WANT TO TRAVEL? MY TOP TIPS ON CHOOSING WHERE TO GO!

Obviously I'm no expert, but I like giving advice so thought I'd share some of my top tips on where you should go if you want to travel - whether that's a 2 week holiday, weekend break or gap yah.

My first point - and this is the main one - is that you should go where YOU wanna go, not where you think you should be going. I get it, like everything in life there are trends. First it was Iceland, then it was Croatia, then Barcelona. Not to mention the standard backpacker trail of Thailand > Vietnam > Laos > Cambodia > Malaysia > Singapore > Bali > Australia > New Zealand. But I hear so many people say they want to 'go here' and 'go there', yet when I ask what they actually want to see or do during their trip it's usually met with a blank face. I can't help but think 'Do you actually want to go there? Do you even know where that place is on the map? Or do you want to go because the entire blogosphere is talking about it so you feel like you should?' I'm not saying that's always the case, but surely not everyone on the internet can want to go to the same few countries - that goes against the very obvious fact that people are individuals and everyone has different likes and dislikes. I had no interest whatsoever in going to Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia or Singapore - so I didn't go. In fact, the only reason I went to Vietnam was because I had 10 days to kill and my friend was going. Yeah I enjoyed Halong Bay, but I wouldn't rave about Vietnam like most people I know do. Taking recomendations from friends and inspiration from the internet is great - it can lead you to places you'd never even considered which can only be a positive thing. But if you've spent your whole life dreaming of going to Brazil, go to Brazil. Don't feel like you have to go to Australia just because everyone else is.

I'd also recommend basing your decision on what it is you want from the trip. Do you want to party or chill? A city break or great beaches? Do your research before you go so you know what the country has to offer and whether it sounds like the type of trip you want to take. There's no point going to Melbourne thinking you're going to experience a stunning Aussie beach like you see on photos when Melbourne is known for its city life - not it's beaches (which fyi are very average). Likewise, there's no point going to Ubud in Bali if you want to party because there really isn't a party scene - you're best off going to Kuta or Gili T instead. If you just want some sizzling heat whilst lazing around in a resort all day, you might be best off going somewhere cheap like the Canary Islands rather than spending a fortune flying to the other side of the world for the same experience.

It's equally as important to research how expensive the place you want to go to is so you have realistic expectations. I once had a friend who said they wanted to go to Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, China, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, South America, the USA and Africa and asked how much the trip would cost them cause they have no savings. Erm....... I think you'd need to win the lottery. Japan, Australia, NZ and the US are some of the most expensive countries in the world that require A LOT of saving if you really want to make the most of your trip and experience everything. If you book a flight thinking it's going to be cheap as chips, you're in for a big shock. Set realistic goals and visit the countries you know you can afford or be prepared to sacrifice a lot in order to save the money. I can't afford Japan on top of my USA trip at the moment, so I'm going to have to wait until I can build my savings up again. For me, it's all about prioritising where I want to go the most and being patient with the places I can't afford yet.

Hope these help in some way :)

xx

HOW I VISITED 4 COUNTRIES IN 1 YEAR WHILST WORKING FULL TIME

Don't you just love how unpredictable life is?

A spontaneous trip to Australia in January is where it all started.

From that moment on, I was determined to travel. I made it my mission to see as much of the world as I could on a graduate salary and 27 days holiday.

In March, my mum and I went to Paris, France to celebrate her birthday and my new job. In August, me and my friends went to Brussels, Belgium to visit a friend we met in Australia. In October, two of my friendship groups joined together for a winter getaway to Reykjavik, Iceland.

Visiting multiple countries in one year isn't actually as difficult as people think. If anything, the most difficult thing is finding people to go with. Luckily that problem was eradicated for me when I met my 'travel friends' (as I like to call them) in Australia at the beginning of the year. If I hadn't have met them, there's absolutely no way I would have had the adventures I've had this year. I was extremely lucky to meet a group of people who share the same desire to travel as I do, and who are in exactly the same boat as me when it comes to working/studying full time. Trust me, it can be done!

So, if you're lucky enough to have a partner, family member, best friend or group of friends you can go away with - grab the bull by the horns and do it!

TRAVEL. LIVE LIFE.

