During my time at High Point University, I traveled to 12 different countries while attending my Travel Study Programs. While there, I learned numerous lessons and took away valuable tidbits from each location I have explored.
While looking back on each destination, I was able to compile a list of my top five tips, offering words of advice for students who wish to travel during their collegiate experience. Be sure to take each to heart, and remember to have the time of your life while completing them. I know I truly did.
1. Go To Class and Remember to Study!
Remember to go to class and to study from time to time. You are abroad for a reason. This is not an all-expense paid trip where you can gallivant from country to country without having to work for it.
Remember to go to class, engage with other students, and to observe how the educational system is different from the one you attend back home. You may learn more than you expect!
2. Embrace The Culture
There are numerous ways to embrace the culture of the city you are visiting. You can befriend the locals, attend fairs or festivals, attend holiday celebrations, try the local cuisine, and even dress the part as you are participating in these events.
Going to Oktoberfest in Germany or taking part in The Sound of Music Tour in Austria? Be sure to wear your dirndl and lederhosen. I did!
3. Visit Historical Landmarks
Whether it is a pub where two prominent authors conversed their writings, a supposedly haunted castle, or a landmark significant to historical context such as Stonehenge, be sure to visit them all.
By taking the time to visit each of these locations, you will not only absorb the cultural value of the area, but also the historical context of the city.
My personal favorite was having breakfast at The Elephant House in Edinburgh, Scotland where I had the opportunity to sit at the table where J.K. Rowling penned the first Harry Potter novel.
4. Do Something Out Of Your Comfort Zone
Now and then you must take a leap of faith and try something you have never dared to do before.
Whether this is to go to the catacombs in Paris or Vienna, to go tobogganing in the hills of the Swiss Alps, or to explore a haunted castle turned prison in the early hours of the morning, do something that stretches your comfort zone.
You may hate it at the time, but will never regret it once it’s over.
I can attest to that, for I took part in all three events and said I would never do so again. Yet if I had the opportunity to do so, I most likely would.
Oh, and the castle turned prison was truly haunted. I do not doubt that for one minute.
5. Travel
It is called Travel Study for a reason. Though you are there to attend school and to study, be sure to take time and travel. Whether this is to a neighboring city or a different country, be sure to see everything you wish to see.
Also be sure to take various means of transportation, such as by car, bus, boat, train, or plane. Each will give you a different cultural vibe and will help you to make each of your adventures a little different.
Taking a cab through Oxford, a bus to London, a boat to Amsterdam, a train to Paris, and a plane to Sophia truly allowed me to see each city in a different light.
My final piece of advice is this.
See the world when you can, and to look through various lenses while you travel. You never know what you will find when you open your eyes.