If you’ve been following along with my last few articles, I’m sure you already know that I’m a study abroad student. If you haven’t read any of my past posts, welcome! My name is Kate, and I am about two months into a 6 month study abroad placement in Aarhus, Denmark! This has been my first experience being in Europe for a prolonged period of time, and as a result of that, I’ve become a bit of a serial traveller. At this point, I’m sure my people know that backpacking is a students best friend. In my opinion, a successful backpacking trip comes down to four things, 1) Travel Plans, 2)Packing, 3)Planning and 4) Travel Buddies. Let me walk you through these components and show you how to make the trip of your dreams a success!
1. Travel Plans
The first thing that everyone does when they start booking trips is booking their travel and accommodations.
FlixBus is a broke student’s best friend when it comes to traveling. The company has hundreds of buses on the road each day, leaving and arriving at a ton of different locations worldwide. Plus, all bus fares are extremely affordable! You can choose to reserve seats with friends, or book seats at a table on the lower level of the bus if you plan to work while you’re on the road. It is important, however, to be aware of the length of the bus rides you’re registering for and plan accordingly. Personally, if a ride is longer than three hours, I pay an extra few euros to reserve a private seat so I have extra space and don’t have to worry about sitting with a stranger.
When looking at flights, I find it best to use Skyscanner. The platform allows you to search for the cheapest flights and round trip tickets from airports across the globe, while also monitoring prices of saved or favourited flights. Through the majority of sky scanner flights, you can choose to include any add ons like a checked bag or reserved seating. You can also take a ground floor offer for your ticket, which is usually dirt cheap! When looking at Skyscanner flights, it’s important to pay attention to the flights arrival and departure times. Often times the cheap flights depart or arrive at odd hours or have unusual layovers. You need to be sure these are things you can accommodate and plan accordingly for.
2. Packing
Over the last few weeks specifically, I’ve gained something of a super power. I’ve become very good at cramming four or five days worth of stuff into a carry-on sized backpack and a small tote bag. This definitely is a skill seeing as some airlines or buses charge you $75 Canadian to check a bag or book extra storage. I also recommend using backpacks for carry-on sized suitcases; I personally find them easier to accommodate and maneuver around the airport or the city you are traveling in.
The first thing you need to do when your packing is to be practical. How long are you really gone? What kinds of things are you going to be doing and what clothes do you need for that? I usually bring one jacket or coat, one pair of shoes, one pair of jeans and then whatever other clothing items I need for that trip specifically. This could be hiking gear if you’re going on an outdoor excursion in Lucerne or a nice dress if you’re going to the opera in Vienna.
Possibly the best thing to ever be invented for backpackers would be the packing cubes. I usually fit one medium one and two small ones in my backpack, and I can squish all of my clothes for the trip within those three bags. After that, the only thing going in my pack is toiletries and my miscellaneous bag which will have charging cords, medications, makeup, my camera and other bits and pieces. Packing with these cubes keeps all my belongings organized, but also allows me to utilize every little inch of space I have available, which I will forever be grateful for!
3. Planning
I have always been a bit of a planner—I like my schedules and I like to stick to them! This has actually really come in handy for me over the past few months. I’ve become somewhat of a planner for my friend group. I like to pick a handful of things that I’m interested in seeing or doing in the city I’m visiting; this can be sight seeing, shopping locations, restaurants or experience-based activities like cooking classes or boat tours. Then, I input those in to ChatGPT along with any timelines and travel times that are set for the trip. Chat will make you multiple different itineraries and will give you a ton of alternative activities and recommendations for the area! You can also ask ChatGPT to add some different types of activities to your itinerary or to make some days busier and some more relaxed.
It’s important to share your plans and itineraries with your travel group so you can all agree on what you want to see when you’re visiting that set city. There’s nothing worse than missing something you’re really interested in, or getting stuck seeing something you don’t care about.
You should always include prices and travel length for each activity! This helps you stick to a budget while traveling and also allows you to plan stuff accordingly.
4. Travel Buddies
Possibly the most important part of any trip is who you are traveling with. Your travel buddies should be people that you can spend an extended period of time with and not fight or bicker with whatsoever. This is harder than you may think. If someone gets on your nerves in a controlled setting, imagine how annoying they’ll be after a five hour bus ride or a double delayed flight.
When planning a group trip, I urge you to really think about the type of people you’re going with. Are they morning or night people? Are they big spenders or on a budget? Are they super active or do they prefer a more laid back day? Do they like the same kind of food as you? Are they museum people, walking tour people or shoppers? Do they just prefer hanging out in a coffee shop? You need to figure out who they are and what they’re into, then you need to decide if you’re interested in traveling the same way. If you’re not, they likely aren’t the travel company you’re looking for. A really good way to figure this out is by using a travel plan or itinerary, like mentioned above.
Interested in more travel tips and tricks or wanting to stay up to date on my latest study abroad content? Keep an eye out for my next articles and check out past articles on my profile while you wait!