames and Weybridge, Desborough Island is a gorgeous manmade island in the centre of the River Thames near Sunbury Lock. It covers more than 100 acres and features riverside

views, woodland walks and meadows. It was the perfect destination for a summer evening, and allowed us to take Rupert for a lovely walk before settling down and enjoying dinner. We chose a

spot near the banks of the river, with a steep slope and beach at the end, Rupert loved splashing around in the water and cooling his paws. There were others taking picnics nearby, some

families had little fishing nets to play with in the water. It was a warm evening with clear skies, so we sat out until dusk. THE DINNER As I stumbled into Aldi last minute on a whim, I

wasn't really sure what to pick up for dinner. I find supermarkets a bit disorienting, and the layout wasn't super clear to me and I ended up visiting the same aisles a few times.

That being said, I managed to grab everything I needed in the end, and settled on a tuna pasta salad as our main dish. I didn't want to be carrying anything too heavy, so opted for

lighter items. Our picnics really aren't the most aesthetic, forget cottage core baskets and red and white gingham napkins. We shared the main dish from one container. A kilogram bag of

fusilli pasta came to just £1.29, which seems to be standard for most supermarkets. I picked up some salad items, including an avocado for 89p, and used some cucumber and tomatoes I had

left over in my fridge at home. The pasta salad was delicious, but of course no picnic is complete without little picky bits. While Aldi didn't seem to have too much in stock in the way

of traditional nibbles that I could find as the picnic selection had not yet been released, I did manage to bag a Spanish tapas for just £2.25 Eight slices of both chorizo regio and chorizo

pamplona were included in the pack, as well as six slices of serrano ham. If you didn't know it was from Aldi, you'd think it was from a Spanish restaurant. To pair with the

meats, I chose gourmet crackers made with sea salt for only 89p, and soft, tangy small wheel of Somerset goat's cheese for just £1.59. We nabbed two bags of crisps, I had the hand

cooked lightly salted flavour which I'd say were almost on par with Marks and Spencer's for £1.05. Owen snacked on the lentil chips, which are a dupe of Pop Chips, coming in at

£1.19. You can't have a picnic without a bowl of fruit, but because I was limiting what we brought I picked up a punnet of blueberries for £1.79 which seems to be mid-price range, with

Asda cutting in lower at £1.33 currently. The blueberries were nice overall, however some unfortunately were hit and miss. For a sweet treat, I made a summery, luxurious dessert, which

doesn't take much time and effort. I picked up two huge 200 gram chocolate bars, one milk and one dark chocolate to drizzle over huge strawberries. I ended up only using one bar and

saving the other for a later date. The chocolate bars only cost £1.59 each and are on par with Dairy Milk. The chocolate melted over boiled water nicely without lumps, and evenly poured over

the strawberries for a sumptuous snack. These were delightful, and are my go to dessert when I fancy something unique but really cannot be bothered to bake. I couldn't not try some of

Aldi's wonderful selection of beverages. The retailer has recently launched it's one of a kind 'still prosecco'. I know what you're thinking, that's just white

wine surely? But it really isn't. The drink doesn't taste completely bubble-less, there is a slight fizz, but it doesn't overwhelm the taste buds. The Costellore Still

Prosecco DOC, made with the Glera grape, grown in the Itallian region of Prosecco. Starting off similarly to white wine, Prosecco undergoes a second fermentation under pressure of a

stainless steel tank. It's dry and fresh with a very subtle melon tone with hints of citrus, which is lovely. Plus, the packaging is gorgeous and for £5.99, it's a total steal. If

you're not in the mood for lugging a heavy prosecco bottle around, I'd suggest trying the cocktail cans. You can find a range of flavours, I chose the passion fruit martini and the

raspberry mojito. The cans contain 250ml so aren't too heavy if you fancy more than one, and are easy to crush and dispose of. The raspberry mojito was a little too sweet for me,

I'd probably have one and be done with it. However for 89p a can, it's nothing to sniff at. Next time, I'll stick to my old trusty gin and tonics at 99p. You can also get

alcohol-free cans for as little as 69p. Overall, I'd recommend trying Aldi's summer produce if you're either on a budget or on the go, or both. The drinks are a great talking

point, and the prosecco and chocolate covered strawberries would be the perfect thing to bring along to a barbeque or dinner party without breaking the bank. FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THINGS TO DO

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