Travel Tip Tuesday is back for installment number 5 – Tips for traveling as a student, especially within the United Kingdom.
Traveling as a student can be difficult due to time and budget constraints, but it is a great time for those studying to see parts of the world.
Even though the points below are tailored to the United Kingdom, many of them can be used globally.
For tips for traveling during your abroad studies, Nabiha Khan, from the travel blog Verses By A Voyager shares her tips for traveling as a student abroad in the United Kingdom.
Introduction to traveling as a student in the UK
The UK is one of the most popular countries for study abroad experience and undoubtedly one of the best too. Not only academics, but it also has a lot of beautiful places to offer and is a perfect holiday destination.
Students are young, energetic and keen to travel, however, they don’t have a lot of money. Travelling is very important for students as it teaches a lot along with providing excellent exposure.
Moreover, being a student is the best time to travel as one usually does not have work commitments and more time to travel than later in life when one has to juggle with a full-time job.
Traveling as a student requires a great deal of planning along with budget management. Having travelled to 38 cities in the UK during my study abroad year, here are some tips which helped me manage my time as well as my budget.
Get a train and a coach card
Students in the UK are eligible to apply for railcard and coach card which gives them 1/3 discount on Train line and National Express Coach tickets, respectively. With railcard being £30 and coach card being £12.50, this is the best investment for any student who wants to travel around the country. Moreover, having a coach card also provides you with a 15% discount on tickets to events and festivals.
Also, wherever possible use Mega bus services. Mega Bus is a low-cost intercity bus service provider and their rates are generally lesser than National Express. However, their service is not as great as National Express and the number of routes is lesser.
Use student discount for entrances
Most of the locations in the UK offer special student discounts. Use this to your benefit and ensure you always travel around the country with your student card as you are supposed to show the card while claiming students’ discounted prices.
Use your holidays wisely
Whenever there is a long weekend or you manage to find a few holidays in between the term, plan trips to nearby cities. This keeps traveling less hectic, cheaper and lets you take the full benefit of your off time. For far-off cities, plan them during your vacation time so you can enjoy without the stress of returning back to the school.
Plan in advance
It is always wise to plan holidays in advance as tickets tend to be a lot cheaper when booked in advance. Some services on Mega bus like Edinburgh to Glasgow can be bought for as low as £1 when booked well in advance.
Shop for snacks from Poundland and Pound Shop
Poundland and Pound Shop are two very cheap stores in the UK where everyday use stuff can be bought for as low as £1. These stores are best for students to buy snacks while leaving for a trip.
A big expense on the trips is of meals and by having cheap snacks, this expense can be easily cut down. Also, rather than eating out from expensive places, buy food like pizza or a cup of noodles from the supermarkets which can be easily ready within minutes using the basic facilities provided in the hostels.
Travelling being a student has its own fun along with numerous opportunities to learn. Plan intelligently and make the most out of your study abroad experience in the UK.
About Verses By A Voyager
Nabiha Khan is an engineer by profession who got the flair for writing as well as traveling at a very young age. Now she blogs about her travel experiences, shares her travel tales and writes about her student travels in the UK over at Verses By A Voyager. She has merged her passion for engineering, writing and traveling by blogging about the integration of technology into the travel industry.
About Tuesday Travel Tips series
Have any questions about traveling tips as a student, or about the Travel Tip Tuesday series? Drop a comment below!
