GRcade Travel Topic

Sounds like the best time to do it, actually. Just don't go venturing down a Bangkok alleyway by yourself and you'll be fine.

Exxy wrote:Anyone been travelling alone? Thinking of doing it next year at some point, so when I'm bordering on 19. Going alone and being young seems like a disaster waiting to happen.

That's the age when I went round central Europe. Further a field was less of an option for me due to money and Europe is just easier.

Had a great time, loads to see and do.

Exxy wrote:Anyone been travelling alone? Thinking of doing it next year at some point, so when I'm bordering on 19. Going alone and being young seems like a disaster waiting to happen.

If you'd like to travel Europe, you should get an Interrail pass. Dirt cheap and you'll meet loads of other young people travelling by themselves in hostels and stuff.

On another note, as of this Thursday i'm getting my gooseberry fool together to emigrate to Canada for a year. Should have my visa in a few weeks and then i'll be heading over in September. Has anyone done anything like that before?

Looking at Interail and how cheap the passes are is what spurred to think about it a bit more seriously. Hostels scare me though

Hostels are doss. People are most often really friendly, and not in the bullshit "I say that, but in reality everyone's a dick" way. It actually is easy to meet people.

Trains are for losers. Cycle about the place.

Wiggles wrote:On another note, as of this Thursday i'm getting my gooseberry fool together to emigrate to Canada for a year. Should have my visa in a few weeks and then i'll be heading over in September. Has anyone done anything like that before?

Would love to do something like that, but aren't they strict about immigration there? (I feel like I've made this post before...). Would be stumped as to what to do once I get there as well.

Exxy wrote:Looking at Interail and how cheap the passes are is what spurred to think about it a bit more seriously. Hostels scare me though

They're awesome dude, seriously. It won't be the same if you stay in hotels. Even when I have money I still stay in hostels after I went interrailing. If you're worried, just pick some ones that you really like the look of, and book your first night in each one a few months in advance and work your schedule around that. You can extend your stay each morning you stay there so you only have to pay the deposit on one night (like £5 or so) in case you change your mind, or decide to go somewhere else. If you leave it til the day before to look for a hostel you might only be left with the shitty ones, happened to me a couple of times.

Exxy wrote:

Wiggles wrote:On another note, as of this Thursday i'm getting my gooseberry fool together to emigrate to Canada for a year. Should have my visa in a few weeks and then i'll be heading over in September. Has anyone done anything like that before?

Would love to do something like that, but aren't they strict about immigration there? (I feel like I've made this post before...). Would be stumped as to what to do once I get there as well.

You made the exact same post like 2 days ago.

As long as you're under 35 without a criminal record you're able to go, they're pretty much the only criteria. Only way that they're strict is that they release a limited amount of visas, and they're given out on a first come first served basis. There is quite a lot of them though (for Ireland at least).

Luckily i'll have friends over there so i'll have a couch to sleep on until I get myself set up with some sort of job. I think i'm going to try save up money over there for six months or so and then travel the country for a while. Would love to live in Vancouver and Toronto over the course of the year.

I'm looking into going to Australia for a year, so that's what I'm saving up for now. I'm also not keen on hostels, but you gotta do what you gotta do.

Wiggles wrote:

Exxy wrote:Looking at Interail and how cheap the passes are is what spurred to think about it a bit more seriously. Hostels scare me though

They're awesome dude, seriously. It won't be the same if you stay in hotels. Even when I have money I still stay in hostels after I went interrailing. If you're worried, just pick some ones that you really like the look of, and book your first night in each one a few months in advance and work your schedule around that. You can extend your stay each morning you stay there so you only have to pay the deposit on one night (like £5 or so) in case you change your mind, or decide to go somewhere else. If you leave it til the day before to look for a hostel you might only be left with the shitty ones, happened to me a couple of times.

Ah, cheers for the help. I've only ever heard good things about staying in hostels, but I'm paranoid. Might feel different this time next year.

Wiggles wrote:

Exxy wrote:

Wiggles wrote:On another note, as of this Thursday i'm getting my gooseberry fool together to emigrate to Canada for a year. Should have my visa in a few weeks and then i'll be heading over in September. Has anyone done anything like that before?

Would love to do something like that, but aren't they strict about immigration there? (I feel like I've made this post before...). Would be stumped as to what to do once I get there as well.

You made the exact same post like 2 days ago.

As long as you're under 35 without a criminal record you're able to go, they're pretty much the only criteria. Only way that they're strict is that they release a limited amount of visas, and they're given out on a first come first served basis. There is quite a lot of them though (for Ireland at least).

