Student Travel from Essential Travel

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Thinking about a gap year? More and more students are deciding to take a break from home and studies and head out with a backpack and explore!

Travel is seen now, not just as a chance to have some fun, but also an opportunity to broaden your horizons, learn new skills, meet people and improve your employment possibilities on your return. Many graduate employers now see travelling and the skills learnt during the time, as extremely valuable in the modern workplace. So a year out can be both the experience of a lifetime and help with your career!

Once you’ve made the decision to go, and broken the news to your friends and family, comes the fun part! Deciding on where to go, for how long and who with?

The practicalities and logistics of a lengthy trip can appear daunting but help is out there. Deciding our long can be the key to your destination, many opt for the ‘traditional’ year out, but a long summer break can still allow for plenty of time to discover, Inter-railing in Europe or a ski season on the Alps do not take too much time!

Many opt for a round the world ticket, with well established backpacker routes and flight packages incorporating some of the more popular backpacker hotspots of South East Asia, Australia and North America. Huge numbers of travellers are drawn to such areas, resulting in fantastic nightlife, enormous amounts of cheap accommodation and a huge amount of new friends to be made!

If you wish to go off the beaten track, many are beginning to explore the far flung corners of Central America, Central Asia, Siberia and the Pacific Islands in the search trying to uncover what life is really like across the globe!

If you don’t fancy going solo, there are a number of reputable organisations offering group tours, conservation work, volunteering and many other employment possibilities. Such a trip can offer welcomed security back home, with your parents knowing you are well looked after, as well as offering you the possibility of structure and training. Monitoring turtle populations in the Galapagos, caring for injured cheetahs in Botswana, or building a school in Papua New Guinea are just some of the experiences on offer.

Once all the fun decisions have been made, then the practicalities need to be discussed. Flight tickets, insurance, luggage, visas and jabs are all necessary considerations. Help can be found on the internet, where visa applications, flight tickets and insurance can all be purchased easily.

Essential Travel Helpful Hints

1) Buy insurance! Many travellers overlook insurance, but it can be tremendously important, providing peace of mind for you and for your family back home. Most policies provide cover for your baggage, medical expenses and cancellation, making sure you have the help you need when you need it most. When buying a policy, check with your insurer that it covers you for any extra activities you may participate in, e.g. bungee jumping, white water rafting.

2) Check the internet for travelogues and blogs. There are a number of excellent travelogue sites online, offering advice and suggestions from experienced travellers. Many blogs focus on specific areas and can offer fantastic insight into your chosen destination.

3) Keep in touch. Make sure you leave a planned itinerary at home, so friends and family can check your progress. Try and call home every few weeks or so, just to make sure no one forgets you!

4) If the phone is not for you, then how about setting up your own blog? There are a number of sites that enable you to create your own travel blog, with pictures, details of your itinerary and much more. Making sure that everyone will be able to keep up with your exploits and be jealous of all your fun! Internet cafes can be found worldwide and offers a cheap way of keeping in touch and informing every one of your plans.

5) Don’t worry about what you are going to do when you get home. One of the key problems for some travellers is worrying how their year out will affect them. Your time away will allow you to think about how you want your life to progress, as well as developing your communication, interpersonal and finance skills, putting you in the best position when you return!

For more information

For more information take a look through the next few pages where you can find details of backpacker accommodation, tours, advice and activities from some of Essential Travels student travel partners.