If not, don't panic! This is how I visited 4 countries in 1 year whilst working full time...

1. DON'T WASTE YOUR ANNUAL LEAVE

27 days + bank holidays (the amount I get) might sound like a lot, but stretch it over the course of a year and you'll find that it runs out very quickly. I've purposely been very sensible with mine. Want a 4 day mini break to Paris? Don't book 4 days off - that's a waste. Go over the weekend so you only have to take the Friday and the Monday off. I flew to Brussels and back in just 2 DAYS and only needed the Friday off work. Trust me, you don't need as much time off as you think you do! Save your annual leave for a time when you'll really need it. There's nothing worse than needing a good holiday but not being able to book one because you've used all of your holidays!

Alternatively, if you HAVE to use up your annual leave by a certain date - make the most of it! Don't sit at home being bored (everyone else will be at work and daytime TV really isn't that great...) Use that precious time off to visit a new country because, lets be honest, who would choose to stay in the UK when they don't have to?

2. EUROPE IS CHEAP - MAKE THE MOST OF IT!

Granted, it isn't as cheap as Asia but still... Europe is so affordable! We're lucky that us Brits live so close to mainland Europe that it literally costs nothing to hop on a flight or jump on the Eurostar and we're there. I'm pretty sure my trips to Paris and Brussels cost no more than £200 (return transport and accommodation) for 2 nights, which ANYONE can save if they put their minds to it. Trust me when I say hostels and airbnb are the way forward! Don't bother with overpriced hotels - they aren't worth it. If you're going away to enjoy yourself and have fun, chances are you won't be spending a lot of time in your room anyway. I'd much rather rough it in a hostel for a couple of nights than pay an extra £100 for complimentary shampoo and conditioner that I won't use.

As for flights, always fly from London. Yes it may be inconvenient getting up at 3am to get the 4 hour coach down to Heathrow (you don't even wanna know how many times I've done that journey), but again it will save you a bomb on flights compared to flying from your local airport (East Midlands why so expensive?!) Do your research and you'll soon realise how cheap holidays to Europe can be.

3. NO ONE WILL GO WITH YOU? GO ALONE!

This decision was the best one I've ever made. You might have the time off work, you might have the money... but oh no! You have no one to go with. I think this is something that holds a lot of people back from travelling as much as they want to. A lot of the time you can't rely on other people because everyone is off living their own lives and have their own schedules that will never match up with yours. You're skint when they have money... they're going back to uni when you have money... you both have money but want to go to different countries. It really is impossible. As I said, if you're lucky enough to have someone to travel with then you're already halfway there! But if you don't, there's nothing stopping you from going on your own! There are SO many tour groups out there and, although they're not for everyone, going on a Contiki tour to Australia was the best thing I've EVER done in my whole entire life! Read about my trip to the land down under here

4. JUST BOOK IT!

One of my pet peeves is hearing people go on and on about how much they want to go somewhere, yet they never actually book anything! What is stopping you? If you can get the time off work/uni and have money saved up (which everyone is capable of doing! Read my tips here) then you've got yourself a winning formula! When my manager at New Look said I could have 3 weeks off to go to Australia, the first thing I did when I finished my shift was go to STA Travel to book my flights. £1200 gone just like that, but I didn't bat an eyelid because it was something I really wanted.

Don't say... do. I could reel off a million and one travel quotes from Pinterest right now but I'll try and refrain myself. But honestly, anything is possible if you put your mind to it :)

xxx

5 WAYS TO SAVE MONEY FOR TRAVEL

If you're serious about travelling, you'll do pretty much anything to save those precious £££. Saving money for travel takes dedication and will power - you really need to commit to it and it's definitely not something you can go into half-heartedly. Depending on where you want to go and how long you want to go for, your target can be anything from £1,000 to £10,000. Personally, the sort of travel I want to do requires me to save around £10,000 so my ways of saving may be slightly more extreme than others. Although this is my personal take on what works for me, I honestly believe that if people put their minds to it, they can save a lot more than they think.
So, here's what I'm doing...

