Europe & Beyond

A selection of websites for planning gap travel

www.statravel.co.uk

As well as offering discount plane tickets for students and travellers in their twenties, STA Travel has a handy online trip planner to help you work out the best itinerary for your round-the-world ticket.

www.tefl.com

Excellent portal for TEFL and TESOL teachers, with loads of listings for English-teaching jobs overseas, and tips and advice for aspiring teachers.

www.ethicalvolunteering.org

The first website every volunteer should visit, with advice on choosing an ethical volunteer organisation to make sure you do the most good with the time you have to volunteer.

www.workingabroad.com

Loads of listings for working overseas, from volunteering to TEFL teaching. Use the search form to find jobs and volunteer placements that match your skills and ambitions.

www.vso.org.uk

Perhaps the most respected volunteering programme, VSO has been placing skilled volunteers on development projects around the world for 50 years. The Youth for Development scheme (open to volunteers aged 18 to 25) includes free flights, accommodation and visas, but you need at least one year of work experience and £900 in sponsorship.

www.wwv.org.uk

Searchable database of volunteer placements worldwide, with tips on fundraising, finding projects and staying safe overseas, plus stories from past volunteers.

www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntree

Lonely Planet’s online forum was inspired by a real thorn tree in Nairobi (backpackers used to pin messages to the thorns). Visit the Gap Year & Round the World Travel page for tips and advice from other gappers.

www.workingholidayinfo.com

A handy overview of all the working holiday visas open to gap year travellers, from Australia and New Zealand to Japan.

www.jet-uk.org

The Japan Exchange & Teaching Programme has placed 50,000 Brits in teaching and local government jobs in Japan, with a full salary and free flights. The initial programme lasts one year, but you can extend to five years at the discretion of your Japanese employer.

www.overseasjobcentre.co.uk

Extensive resources for a working year out overseas, covering everything from ski jobs to farm work. There’s a huge database of links and you can download ebooks covering top ways to work abroad.

Tips on Moving to a New Country

It can be very exciting to  move to a new country and experience a different culture, up close and personal. Ideally, you would want that sense of excitement to stay with you, long after the move. To ensure that your relocation is successful, it is helpful  to consider all aspects of moving, before you begin to pack.   To help you on your way, below are a  few tips that will  help you to make the right move.

Cost of living

While you are busy preparing to move, remember to  plan your budget. Consider all your major and daily expenses together with any additional costs which may arise . You wil need to calculate your basic costs such as food, rent/mortgage, utilities, local traveling, petrol/gas etc.  In additional to the every-day costs that will occur, consider what other charges may need to be met.  For instance,  an unexpected illness or stay in hospital may affect your ability to generate income, or your car may need replacing. Set aside an additional sum to be used in emergencies.  If you have friend or relative who has already moved to another country, talk to them about some of the challenges they met and how theydealt with unexpected financial situations.

Luggage

Research and confirm what you can and cannot take with you.  Keep your passports, tickets and other important documents with you at all times, during the process of moving, try not to put them with your other luggage.

Shop in the locality on your arrival for electrical goods to ensure you buy items which will suit your new home.

Health

It is useful to undergo a full health check before you move abroad. It update you on your current health status,  and pick up any concerns that will benefit attention in the future. Research the area you are moving to, and make sure you have registered with a health centre as soon as possible after your arrival. It is also useful to know how to access emergency medical help should it be required.

Stay in Touch

You may be moving abroad for good,  so allow for the fact that you may be leaving some important people behind. It is now much easier to stay in touch with your family and friends  due to e-mail, skipe, mobile phones.  Today, you have companies like Rebtel offering you a trustworthy service of online phone cards – they are handy and simple to use.  Call all your friends  and let  them know of your new contact  details, so that they can keep in touch.

Culture & Language

When you arrive, give yourself a little  time to become familiar with a new culture -  the food, language, money, weather, and facilities may all be different.  Take up invitations to meet people, and attend local social events and activities, your horizons will soon broaden.    Learn the language of the country where you plan to move to, it shows that you are serious about where you want to live and want to be part of your community.   And remember, if you want to move on again – you can!

Good news For UK Travellers to Europe

UK travellers will find their money buys more Euros than last year

Holidaymakers heading to Europe this summer will find their pounds buy more than they did last year.

Great news for travellers taking advantage of the increased number of flights to France and Spain.

International Currency Exchange (ICE) calculates that Brits heading to destinations in the Eurozone will find their money goes further than last summer. This means travellers on a £500 budget will receive 583 Euros compared with 566 Euros last year. The difference would be enough to pay for a snack for two in a Parisian café. The Euro’s weakening against sterling has boosted orders for the currency, keeping it firmly at the top of the currency order list from ICE.

Joanna Williams, Head of Marketing for ICE said:

“The improvement in the strength of the Pound against the Euro will be welcome for UK families heading to the Eurozone this summer. Now is an ideal time to lock in the exchange rate using a prepaid card such as the ICE Travellers Cashcard and also benefit from the security it offers.”

Non Euro destinations

Non-Euro hot spots Croatia and Bulgaria are also key summer destinations for 2010. The Croatian Kuna is now the third most ordered currency from ICE despite a slight fall in the Pound’s value. In contrast, the Pound against the Bulgarian Lev has improved by 2.93% year on year giving Brits even more value in a destination already known for its low cost of living, with dinner for four people costing less than £50.

The Mayrhofen Snowbombing Festival

Skiing Holidays and Music

Skiing holidays and music don’t often go together, but every April, the Austrian ski resort of Mayrhofen hosts the Snowbombing Music Festival. This offers a unique opportunity to combine skiing holidays and world-class festival acts against a stunning background of snowy Austrian peaks.

