here are a few tips, tricks, and advice on planning & booking your own adventure.
Hello beautifuls! This is my first ever blog and I will be covering how to plan a trip. My biggest dream was to travel and last year, I was able to make my dream come true. After my travels, I've had quite a few people ask me how I planned and did everything so I decided to share all of my not-so-secret secrets so you can travel on a budget too! Thank you so much for visiting my page, for tuning in, and I hope some of these will help you get started with your own adventure!
first things first: MONEYYYY.
Yes you will need money, at least some money. Alright, so the number one issue that I hear from people when it comes to their inability to travel is MONEY. MONEY. MONEY. Going from working-three-part-time-jobs undergrad to now-in-debt college graduate, I totally understand that we don't always have the money that we want to travel to beautiful destinations halfway across the globe, much less a state away. If you really want it, you just have to set some money aside every paycheck, whatever you can until you feel you have a close enough budget to go somewhere. ANYTHING HELPS. Luckily, I was blessed by my wonderful mother of mine who graciously started my fund as my graduation present because she knew a big dream of mine is to travel. With a budget of $2100, I traveled to 3 cities in Europe for 11 days including flight, accommodations, transportation fees, and food & drink. I will tell you one thing before I start with the tips: you can (almost) travel anywhere for about a week for $1000. The catch? You just have to learn to manage your money wisely and plan ahead of time! Truth is, you don't need to splurge a crazy amount of money to have fun.
where do you want to go?
Since I was a little girl I've wanted to travel all over the world and when it came down to it, there were just too many options! Europe? How many countries and how many days? My final deciders were actually based on some of my favorite childhood Disney shows. YEAH THAT'S RIGHT. Barcelona? THE CHEETAH GIRLS CHEETAH SISTAHS YEAH. Rome? The Lizzie McGuire Movie. DUH. Naples? Best pizza in the world hellooooo?! Anyways, ask yourself: Do you want to go somewhere tropical? Somewhere historical? Somewhere instagram worthy or a foodie's paradise??? Find inspiration through travel blogs, your favorite youtubers, or childhood movies like mine. Whatever you decide, you do you boo boo. Now, I planned this trip probably almost an entire year in advance meaning I started researching where I would want to go. THEN, I set a budget. Next, I researched the living crap out of when to travel, how to travel, what things to see where, and also looked at how much my accommodations would cost.
IMPORTANT: I know we get tempted to do everything and see everything all in one go (trust me I've been there), especially since we are already going to be over there (wherever you choose). HOWEVER, we must pace ourselves and not forget that we sometimes need to rest in order to function properly. Personally I think 3-4 days for each city is a reasonable amount of time to explore, anything less and it gets a little too hectic for me. If you are have a long flight somewhere (over 9 hours), please take a day to rest up and get situated or if you switch to another city, to take a day or at least a couple extra hours of sleep and rest your body so that you do not get sick. Traveling can be draining and you do NOT want to be sick on your vacation right?! I went for 11 days on my solo trip and managed to not get sick UNTIL my final flight back to LA from Rome.
On that note, researching flights take time. If you want to travel to more than one city or country in one trip, you will have to do the work. I flew into Barcelona, flew over to Naples, took the train to Rome, and flew back from Rome to LA. I chose which cities I'd visit and then before booking flights, I legit wrote down on a notebook the dates for each potential leg of my trip, searched the prices to go one way, and also looked at prices going with the order in REVERSE (LA to Rome, Rome to Naples, and Naples to Barcelona, and Barcelona to LA) and then decided which would save me more money and time. This may seem tedious but if you are traveling on a specific budget, it could really help you cut some costs so you can spend more money on important things (like FOOD haha!)
BOOKING FLIGHTS:
also trains (super convenient to get around without the hassle of airport security!)
