Going on vacation as a broke college student
Vacations help you level up (on a budget) because, travelling helps you see that the world is not just the small community you have made for yourself. Even if it is just you, do it for yourself! I am planning to do more solo dates/vacations (of course when your girl starts earning😅)
Below are some 10 TIPS on how we can LEVEL UP our college student vacation TOGETHER- and it would not even feel “broke”;
1. Set a specific budget
Set a specific budget you would like to spend throughout the vacation. it is best if you can write down everything you would want you money to go into, including entertainment so it is easy to visualise and not overspend on meaningless stuff. Mine was that, my budget must be less than £500.
scroll for video showing full, transparent BREAKDOWN of all my expenses
2. Find the best times for cheaper prices
Book early in the year as prices are much cheaper. We went for our vacation in Greece in April but we made sure to book everything in February for cheaper prices. It would have been even more affordable if we booked in January do plan your vacation ahead of time and book it so you don’t waste money you could have saved.
3. Using Wowcher and groupon
You literally miss out on hefty deals when you do not use wowcher and groupon. It has literally being a lifesaver to me. I had my first all-inclusive spa visit with wowcher for just about £20! Guys you are seriously missing out.
I found a deal on wowcher for a vacation for £99! and yes that is flight and hotel. This is actual insanity. And yes it is legit. I didn’t know of it in time and booked my Greece trip back in April without it – I would have saved on a whole lot more. Please don’t be me.
However, I was still able to get a good deal on my Greece vacation in the next tip. You know me already. Talk about finessing the system lol.
3. Using sites that incorporate hotel and flight deals
This was what my friend and I did, during our vacation to Greece. Examples of such sites include Kayak and Expedia. I was shocked there were even deals) that combined both flight (with return) and hotels for one price. The site we used was trip advisor and the flight we booked was Ryan Air as it was the most affordable,
You can also choose any further amenities you would like to come with the hotel using these sites. For instance if you would like a spa, swimming pool or breakfast included. Our hotel was Oktober downtown rooms it came with a swimming pool for £89 and breakfast for an additional £6 a day. And the flight about £120.
settle but don't SETTLE
Even though you are travelling on a budget do not sell yourself short especially if you have some budgeted money set aside. I spoke more on this in part one.
- Our hotel was £89 a day, very cheap but we also had a swimming pool because I didn’t want to settle on it. I wanted to feel like I was on a holiday.
- We also had breakfast for an additional £6 a day and it really helped us because it meant we were already full when we went out and did not have to waste money on snacks. When evening came, we only spent on our dinner.
- We wanted to go to Greece but Santorini was too expensive so we chose to go to Rhodes instead. It may seem like we were “settling” but at least, we still went to Greece, Rhodes is a beautiful small town, and we were also able to go see the gorgeous island of Lindos which was an hour bus ride away.
6. Put money aside for unwarranted cirumstances
In my case for instance, I had to pay £80 extra because I had extra luggage and had fluids above the 20ml limit (which included my got2b glue spray for my wigs) I couldn’t bear to throw my stuff away(especially as I was going to take pictures!) so I opted to pay with the extra money I had put aside for such circumstances, for both the inbound and outbound flight. Thank God, He gave me additional money literally on time otherwise your girl would have had TROUBLES.
7. Money for entertainment/food
Luckily, the exchange rate of the pound compared to the euro was in our favour so we were able to use some of the money that would have otherwise gone to the hotel if the hotel was in the UK, to our entertainment and food. I budgeted about £150 for entertainment and buying presents for my family back home.
So, you have to know your exchange rate
8. Know your roaming costs
It is essential that you know if your network provider charges additonal fees for roaming otherwise you could incur a HUGE sum if you use your data abroad without knowing.
As this was my first vacation without my parents, I literally knew of none of this until I saw that my friend had problems with her roaming. Thankfully, I use smarty and later read that roaming was included in my package but it is vital that you check beforehand.
9. Check in on your flight's app
Make sure you download the app of the flight and check in before you read the airport to avoid standing in long over-bearing queues. Yes like you, I didn’t know we could check in online. Thankfully my friend was a pro
10.(Bonus tip) Additional leg room
If you are tall especially, it is best to pay for additional leg room which is aroung£6- £12. Yes it may seem like a waste of money but just little incentives like these, can make your journey better especially as a the leg room of a lot of flights would leave you feeling squished by the end of your flight.
I am Angel and I am glad to share this FREE ebook with YOU.
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Doing it alone is no fun… that’s why I am offering you these exclusive hacks.
I am Angel Marfo, a 24 year old woman with a degree in Medical Physiology from the University of Nottingham. However I found a passion with content creation back in January this year and thats all I want to do now.
I like to Inspire people especially women, with their Mindset, Fashion and Lifestyle- God's Way.
My UGC Portfolio contains various videos that show my content creation journey. They include various niches such as lifestyle, travel, fashion and beauty
