Over the course of our travels, we learnt a
lot about travelling. Other travellers along the way taught us so much, and
some things we had to learn on our own. I thought that I would make a list of
our top travel tips for any of you who are thinking about doing a backpacking
trip, which I really think everyone should do at least once in their lives as
it is a truly life changing experience.
·
Before you leave, check all the
countries you plan on visiting’s visa requirements. And whilst it says that you do not need a
visa to enter a certain country, make sure you check how long you can be in
that country without a visa. Don’t rely on travel agents to do it for you! That
was probably our biggest mistake. Whilst we knew you didn’t need a visa to
enter South Africa on an Australian passport, we didn’t check how long you
could stay in the country. It was an expensive mistake to say the least.
·
Zip lock bags are a blessing in
disguise. The amount of situations we encountered when we needed zip lock bags
was more than I had ever thought. They
are incredibly handy to have in your bag. We found they especially came in
handy for putting shampoo bottles in. Often we would have to leave a hostel and
the shampoo bottle would still be wet, so we would have to put it in a zip lock
bag. Although we did just constantly keep it in a zip lock bag so it didn’t
leak all through our backpacks. They are also fantastic for carrying around
your lunch for the day!
·
Pack as little as you can. You
are going to pick up things along the way, whether they be souvenirs or a much
needed new pair of jeans, and if your bag is completely full before you leave
there is no way you will fit anything new. Also don’t be afraid to throw out
clothes. Especially if you are travelling for a long period of time. Wearing
the same 4 t-shirts for 8 months can get a little boring.
· Also make sure your backpack is comfy! You will be carrying it around for a long time.
·
Travelling during the night is
going to save you a fortune in travel and accommodation expenses. If you have
the option to take a night bus or train, definitely take it. It may be some of
the most uncomfortable hours of your life, but you really will save so much
money. While we were in the UK we used a bus company called MegaBus. Their bus
fares are incredibly reasonable, and they often had night options. When you travel through the night you don’t
have to worry about paying for that night’s accommodation, and the night fares
are generally a lot cheaper.
·
If you are travelling to Europe and the UK,
make sure you always carry small change! Most public bathrooms throughout
Europe and the UK cost 20c to use, sometimes more. More often than not they do
not give change, and won’t accept anything more than 1 pound/euro. The worst
place we came across for expensive public toilets was Venice, where you had to
pay 1 euro to go to the bathroom. Most
times it was better to buy a drink at a café and use their bathrooms for free.
All the money we spent on going to the bathroom probably would have got us a
few nights accommodation!
·
If you are planning to travel anything
like Harrison and I did, you will probably be eating a lot of pasta and
sandwiches. Which obviously aren’t the healthiest of foods, but are definitely
the cheapest. This possibly means (I know it did for me) that you are going to
put on weight while you are away. And that is totally okay! Even if you do
manage to eat relatively healthy, there is also the stress of travel and the
trying of new foods and drinks. It is likely that you will put on a few kg. But
you really shouldn’t let that bother you. It is likely to fall straight off
once you get home and get back into your normal routine.
·
Keeping on the topic of food,
when looking at hostels one of your number one priorities should be a
kitchen. Staying at a hostel with a
kitchen will save you so much money. You can buy a few nights worth of pasta
and mince for less than what you would spend on a meal for two out at a
restaurant. You can also then buy a loaf of bread and sandwich ingredients and
keep them in the fridge, giving you lunch for a couple of days. An extra bonus
is if the hostel offers a free breakfast as well as a kitchen.
·
Whilst it is good to save money
on food and make your own, you should also treat yourself and try some of the
local foods. If you are in Scotland you have to try haggis! It is surprisingly
yummy. Same goes for pasta in Italy and cheese in the Netherlands. You don’t
have to go all out and have a huge meal, even if you share it with someone it
is definitely worth trying the local foods.
·
If you are travelling with a tour
group you must make sure to talk to people! If you are like us and with another
person, you mustn’t stop that from meeting new people. Some of the best people
you will ever meet will be while you are travelling. If you aren’t travelling
with a bus tour, you can still make friends at hostels. Especially if they have
a kitchen or common area. Become friends with the people in your room; it makes
staying with them a whole lot less awkward.
·
If you are staying at hostels,
book dorm rooms rather than private rooms. You will save a heap of money, and
meet some really cool people.
·
If you are planning on taking
your phone, you should buy SIM cards locally.
Rather than spending heaps of money on roaming, or buying an
international SIM card that may or may not work in every place you go, research
the local phone companies and buy a SIM card whilst you are over there. If you
are travelling to Europe you will have to make sure the SIM works in all the
countries you will be going to. You may need to get an international SIM in
Europe if you are going to many countries.
·
If you are travelling with
someone for a long period of time, make sure you give each other some space
every now and then. You don’t even have to be away from each other. You can be
in the same room and doing your own thing like reading or in our case,
colouring. It just gives you some ‘alone’ time, which is important when you are
going to be spending that much time with someone.
·
Try and plan to spend more than a few days in
each place you go. At first we were staying a week and sometimes longer in
places. However we realized that if we wanted to get to everywhere we had
planned we would have to cut down the time spent in each place. Whilst it was
great to get to see more beautiful places, it was pretty exhausting moving
every 2 to 3 days. Just as we would get settled we would have to leave again.
Give yourself some time to really see the place you are going, and some time to
relax at that place too!
·
Back up your photos!! While we
were in France we had our hard drive stolen, along with the photos from the
first month of our trip. Luckily I had been backing up most of the photos, but
those I didn’t back up were lost. Back them up to something like One Drive,
where you can access them no matter what happens to any electronic device you
take with you.
·
Busabout is a really great bus
tour company for anyone looking at doing a bus tour around Europe. They are
super flexible as it is a hop on hop off system, which we really loved.
I think that those are our top travel tips!
Really you should just make the most of your time abroad. It will be some of
the best times of your life, and will be something that you will remember
forever. Our world is an incredible place, with so much to teach us. Be willing
to learn, and realize that you may have your beliefs questioned. But that is one of the best things about
travelling, you are constantly learning. If anyone as any questions, I am more
than happy to answer them!