1. SAVE 75% OF YOUR WAGES

I've never been an overly materialistic person. Yes I love clothes and trinkets for my bedroom but they don't define me as a person. Since returning from Australia, I've become less and less interested in clothes and make up and basically crap that people like to waste their money on. I honestly couldn't care less that I don't own a Naked palette or the latest DW watch because those things don't mean anything to me. I could go and buy an iMac tomorrow if I wanted but guess what? I don't need one. When you buy something expensive, the novelty usually wears off fairly quickly and you end up wanting to buy something else to fill that void. When you take a step back, you realise how ridiculous the whole whirlwind of consumerism is. So do what I do - live off 25% of your wages. Pay your board, pay your phone contract, pay for petrol (and trust me, I spend A LOT on petrol) - even pay your gym membership. Then leave yourself a bit to spend on the odd night out or meal with friends but just don't go crazy. It can be done, trust me! I know not everyone will be able to save that radically because everyone's situation is different but even if you save 50% of your wages, it's better than saving 0%.

2. SELL, SELL, SELL!

This is a no brainer. Sell EVERYTHING that you don't use anymore. There's nothing quite like looking in your Paypal account after a few months of selling and being surprised by the number you see on the screen. Let it all build up and then you'll really notice the difference. I use ebay and depop and it's honestly so simple so you'd be mad not to. FYI - you'll get the most money for coats so what's the point in letting them sit there gathering dust? BE HONEST - you're not going to wear an A/W15 coat in A/W16 because we're all fashion victims so we're obviously going to buy the first coat we see on a Topshop mannequin. Plus it hurts my brain to see a jam packed wardrobe. I'd much rather have an empty wardrobe full of clothes I wear than a full wardrobe of clothes I hate.

3. GET ANOTHER JOB

If you work full time, this is pretty impossible unless you wanna work 7 days a week which I would not recommend AT ALL (been there, got the t-shirt). You can however do the odd thing here and there to earn some extra dollar. There are plenty of zero hour contracts out there where you can just work the odd Saturday at an event or festival as a steward or marshal during the summer months. If you can squeeze something in, I say do it. I'm lucky that my dad gets offered a lot of tour work with bands (he's a truck/tour bus driver) so occasionally I will help sell the band's merchandise at the venue. The industry is well paid (well, for someone my age) so I earned just under £600 in 3 days which is pretty amazing. It was tough and there was a lot of manual work involved but I'm dedicated to earning and saving money for travel so I was prepared to do it. If you work part time, I'd say your best bet is to get a second part time job as a waitress or a bartender to build up your hours.

4. RETURN WHAT YOU DON'T NEED

I HATE wasting money. I will happily spend £200 in Dunelm Mill redecorating my bedroom but even if something is a fiver and I know I won't use/wear it, I'll return it. It might seem petty but small amounts like that really do add up. I'm forever returning cheap things to Primark because it annoys me to see them hanging in my wardrobe when I know I'll never wear them. GET YOUR BLOODY MONEY BACK. Alternatively, don't buy things in the first place that you don't need. The amount of people I know that have a black duster coat yet will go out and buy another one cause they're "completely different". Yeah, course they are. My friend has three - yes THREE - oversized denim jackets. Someone will have a silver casio, but they'll go out and buy a gold casio. Why do people do this?! I JUST DON'T UNDERSTAND. And then people wonder why they don't have money to do nice things. Before you hand over your credit card ask yourself: do I really need this or am I just being greedy? By all means buy 10 pairs of shoes if you're not trying to save, but the game quickly changes when you're looking to book around the world flights.

5. BUY CHEAPER ALTERNATIVES

You might want a Triangl bikini or Mac lipstick, but you will ALWAYS be able to buy cheaper alternatives. Before you buy anything, look on eBay. Go to Asda or Tesco or Matalan. There are so many dupes around these days that will save you a small fortune compared to what you'd spend on well known brands. After all, all you're really paying for is a label that no one sees. When sleeveless blazers were just coming into fashion, I found a tuxedo style one in Tesco for £8. EIGHT POUNDS. Think beyond Topshop and ASOS - with a little more effort you can find yourself some real bargains. And if you have an unusually small stomach (and can never finish a full meal when you go out for dinner), do what I do and opt for a starter instead. That way you can enjoy a social gathering with your friends without breaking the bank and wasting food.


What are your money saving tips?
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