Ashley Taylor: Travel Tips

1)  This past trip to Lyon, France and Geneva, Switzerland I realized that it is absolutely horrible to arrive in a city in the dark. I had done it last year when I arrived in Barcelona, Spain and no matter how much you look up what bus or train to take it is impossible to take it when it is not running because of the late or early hour. Not only is it dangerous to be alone in a new city in the dark and no one is around except for creepers, it is expensive as well because you end up taking a cab if you are lucky enough to cab and not have to walk. I was lucky to have a cab pre order to arrive at 4 am, so it is up to your judgement if you want to risk it because some small places may not do that. For instance in Bordeaux when I called a cab at 3 am they said there were none available. My advice is to not arrive in a city late at night, and if it is a big city you can have a early departure time.

2) This trip I found out that using google earth would have been a very good idea because my hostel appeared to be right beside the metro station. Of course it was right beside it but about 1 km up a gigantic hill that you could see from the station but had to do a 10 minute detour around that was almost vertical the entire time. Luckily I had a pleasant stay with Hi Hostels and I would recommend them for the future to anyone looking for a hostel. They offered a good free breakfast and called a taxi for me at 4 am in French for me as well.

3) Being young and trying to travel through Europe on a budget is possible; however, there are tons of unexpected costs and it is impossible to know what they are until you actually go to the city. First there are the obvious unexpected costs of accidentally missing you train, getting on the wrong train, or getting a ticket for having no idea what you are doing or buying the wrong ticket at the station. Second there are the transportation costs to get in the city. Many airport in Europe you have to take a train into the city venter and it costs anywhere from 10€ to 25€ for each way. The Gatwick express in London has been the most expensive I’ve taken at 22€ each way and Lyon was 22€ round trip, while Bordeaux is a bus that is only 1.4€. Lastly you need to factor in the public transportation and the costs do add up if you do not budget them in and research it before hand.

4) Carrying cash is such an important thing when travelling and I was absolutely screwed when I arrived in Lyon and only had 50€ cash beacuse I assumed I would pay for my train and hostel with Visa and just jse the cash for food. I was so wrong. All of my cards did not work and I had to pay for the 22€ train in cash and then when I got to the hostel they still would not work as well. After many bank phone calls fortunately they started to work. My lesson learnt here is to always carry cash, and make sure that it is even more than you think you will spend. One of the most helpful things I have had on this trip is a Visa/Debit card that works for both. I am so happy I got it before I went to Europe because my actual visa has not been working in taxis or pharmacies for some reason. I do have a French Visa card but unfortunately for the trip I did not know my PIN number because it was in my mail at home (crazy French banking system mails you everything and gives you the code so you can’t use your own).

5) Researching where you are staying, where you want to go, and how to get into the city before hand has been absolutely critical for me to do. I have done it everytime and it makes things that much easier when everything else is going wrong (plane is late, public transit is closed, get off at wrong stop). What I have done is I take a screen shot on my iPad and iPhone and it is such a good way to get around easily. I do not know what I would have done without it because your Internet on your iPhone will not work in every country and some maps do not show exactly where you need to go.

6) Being early, especially in a new country, is so essential. There have been so many times that I have arrived early but am still running around the station completely lost because it can be very confusing! Sometimes there is no one to ask and you think you are at the right terminal but then after you realize you are at the wrong one and sprint to the right one and hope you did not miss your train. I also realized in Europe that the cheap airlines such as easy jet, Ryan air, veiling, transvania air etc. have their own areas of the airport in a completely separate terminal that is usually a very long walk and you have to go outside to get to it. Sometimes even they are called a different name, for example in Bordeaux it is called “billi” instead if the next terminal number. So if you are flying with a cheap airline make sure you arrive early just so you can find it. For trains and airlines you should print your ticket first at home because it is a much smoother time at the station because it is one less thing to do. I do not have a printer at my place in Bordeaux so I had to arrive even earlier and wait in lines to get it printed, luckily there is no fee for train or plane tickets to be printed at the station.

7) When travelling Europe on a budget food is a huge cost. I unfortunately still do not know a single secret on how to eat cheaply when travelling so if I ever find that out I will let you know.

8) When flying with cheap airlines it is different because you have to pay for your checked luggage compared to a larger airline where you get one bag free with the ticket. I looked online and specifically bought a carry on bag that was the exact specifications of EasyJets carry on allowance and when I went to the airport it did not fit in the metal sizing unit. When you do not check your baggage in online or at the counter it is a 50€ fee for “lying” and holding up the line when boarding compared to the 12-20€ advanced charge. Luckily for me I still had the tags on and showed them the specifications and told them their sizing unit was wrong and they did not charge me the 50€ (because we were at the boarding point) instead they checked it for free and told me next time check time.

These are all the tips I can think of from my quick city hopping trip and it is such a difference to stay in a city for a long time compared to city hopping at a pace that is bad for your health due to lack of sleep, but you learn a lot more!