Luckily i'll have friends over there so i'll have a couch to sleep on until I get myself set up with some sort of job. I think i'm going to try save up money over there for six months or so and then travel the country for a while. Would love to live in Vancouver and Toronto over the course of the year.

Thought so I remember writing one out then not posting it, but couldn't remember if I went back to write it again.

I don't have that luxury Shame, would love to spend some time over there.

I'm actually a little excited about seeing the RAA live already.

Exxy wrote:Anyone been travelling alone? Thinking of doing it next year at some point, so when I'm bordering on 19. Going alone and being young seems like a disaster waiting to happen.

I was 19 when I first went away on my own and it was scary as strawberry float at first, but you get used to it. I'm still only 20 now and both times I've been I've found that I'm pretty much the youngest solo traveller of anyone I meet, so at 18 that's something you might want to be aware of.

Hostel are the way forward if you want to meet people and they'll cut your budget in half if you were originally planning on staying in hotels. Stick to ones in guide books like The Lonely Planet or top rated ones on hostel booking websites (www.hostelworld.com is an awesome one) and you're certain to find people to chat with in the evenings at least.

It's a good way to get you out of your social comfort zone too as you're essentially offered to choice between going up to a stranger and starting a conversation or being a massive loner. If you're travelling for a long time though you'll eventually get fed up of dishing out your travelling CV to every person you meet but at the same time you can learn a hell of a lot from a wide variety of people.

Anyone ever been to the south of the US? Are the girls down there as loose as I've been lead to believe?

Igor wrote:Anyone ever been to the south of the US? Are the girls down there as loose as I've been lead to believe?

Yeah, cos theyre obese!

Quoted from my Norway thread in ATF

Herbi wrote:Sorted out my itinery with prospective flights and hotels. It's expensive but I think I want to do it. Have a look for yourselves;

London to Bergen (26th Mar) - £80
Hotel in Bergen (2 nights) - £200
Bergen on train to Oslo (28th Mar) - £30 far cheaper than I was expecting, suspiciously so
Hotel in Oslo (3 nights) - £250
Oslo to Tromso (31st Mar) - £60
Hotel in Tromso (2 nights) - £150
Tromso to London (2nd April) - £160

+ Arctic Dog Sledding in Tromso - £200

£1130


I figure I can expect to spend around £500 over the 7 nights for food and other gubbins which puts the total around £1600

Wowzer! Those hotel figures are just form quick looks so hopefully I might be able to shave something off that, I haven't decided if I want to stay in hostels or not to save some money. It wasn't the best experience in the US. If I can save a substantial sum by going for hostels then I guess I may as well go for it but if it's only about £100 I'd rather have the comfort and extras of a hotel.

Thoughts...

Right, first things first, find better priced hotels

£100 per night? That's some Rockafella gooseberry fool. You need to think, a hotel is just a base. I'm sure that hotel will be lovely but you won't be using it to it's full potential. If you're on a budget you should be looking at £40-£50 for a nice hotel, just seems an utter waste of money with the hotels you have found.

I mean, I went to Thailand, Australia and Japan and for flights and hotels it was just a bit more than that

Do you have an STA Travel near you? They have been great for me in the past and find you the cheapest flights and places to stay. They have a website but it is much better to talk to them in person

Herbi wrote:

Herbi wrote:I haven't decided if I want to stay in hostels or not to save some money. It wasn't the best experience in the US.

Out of interest, what was wrong with them?

There was nothing really wrong with them but they weren't exactly the kind of place you could enjoy being. They just acted as a box to sleep in which is fair enough but were quite pricey for what I got.

I know the hotel/hostel is just a base from where you can go on to do the stuff you want but it would be nice for that to be nice enough to spend a couple of hours in the day or a more relaxing evening.

In New York the hostel was just a cupboard with a sink and a single bed (not a very comfortable one), that faced a noisy street. If I wanted a shower I had to go down the hall to another cupboard with a pretty awful shower/toilet in it. None of that was bad enough to really have a negative impact on the holiday as I left at 9 in the morning and didn't usually get back till 9 in the evening, so wasn't there long enough to get pissed off with it. In Washington it was just some old guys house and though the room was nice enough I was just slightly uncomfortable being there.

My point is basically that it'd be nice to have accommodation that adds to the enjoyment of the holiday rather than merely manage to not have a negative impact on it.

Though with limited funds there's only so much you can expect.