TIP: Try to book an overnight flight. I always take a dramamine and melatonin gummy right before the flight takes off and knock out for almost the entire flight! Try to find a flight that lands at your destination before it gets dark. You do not want to be wandering around with all your luggage and important things at night when you have no idea where you are or where you are going. ALSO. get a pair of over the knee compression socks for long flights (you'll thank me later when your legs and feet aren't falling asleep every two hours on your 12 hour flight). TJ Maxx is an awesome place to get your travel necessities!
on the flight back: Try to get a later flight so you are not rushing to get to the airport (3-4 hours earlier for international flights) which may or may not be an hour or so out of town! The airport in Rome was not really in Rome but a 40 minute car ride from the heart of Rome! I ended up booking a hotel in Ostia (where the airport is closer to) and took a taxi there OR book a hotel for your last night with a free airport shuttle so you can get some well deserved rest and you don't have to worry about finding transportation to the airport last minute.
1. The HOPPER APP: You basically pick a city to fly out of (LA is awesome for us west coast peeps) and then type in the airport you'd like to fly to. Hopper is great because if you are flexible, it will give you notifications for cheap flights for a three month period if you set it that way. It's super easy to use and you can set it to "watch" the flight so it will notify you when flight prices have gone up or down and when it is the best time to purchase! It will show you green calendar dates for the best priced flights, orange for okay priced dates, and red for more expensive flights. Currently I'm watching a crap ton of potential flights out to Singapore-Bali-Korea for my upcoming trip with my best friendddd YAY! Back on track, once you find a flight you can take DO NOT BOOK THROUGH THE APP. I repeat. DO NOT BOOK THROUGH THE HOPPER APP. So important I needed to use both. What I do instead is book DIRECTLY through the airline that is offering the flight. I used Norwegian airlines (link below) for my flight from LAX to Barcelona ($254 one way!) and back home from Rome ($320 one way!) both through Norwegian and they gave me $10 credit to use for my next flight through their Cash Rewards system. WOOOO HOOO (I spent it for my flight to Paris hehe).
2. Norwegian.com Airlines: I'm honestly not sure when this airline popped up but its become super popular with travelers to and from the U.S. to Europe and vice versa! I would recommend the LowFare Plus option if you can because you get two meals and a free checked bag and carry on. Otherwise, you will have to purchase a bag because the lowest seats do not get to use the overhead bin for their carry on item, you only get ONE small personal item (handbag or small backpack). Their food was honestly not bad and the entertainment screen is pretty cool with games and movies throughout your flight. I should warn you, you might have to take a separate transport like a shuttle bus once inside the terminal to get to the plane (so be prepared to move through that crowd). But what's cool about Norwegian flights are that they seem to have you walk directly off the plane down the stairs that get attached to the door and you kind of get to have a Barack Obama stepping off Air Force One moment (you'll just have people impatiently beside you also trying to get off the plane). Since you do have that extra transport from the terminal to the plane, priority boarding is pretty much unnecessary since everyone gets off the bus in no specific order so just save your money, you'll get on the plane eventually.
3. Skyscanner.com: If you don't have a set location yet, you can use this site and set a base airport and use the ANYWHERE destination and it will set you up with a whole dang list of places and prices. So if you are indecisive like me or you have a weekend you can getaway, skyscanner is your pal! It has out of country AND domestic options! Also I only use this website to look at flights and still book directly so you can set up a reward system and get those pointsssss.
where to stay?
4. Hostelworld.com: This is my one stop for most solo accommodations. If you are young and traveling by yourself or even just one other person, it is more cost efficient to stay in a hostel. Also, it is waaay more fun! The great thing about this site it is a huge hub for hostels everywhere and you can see the ratings and real reviews from fellow travelers along with a bunch of pictures and how far it is from the city center. Most will even have directions to get there from the airport or train/bus station! Aren't they thoughtful? So you'll do a bit of research for the days you will be in that city and look at the various hostels that you can choose from and even compare them to each other directly on the site. It will probably be the most affordable to stay in a dorm room where there are multiple bunk beds ranging from 4 to as many as 21 people in a room AND you have the choice of mixed gender dorms or all female dorms. You can definitely stay in a hotel if you want to be boujee and more comfortable BUT staying in a hostel is an awesome way to meet people and not be lonely in an empty hotel room ya know? One of the best parts of my solo trip was meeting the wonderful people in my hostels even starting from the first night I landed in Barcelona. I will have a different blog about that crazy adventure sometime soon but anyways, when in doubt and short-ish on money - stay in a hostel. (also will have another blog about tips on staying in a hostel). Also when you book through hostelworld you can reserve the bed/room with a small deposit so you can pay when you get there, which is awesome!
