Planning an International Trip Without Draining Your College Budget
It feels only fitting that on the one year anniversary of my last day in England I should be planning a trip that my best friend, Mary, and I have been dreaming of since freshman year of high school: a two-week backpacking trip through the United Kingdom (with a surprise layover in Iceland). A year later, I will be traveling back across the pond to my home away from home, ready to hand over copious amounts of money to the first crêpe cart I see. But both Mary and I will have just graduated from college, which means—you got it—we're broke. This means I've got to get creative if I want to be able to afford all those sidewalk snacks (not to mention airfare).
Mary and I on our last international trip together to France in 2012. We were just juniors in high school, and take a look at that ancient handheld video camera around my neck!
Me being the OCD and anxiety-ridden person that I am, I have already planned our entire trip down to the hour, including flights, bus rides, train tickets, hostels, and activities. But my extreme-planning can pay off big time—literally. Here are the tips I've found in trying to squeeze out every penny from my international travels:
1. Don't settle for just one "cheap travel deals" site.
I've found that nearly every cheap booking website like Expedia or Trivago gives you a different price, and it's best to look at as many as you can before you settle on a ticket. My personal favorite site for comparing ticket prices is Momondo.com because it shows you alternative days when flying would be cheaper.
2. Don't neglect the official airline's site.
Budget airlines sometimes won't show up on these cheap booking websites. If you're flying in the United Kingdom, go directly to Ryanair's website for the best deals—sometimes tickets as cheap as $25. And for international travel out of the U.S, check out Norwegian Air, though they are appearing more frequently on booking websites these days.
3. Consider what you'll lose with a budget international airline.
Weigh the pros and cons of a budget airline before seeing the $500 ticket and taking the plunge too rashly. Where do they fly out of? Most budget international airlines fly out of and in to very specific airports, so unless you live in one of these cities, you may have to make a long drive. Unless you know someone in that city who can hook you up with a parking spot, you could be accruing over $200 in parking fees for the weeks you're gone. Budget airlines also often charge extravagant fees for things like checked baggage, allocated seats, and food. If sitting with your travel buddy or having an included meal on the transatlantic flight is important to you, paying $200 more might be worth it for your mental health.
4. Maximize your schedule's efficiency.
It's all in the scheduling. Worried that they don't serve dinner on the budget flight? Take the overnight flight that takes off after dinner and pack snacks for breakfast. Want to see another destination, but don't want to spend money on a hotel? Choose a flight with a long layover at an airport near a major attraction (hint: Iceland layovers at the Keflavik International Airport give just enough time to visit the nearby Blue Lagoon and there's even a shuttle bus to and from KEF). This might involve sleeping in an airport, but trust me, sometimes it's worth roughing it to save the cost of a hotel, especially in a super expensive country.
5. Sometimes taking the bus isn't worth it.
Don't only look at your trip's costs in terms of money, but also in terms of time. If the bus is $14, but takes 5 and a half hours, while the train is $40 and takes 2 hours, the train might be worth it in the long run. Remember, you're there to see and experience things! If you want a trip to be memorable, you won't spend it languishing on a bus and arriving in a city as the museums and attractions all close.
6. Look at the reviews.
Don't be tricked by too-low-to-be-true costs at a hostel. Do your homework and see if they're cutting corners—is there hot water? Do the beds creak? Is there a loud bar next door? Also use the reviews to judge whether this hostel is the right fit for you. If you're a more reserved traveler (like me), you probably don't want to stay at the hostel that's right next to the busiest bar in the entire city, where the drunken partygoers will keep you up all night. Use reviews to find a hostel that suits your needs but doesn't break the bank.
7. Use a free itinerary making website to cut money-draining activities.
Lots of websites allow you to make itineraries online for free (I used Travefy for this particular trip). You can also just use a simple Excel spreadsheet (or both if you're super OCD like me). Here, it's much easier to conceptualize each day and the amount of activities you have tried to cram into it. When I get to the day-to-day itinerary making stage, I usually realize that I have overextended myself and tried to fit 24 hours worth of activities into every day of the trip. That's the point at which I prioritize free activities, like museums, parks, and historic architectural sightseeing, over costly non-essentials, like the London Eye.
8. Invest in a carry-on approved backpack.
There is nothing worse than reaching the ticket gate for your Ryanair flight and having the steward ask you to fit your backpack in the small measuring compartment, only to discover your backpack does not, in fact, fit. Many companies make backpacks specifically designed for travel that will not cause you this grievance and incur you hundreds of dollars in fees. This is also a chance to invest in peace of mind—consider getting a backpack like this one that comes with extra safety features to keep your belongings safe from pickpockets while you're busy sleeping on public transportation or snapping photos in a crowded tourist spot.
9. Plan your trip around a time when you know you'll have some extra expendable income.
For me, I chose to plan my trip after graduation because my family has a history of generosity around important milestones in my life, I've been able to save money while working and having most of my expenses covered by dorm life the past four years, and this may be the last time I can afford not to work for two weeks during the summer with grad school (and the end of my ability to hold a part-time job while in school) rapidly approaching in the fall. I planned purchasing my plane ticket for right after I got back my tax refund, and luckily, it covered the entire ticket, so it felt like I didn't spend any money on it at all.
10. Don't feel like you have to do everything.
When I left England at the end of my study abroad program, it felt like the end of the world. I thought I'd never get to go back, that this was my last chance to do all the things I hadn't done yet. It made for a stressful last few days in Oxford and London. But now, just a little over a year later, I'll be going back. Enjoy every moment, and remember, the best part about budget travel is that in a few years, you'll have saved enough money to take a new adventure!
A few of my favorites from my and Kayla's last day in London exactly one year ago,
April 17, 2017!