All posts tagged: Practical Stuff

G-Adventures ‘India on a Shoestring’ Review

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Overview G-Adventures offers tours for young travelers all over the world including several tours through India. The ‘India on a Shoestring’ tour is 20 days traveling around Rajasthan or the ‘golden triangle’ and takes in many of the most famous sites of the area starting and ending in Delhi. Highlights I personally enjoyed the lesser-known (to me anyway) places we visited such as; Pushkar, Bikaner and Udaipur. As they were smaller it was easier to head off alone and do some exploring. The trip into the Thar desert was pretty amazing, and the food the local people cooked there was so tasty it’s hard to believe they cooked it in the middle of nowhere, without a kitchen. The river ganges was beautiful too and a once-in-a-lifetime experience. What’s right with it… The itinerary ensures you take in lots of things you wouldn’t if you were traveling solo, such as visiting the tiny village of Tordi Sagarh, eating at a Sikh temple and staying at THIS amazing hotel. The pace is quite fast and you get …

7 Money Management Tips For Travel

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Travelling and money go hand in hand – if you want to see the world, it’s gonna cost you (although I have some tricks to cut costs HERE). Preparing for my own backpacking trip forced me to check my own bad spending habits and, frankly nonexistent, budgeting skills – so in the spirit of friendship I extend these tips to you. 1. Set a Budget No matter how much money you have saved, or how little you need to know exactly how much money you have to spend each day. Have this amount seared into your mind. If you go over one day, then pull it back the next and if you are underspending either save that cash for a treat or to extend your trip. 2. Open a New Account A savings account that you don’t have easy access to is a great thing. I used to have a savings account but as soon as I logged into my internet banking I was able to quickly siphon any funds into my current account. So …

11 Ways To Make Travel Dirt Cheap

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Going backpacking or travelling is very costly, no matter how you do it, but you can do things to be thrifty. I know people who have made £1000 last 6 months or a couple of weeks, it all depends on your travel style. So here are a few top tips to save mucho dinero (my Spanish lessons kicking in there, lol) on your trip… GO EAST The cheapest places to travel to are in the East (for us Brits at least), that means backpacker favourites Thailand, Cambodia and Laos as well as India. Europe is pretty expensive but Eastern Europe can be cheap – try Serbia, Hungary and Croatia. Places to avoid: Australia, New Zealand and America. How to save for a RTW trip >>> COUCHSURFING This is a website that connects hosts and travellers from all over the world. You get a free bed or couch for the night – all you have to do is create a profile and pay a subscription fee. Just be sure that your host has good reviews and …

The Perfect Carry-On Packing List

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Your carry-on luggage is super important and it should be treated as such. Your bag needs to be organised and contain all your desert island items. I know everyone has different needs and priorities, so pack to reflect that. This is my carry-on but I hope it helps you to pack yours… Laptop, case (customised with SkinnyDip stickers) & charger Kindle, USB lead & cover Headphones iPhone & charger Travel adaptor Selfie stick Highlighter compact Glasses & case Sunglasses & Frame Chain Business cards Diary Notebook Pens Book (Shantaram) Large scarf Highlighter compact (Clinique) Makeup Bag (READ: WHAT MAKEUP TO PACK) Travel mirror Facial mist Cosmetic bag with sunscreen, tissues, toothpaste, toothbrush, comb, bobbles & tissues Camera & memory cards Fan Tote bag PASSPORT!!!!!!!! Tickets & travel documents Money (take USD for emergencies) Earplugs Eyemask     So there you have it, all this fits into my Herschel backpack comfortably and I have tried to organise small bits into pouches and a tote bag to separate. Carry a travel pillow and you’re all set. Happy …

Almost Time to Go? Get Your Affairs in Order

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So you’ve booked your flights, paid them off, saved some cash and waited what seems like a lifetime. Suddenly the time is almost upon you and you’ve got a couple of weeks to get your shit in order. This can be pretty overwhelming, realising you actually have quite a few things to sort out before your trip, so here is a list of things you need to do so you can chill once you’re at your destination. PACK This might sound obvy but pack EVERYTHING in good time, you can always unpack if there are things you’ll need to use but pack up everything you plan to take in your backpack or suitcase to see if it fits. Also to see if you can carry it. If you can’t then at least you have time to edit. Also launder any clothes that need to laundered and purchase anything on your list that you don’t have yet. Read my packing list>>> GROOM Give yourself an epic grooming session before you leave so you can chill out …