Hostel deciding factors: location location location.
Look for hostels near the sights you want to see.
Is there public transportation nearby? Uber/Lyft available? (Barcelona, Rome, Paris, & Amsterdam have UBER!)
What area is the hostel located? Is it safe to walk around at night? (pro tip: make friends at your hostel and go to dinner/out together so you're not walking alone pls)
Do they have free and good wifi? (most do)
Luggage storage? (In room and at front desk if you need to leave it there)
recommendations:
Seoul, South Korea: Grape Garden House (Hongdae area) (couldn't find them anymore on hostelworld?)
Sp@Itaewon Guesthouse (Itaewon area)
Barcelona, Spain:
Primavera Hostel (15 walk to La Sagrada Familia): This was the prettiest hostel that I have stayed in so far. It looks like a cute little boutique hostel and has more of a feel of a bed and breakfast. Their kitchen is super cute and spacious and you have your choice of the communal bathrooms or your own private one. I stayed in the dorm bed and the beds were super comfortable! They offered a tour to La Bunker (a view of the entire city on a hill) and I met some of my first friends in Spain within the first three hours of landing! I really liked the location of this place because it wasn't more than 20 minutes away from pretty much everything I wanted to see and the area that it was located in felt super safe.
Naples, Italy:
Hostel of the Sun: It was tucked away in a smaller street and very close to this beautiful shopping area. I mostly chose Naples because it is known throughout the world to have some amazing pizza AND because it is a popular base city if you want to visit the Amalfi Coast! This place was pretty clean and my favorite part was actually the staff who worked here. As soon as you walk in, you feel super welcomed by them, they give you a map with recommendations on where to eat and see things, anddd they also have a mini bar area with happy hour so you can socialize with the people staying there. They also had freeee dinner one of the nights that I stayed there and I ate some free pasta! They also have free breakfast I believe (I didn't make it because I kept sleeping in whooops). I probably would not recommend walking around this area by yourself at night but I definitely felt that it was safe enough to walk around alone in the daytime!.
Rome, Italy:
The Yellow: My last mini-home for my solo trip and it is definitely a party hostel. They own the bar downstairs with a dance floor on the basement level and have various musical acts performing throughout the week! Great crowd delicious food (for breakfast and late night munchies). Omg the crispy brie bites here are to DIE for. I had an order every night that I was there which was basically every night I was in Rome. Super clean, super spacious and I love how the room has a mini sink in it so you don't have to go to the communal bathrooms to brush your teeth. The area is pretty safe and it was super close to the train station!
TIP: After booking my flight and accommodations, I look up HOW TO GET TO THAT ACCOMMODATION. If you travel overseas, mostly likely you will not likely be able to 100% speak the language of the place you will visit. GOOGLE MAPS app saves lives man. You can download an offline map if you do not have a data plan that allows roaming without extra cost. Google maps will show you the public transportation (metros, buses, trains) that will get you from point A to point B.
what to do?
Depending on how long you go, you have to pick and choose what you can actually manage to see without over-exhausting yourself and depleting all your money. I recommend choosing a few things a day so you can actually enjoy and take in your surroundings! There are quite a lot of things you can see for freeeee or low cost and you don't have to go into every single attraction (unless you've got the money and you want to). Getting "lost" and wandering around in a new city is always exciting!
I paced myself and gave myself a few main attractions I wanted to do each day (generally all near the same area). Attractions like the Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe (Paris), Arc de Triomf (Barcelona), Champ Elysees, and Notre Dame you could totally do with admiring the outside and not have to pay anything. I had the best time walking around La Sagrada Familia with a mango gelato in my hand and enjoying the views.