An Austrian ski resort may seem like an odd place to hold a music festival, but Snowbombing attracts the cream of the dance and electronic scene. The line-up for 2010 featured such world famous luminaries as Fatboy Slim, 2manydjs, Friendly Fires, Vitalic and De La Soul.

Mayrhofen Ski Resort

Of course, as great as the music is, the real draw is that such a festival takes place in a prestigious ski resort. Mayrhofen is famous for having a lively apres ski scene, making it the perfect place for Snowbombing. Those seduced by the idea of combining a festival with a skiing holiday are well served by 146km of pisted runs provided by the Penken and Ahorn plateaus.

The Ahorn plateau is particularly well suited to beginners with its gentle nursery slopes and  both plateaus offer superbly groomed runs that are well covered by snow cannons. The layout of the slopes means that intermediate skiers have plenty of opportunity to explore, whilst advanced skiers and thrill seekers get their kicks from Penken’s ‘Devil’s Run’ linked to the Horborg mountain.

Aside from the skiing holiday opportunities offered on the two plateaus, as the centre of the Zillertal skiing area, Mayrhofen offers access to an enormous 625km of skiing terrain. Given that Snowbombing is a week long, and there is so much terrain to cover, those that can afford it might do well to book two weeks to pack it all in.

Mayrhofen is a great ski resort anyhow with plenty of activities for families and groups, plenty of skiing terrain and a renowned snowboarding park in the Burton board park. When you throw in the Snowbombing festival it makes for the perfect skiing holiday for skiers who love music as much as skiing.

Save money and back ache going hand luggage only – but there’s an art to getting it all in the case.

Guest post from travel writer and blogger Alison Chambers

On return from a recent trip to Cairo, I looked across the baggage belt at Heathrow to see a couple of women passengers grabbing armloads of clothes and underwear off the belt and dumping them on the floor. “Some poor sod’s bag has broken,” the guy next to me muttered.

I looked down to see one of my M & S new dresses glide past me on the baggage belt. I was that poor sod.

My bag had split open because I’d stuffed it full, many of the clothes returning unworn, and as a result my holiday wardrobe was doing a catwalk of shame around Terminal 3.

From that moment I vowed to take my own advice: to pack light and travel hand luggage only.

It’s not just the threat of humiliation that’s a good reason to travel light – there’s the strain of lugging a heavy bag stuffed with clothes you won’t wear – according to a survey released this week by tour operators Thomson and First Choice, only 16 per cent of us actually wear all of the clothes we take on holiday. And then there’s the cost of travelling with hold luggage.

This summer Ryanair is charging £60 to take a 20kg bag on a return trip, or £100 if you don’t pay the charge in advance. Frankly, that’s money I’d rather be spending on ice creams and pina coladas.

I’ve tried to summarise all the little gems that I’ve been told by hotel concierges, business travellers and fellow travel writers, to get as much in as possible and keep clothes crease-free and undamaged.

Here are a few more pointers about what to pack and tips how to pack:

• Decant toiletries into smaller bottles – you can buy minis, but they are not good value for money
• Cut down on shoes, which are the heaviest items – take sandals that will work day and night and limit yourself to one pair of evening shoes
• A sarong or cotton wrap can work as a beach towel and cover-up on the beach and is much less bulky
• Only pack gym kit if you are realistically going to exercise – trainers take up a lot of room and frequently never leave the case. Swimming is great exercise and the gear for it requires much less space in your case
• Check the weather before you leave – and try to find out whether the temperature will dip in the evenings. You’ll only need one sweater or cardigan if it stays balmy long into the night
• Check the baggage restrictions on your airline’s website then measure and weigh your case – there’s nothing worse than having to repack or ditch items at the airport

Video

Tips for packing a case

How to pack it into a suitcase that even Ryanair will allow onboard.

Gran Canaria: Its Diversity Will Suprise you.

The Canary Islands are a very popular tourist attraction. One of the most popular islands in this chain is the Gran Canaria. This translates from Spanish roughly as ‘grand canary’. This island is found around 93 miles off of the coast of Africa. It is the second most populated of the islands, and the third island in the extension of the Canary Islands. A great fact that is popular among many tourists to this island is the fact that it is of volcanic birth. The area on the surface of the island a bit over 1,500 kilometers, with a width of around 50 kilometers, divided into 21 municipalities. As of the year 2005 the island itself was said to have a population of almost 1 million.

Gran Canaria Climate

The climate of Gran Canaria can reach highs in the daytime of 20 degrees Celsius in the winter, and 26 degrees Celsius on the summertime. This is a wonderful temperature for people who would like to be somewhere that isn’t quite scorching, but doesn’t get below freezing. The coldest temperatures that can be found here are around 10 degrees Celsius, but are quite rare. There is a decent amount of rainfall on the island measuring around 230 millimeters are year. The entire island is beautiful but the southern part attracts the most attention due to its warmer climate. The northern part of the island is a bit chillier. The eastern part of the island is somewhat flat and covered in beaches. The western part of the island has numerous rocky areas and mountains.

There are many different types of landscapes that can be found on Gran Canaria, making it somewhat of a small continent. A few of these beautiful landscapes are the wonderful stretches of white sand dunes, golden sand beaches, and breathtaking ravines. Historical seekers will be happy to known that a third of the entire island has been made into a Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO. The island is extremely popular and averages a couple million tourists each year looking for classic summer holidays.

There are many wonderful places to visit while on Gran Canaria holidays. For people who are interested in taking a view of the island from the skies, a visit to Tarahajilo offers an aero club that offers scenic trips. A place that has many caves to explore is Cenobio de Valeron, and the Ceuva Pintada has beautiful botanical gardens that can be explored. This makes this country a wonderful stop for anybody who is interested in the magnificence and beauty of nature.