For students planning to explore the world, there are many things to be aware of and prepare for. Whether you are planning to take a gap year, an end-of-term escape, or a year abroad, travelling doesn’t have to break the bank, as long as you travel smart. Here, we will look at the most budget-friendly tips and tools to really make the most out of your limited budget!
8 Travel Tips for Students
-
Make holistic destination choices.
Fares to neighbouring countries are cheap, however once transportation, accommodation and activities are factored in, it can add up to be surprisingly expensive. An all-inclusive two- week trip to France may cost a lot more than a two-week trip to Asia. It is important to strike a balance between living costs and airfare when deciding on the destination. You can achieve this balance by making a rough budget plan, think about transport (internal and external) prices, accommodation and food costs.
-
Internal transport brainstorm
Before you go to the destination country, get down with some numbers. First, find out where you want to travel, the places you want to visit, how much internal travel you will do. Try to walk as much as possible. For long distances, make use of public transport if your research concludes that it is cost-effective. One of the biggest attractions of travelling is getting down to the details of a city or country, but if you can’t actually afford to get around once you get there, this can be a problem, so you’ll want to make sure you plan as much of this step as possible.
Click here for a public transport tool
-
Early bird gets the cheap flights!
Plan your travels ahead of time using online resources to find the cheapest time to travel and use price alert to track the changes in price. Try to travel at off-peak times, as a student you get a lot more time off than other people – so make the most of this! You can avoid booking flights at peak times like weekends. Instead, mid-week flights on Tuesdays and Wednesdays can be quieter and cheaper. Below you will find some useful online tools for comparing and finding travel tickets.
- Skyscanner
- Kayak
-
Store belongings save money!
If you are planning a long trip or planning on travelling at the end of your tenancy, then don’t pay rent! Instead, use self-storage to store your belongings in a flexible, protected and accessible place until you travel. This is a real benefit as it allows you to travel with only what you need, all the while knowing that your belongings are safely stored.
-
Utilise stop overs
Make the most of a long trip by taking advantage of stop overs. You can contact airlines and ask if it is possible to extend your stop over by a few days or weeks. This way you can cross another country off your list with little to no extra costs. Some airlines even offer free hotel stays for long-haul flights. Long stop overs are a great way to fit in a city break to soak up all the culture and history a major city has to offer.
-
Unleash your inner discount hunter
Why pay full price when you can get the same product for cheaper? Do your research, talk to locals and make use of online discount code resources to hunt down local deals and discounts in the area you are travelling to.
Also, utilise that student status and make most of the student discounts available to you. A lot of museums and other tourist attractions offer discounts for students – so don’t travel without your student ID card!
-
Bag employability points abroad
If you want to travel, why not intern or volunteer abroad? This is not only productive but can be cost-effective. You may get free accommodation when you volunteer. Furthermore, a lot of internships these days are paid, you can secure placements that provide you with support during your stay. There are a lot of opportunities out there, like TEFL internships. Finding a flexible working opportunity allows you to make money while you travel so that you can make the most of your time away and not have to worry too much about money or accommodation.
-
Accommodation
Accommodation can become very costly, so it is worth thinking about it in advance and booking wisely. This will also be one of the largest costs to you when you are travelling, so it’s worth doing plenty of research and planning to strike the balance between affordability and quality. Below you will find a few sites that specialise in affordable accommodation. Sometimes accommodation can work cheaper when travelling with friends, as you can rent an entire Airbnb place and take sleeping bags with you.
-Couch surfing
-Airbnb
-Hostel
-Homestay
If you’re getting ready to take off on your travels, contact us to find out how we can help you with storing your belongings.