CAPA WORLD

In this week's post, Jessica shares 5 practical travel tips for you to add to your list—from booking flights to trying new food—so that you can make the most of your adventures abroad! 

This past week was assignment week, which means we do not have classes so we can work on our major semester assignments. Luckily, I got most of my work done ahead of time so I’m headed out to Paris, Amsterdam, and London.

Traveling throughout Europe from Dublin can be cheap, if you do it right. There are a few things I’ve learned and found helpful in order to plan trips.

1) Plan your trips early.

There were some weekends at the beginning of the semester that I wish I booked trips for. Basically, if you book one less than a month away, the prices of plane tickets go up drastically.

2) Use apps and websites to find flights.

It's super easy to track flights using Hopper.

Skyscanner and Expedia are both websites that are helpful for finding the cheapest flights. The Hopper app will track a flight for you and tell you when the best time to buy the cheapest flight is, or when the flight prices will start to rise.

3) See if a "City Pass" or "Hop on-Hop off Bus" is worth your money.

Climbing to the top of this monument in Edinburgh only costs £5.

Add up all the attractions you want to see in a city and the transportation to see if it is an actual deal. Some passes might sound nice, but offer more than you can do in a given time. Be sure to add up attractions and museums while making sure you have enough time to do them all. If there is a skip-the-line pass, however, it may be worth your money to save time in order to see everything else.

4) See if your city has a food Instagram to find some cool places to eat!

A full Scottish Breakfast from my trip to Edinburgh.

For example, I love following @dublinfoodguide, and also found @paris.foodguide to follow and see what foods look appealing to me that I might want to try!

5) Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate!

There were some days in Paris that were non-stop and I forgot to drink enough water...which resulted in a migraine that made me end my day early. Always try to carry a bottle of water on you!

Don’t forget—as much as you may want to see other countries, be sure to explore your own country! Some of the best experiences I’ve had are weekend trips out in the countryside of Ireland.

The CAPA trip to Galway in Ireland is one of my favorite memories.

These are just of the few things that I have taken away from this week’s trip, even though there are many more. I hope these tips come in handy when you plan your trip to somewhere new!

Thanks, Jessica!

Jessica Kisluk is an official CAPA blogger for fall 2018, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Broadcasting and Mass Communication major at  SUNY Oswego, she is studying abroad in Dublin this semester.

Jessica's journey continues every Friday so stay tuned.