Here are some travel tips I picked up with all the traveling I did and I hope it helps you out when you’re planning to travel!
- Sometimes it’s easier and faster just to travel by plane, especially with all the discount airlines out there. Check out skyscanner.com and put in the destination of ‘Everywhere’ and sort by price . Also check out easyjet.com and ryanair.com for two of the budget airlines that have great fares to almost anywhere in Europe.
- If you’re traveling to France or Brussels it will be fastest (and most comfortable) to go via train as it goes through the chunnel. Check out eurostar.com. Fares are as low as £30 one-way, which is a very good deal for a comfortable 2 hr train journey that leaves from King’s Cross/St. Pancras, which is walkable if you’re staying in NYU housing. However, you have to book early as fares go up quickly and then it might be cheaper just to fly. It is definitely worth it to go by rail though so keep your eye on those fares!
- Also check out megabus.com and nationalexpress.com for cheap buses. Use eurolines.com if you are not starting your journey in the UK–it is the same company as naitonalexpress but sometimes the fares can be cheaper if you match up the fares yourself across all 3 websites than buying a roundtrip journey.
- Hostels are the way to go, and definitely safe. I was a bit skeptical myself since I had never stayed in one (they don’t seem to be common in America but they’re all over Europe and this gives you a good variety to choose the best one). Hostbookers.com and studentuniverse.com has the cheapest prices (hostelworld.com is just slightly more expensive). Make sure to read the reviews to help you pick a safe and clean place. Most places have luggage rooms and lockers to keep your belongings safe while you’re out and you can usually even store your stuff before and after check-out times. Some give you locks but some don’t so it’s best to bring your own. Most don’t come with towels though so bring your own. Also don’t forget shower flops. Also just a tidbit: the hostels I stayed in in Portugal were the best ever. They were all so clean, had great amenities, had very friendly staff, and were on par with hotels in terms of quality. I don’t know what it was about Portugal, but I especially recommend the hostels there.
- I have been advised that in Amsterdam, however, hotels are better than hostels.
- It is often more economical to take an overnight bus since you save a night in hotel/hostel, as opposed to taking a flight where you’d be getting in late at night and don’t have much time to explore anyways.
- Aside from Heathrow, you can fly out from Gatwick, Luton, and Stansted. Most budget airlines do not fly from Heathrow so you will likely have to use the other 3 more out of the way airports. Heathrow is the only one where you can take either the city bus or tube to directly. For the other ones you usually have to take an airport shuttle such as easybus.co.uk or terravision.eu. This is annoying because you’ll have to go to a specific pick-up location. It is especially annoying if you’re flying out in the middle of the night or early morning because the tube will be closed and you’ll have to take a bus to the pickup location. Take the train if you can to the airport. Go to firstcapitalconnect.co.uk for trains to Gatwick or Luton out of King’s Cross/St. Pancras.
My early morning flight to Dublin on Ryanair.
Tales from Study Abroad 