5. Viator.com (Tours all around the world!): I used this site to mainly book my tours in Italy & Paris. After going through probably hundreds of tours, I picked an independent tour to the Amalfi Coast (the most I splurged for anything), a tour of the Colosseum (which I cancelled), and a tour of Vatican City (which I was late for and had to book another tour sheesh). Oh, also used it for the Skip the Line Tour of Versailles! They offer tours all over the world and you just have to type in the city and look up the dates you plan to visit! Keep in mind: tours will be expensive. I only picked three and I scoured through the entire site to make sure the itinerary gave me enough time to see the entire place. I definitely recommend looking at the ratings and reviews that other customers have left because those are real people and their experiences. You don't want to pay for a tour that ends up leaving you stranded or paying way too much for something that you could have gotten for half the price.
recommendations:
Italy:
Amalfi Coast Tour: HIGHLY RECOMMEND! This tour will pick you up from the hotel and has a nice air conditioned van to drive you around to FOUR picturesque cities of the amalfi coast. I chose an independent one so the driver will carefully navigate you through the steep winding road to get to each place, drop you off and you have about an hour to explore the cities and come back to the meeting place for the next city. After two cities, we stopped at this restaurant that has an amazing view of the sea and you get a free sample of the famous limoncello. While we only had an hour each city, by the fourth city of Amalfi, it felt like I had been there for almost an entire week. I spent my last hour of free time just sitting on the beach with my feet in the water and taking in all the sights. Highly recommend you wear sunscreen and bring a swimming suit and towel so you can take a quick dip in the water! Our tour guide was absolutely amazing and informative and by the end of the tour, all of the people in our van were pretty friendly with each other. This tour was definitely one of my favorite moments of my entire solo trip!
France:
Palace of Versailles with Audio Tour: We decided to only do one main tour with a time later in the afternoon in this ginormous castle with the skip the line option because this specific location can get extremely busy at times. We lucked out on a chilly November day and had plenty of space to walk around and see everything without the huge crowds. We were even able to enjoy a lovely sunset over the gardens.
finally, WHAT TO EAT. (aka the most important)
6. YELP.com: Yes. Yelp is in Europe and thank God it is because how else would I know where to eat? I 100% used yelp in every city I traveled to. It helps to make a collection folder for your trip on the app before you go so you have all the options when you get there and can decide what you're feeling and what you are close to!
Here is a link to my collection of places to eat in Paris & Amsterdam: Esther's YELP
My top places tho:
Café Loetje in Amsterdam. AMAZING STEAK & FRIES.
La Coïncidence in Paris: Best ambiance, delicious food, yummy red wine & not too far from Eiffel Tower.
Auberg'In in Clichy (near Paris): Wonderful service, amazing food, and the best cheesecake I've ever had. The owner is so wonderful.
Casa Angela in Barcelona: Tapas & Paella by La Sagrada Familia. YUMMMM.
Mamma Angela’s Trattoria in Rome: Probably the largest and juiciest steak I've ever had. I'm talking bigger than my face! Also ate here twice
Pinsere in Rome: This place was so good I went twice in one day! Their crust is so different from the usual crust we have!
Some extra tools:
7. Youtube: You guys. You know that saying about how you can just about find anything on youtube? Welp they say that for a reason. You can watch travel vlogs, videos about packing, food places, dealing with long flights, how to not become a target for pickpockets, everything... ALL THERE. It is such a good resource you just can't NOT use it right?
8. Tripadvisor: This site is super popular with travelers alllllll over (and for good reason). It is super helpful for accommodations, food, locations, everywhereeeee. GO NUTS.
Alright, I've just about covered my biggest tools that I've used to plan my trips and I hope it helps you somewhat in planning your next big adventure. If you have any questions, feel free to ask on here or dm me on instagram @yerangesther or follow me on my just-for-fun photography page @y.esthers. Until next time!