What That Coffee Can Buy You Around The World

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Let me first level with you by saying that I have never, ever bought a coffee in my entire life. This is because I hate coffee – seriously, I’ve tried it about three times and the last time I had a sip it made me feel violently ill for DAYS. No exaggeration. It’s yukky. BUT I do buy tea, wine, cakes, all sorts of sh*t, so the coffee is a symbol for our mindless consumerism, okay? Now, a lot of people like to tell you that by skipping your weekly Starbucks you can save X amount in a year… blah, blah, blah. But we are the generation of instant gratification, we can’t sacrifice the little things for some unknown future reward.We need them! So with that in mind I’ve taken the liberty of showing you EXACTLY what the price of a Cappuccino (let’s average it out at £3) will you get you around the world. THAILAND £3 = 160 Thai Baht Your Frappuccino will get you a night in a hostel dorm in Thailand – …

4 Tips to Make Long-Haul Flights Less Boring

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If you’re going to be travelling, backpacking or just taking a trip to some far an distant land (lucky you) chances are you’ll be going by plane… I dread to think how long it would take to visit somewhere tropical by water, road or train. While long-haul flights ain’t everyone’s cup of tea, (unless you’re travelling in business or first class, in which case let me know how it is) they can be made way more enjoyable with these four fun tips… The Mile High ‘Club’ NOT THAT ONE, you dirty-minded thing you, no! Turn your seat into an oh-so-exclusive club (capacity: one) with a banging playlist of the latest tunes. Whether you use an iPod, a walkman… maybe not, or your phone, just make sure you get some great quality over-ear headphones. The in-ear ones are useless. Big headphones cancel out noise too. I use Spotify, but remember to download your favourite playlists so you can listen to them offline. Shop headphones>>> Check out my Travel Playlist>>> You Better Werk A lot of travellers …

The Ultimate Guide to eBaying

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Going travelling? Want some extra cash? Then eBay is a great way to make some mullah by selling your old clothes… let’s face it we’ve all got a lot. It can be a/ a ball ache and b/ difficult to master, so here are some tip tips. As a fashion blogger I not only bought a lot of clothes, and I mean a lot, I also got sent tons of freebies too. If I’m honest even when I was at my most prolific I probably only regularly wore about 15% of my wardrobe. Some stuff was too small, and no amount of running or wishful thinking would remedy that, some stuff too big (from the college years), and some stuff unworn, unwanted or unfashionable. I found that I was quite ashamed of the amount of clothes I’d accumulated and only worn once or not at all, I had so much stuff that even if I wore a new outfit each day it would take me years to get round to wearing all of it. Disgusting consumerism …

The Worst Things About Planning a Round The World Trip

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I’m going to, in this article, try to cover everything I wish I’d known when I started planning my Round the World trip. Full disclosure, there’s a lot of admin and crazy amounts of planning that go into travelling for an extended period of time… which probably doesn’t come as a shock. I think that a lot of travellers like to perpetuate the ‘pack your bags and go’ myth, but there are quite a few loose ends you’ll need to tie up before you leave. Everyone’s got an opinion You will have to deal with your friends, family and colleagues questioning your decision, constantly. And until you fly away from home, this will probably be your sole topic of conversation. Which is sometimes nice but when your Dad just won’t quit giving you murder stats for female travellers and your mates are talking about how you’re so ‘brave’ (read mental) for giving up your WHOLE LIFE… it gets a bit old. My suggestion is to memorise a small speech about why you’re going on a …

5 Tips To Keep You Motivated Before Your Round The World Trip

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So you’ve booked your ticket, you’re going to travel the world. Goodbye life, au revoir, see ya later suckers… oh, wait, you have to work for a year/six months/ however long to save for the trip and it may well kill you… Whenever the going gets tough and you feel as though you’ll never make it through this time of waiting with your sanity intact, here are some tips to help you overcome. You can do it!