Student travel and student holidays
Five reasons for students to Fiesta in España
It’s the end of term and after the exams, essays and lectures you deserve a week of endless fun this summer. A week on the beach is what’s needed but what other options are there for those on a budget seeking that longed for holiday full of sun, sand, sea and…!?
Cheap holiday experts, lowcostholidays.com have identified their favourite festivals perfect for students on an affordable Spain holiday seeking a bit more than just a beach and beers. From four-day music events to a giant free food fight there is more to this popular holiday destination than meets the eye.
La Tomatina in Buñol, Valencia
Join the world’s biggest food fight! The epic La Tomatina in Buñol near Valencia happens on the last Wednesday in August and 50,000 people take to the streets of Buñol armed with 125,000 kg of over-ripe tomatoes to take part in the world’s biggest vegetable fight. The aim of the day is simple, tonnes of tomatoes are thrown, chucked, propelled, fired and launched at others and it’s all for free!
FIB Heineken in Benicàssim
The ultimate festival in the sun takes place at Benicàssim and the line-up this year includes Arctic Monkeys, The Strokes and Primal Scream. The FIB Heineken takes place between the 14th to 17th July and a four-day ticket with camping included will set you back £165. Benicàssim is easy to get to from Barcelona so you could tag it on to a longer break and include a couple of days to relax.
Low Cost Festival in Benidorm
Benidorm may not necessarily seem a hub for music but this tourist resort plays host to the Indie music festival, Low Cost. Taking place in July and with Placebo as headliners, a two-day ticket is a very affordable £37 and a great addition to a week spent at this popular resort on the Costa Blanca.
Pamplona Bull Run (San Fermin)
The Pamplona bull run takes place at 8am every morning from 7th to 14th July. Each day six fighting bulls run the three-minute route as well as two herds of bullocks. It’s dangerous and for those not wanting to run, it can be watched from behind the safety of a barrier – but expect an early start as crowds usually gather from 6am!
Ibiza Rocks
Ibiza, the clubbing capital of Europe, can be cheap to get to but expensive to party in. The weekly Ibiza Rocks events take place at secret locations across the Island during the peak summer months and the line-up includes Dizzee Rascal, Calvin Harris, Florence and the Machine and Pendulum. Tickets are priced from £28 and for those trying to do a week on the cheap can be a highlight of the holiday.
How to get there?
Spain and the Balearic Islands are just a couple of hours from the UK and boast great weather, affordable accommodation and loads of entertainment! Prices vary and lowcostholidays.com offer weekly deals with prices from under £150pp for a week with flights and hotel included! Visit www.lowcostholidays.com/spain-holidays.htm to book an affordable holiday to Spain.
Student travel advice resources
Association of British Travel Agents - here you can check ABTA's 2300 member companies and the destinations they cover.
Council on International Educational Exchange - details on how to travel in USA, Canada and Australia.
Fit for Travel - provides excellent travel health information.
The Foreign Office website features specific information and advice about each country.
International Student Travel Confederation - ISTC is a confederation of student travel organisations from around the world. Their members provide student flights, student cards, travel insurance, work exchange programmes and more. Find your local International Student Identity Card (ISIC) issuer here.
Lonely Planet - provides worldwide destination guides.
Rough Guide Travel - includes online travel guides.
Socrates-Erasmus is a scheme which provides grants for students following a course of higher education in one participating European country who wish to study part of their course in another participating European country.
Trip Advisor provides free, unbiased reviews on where to go, where to stay and what to do, in thousands of cities worldwide.
Virtual Tourist - a comprehensive member driven online travel guide book for the world.
Where are you now? - the world's largest travel and lifestyle social network.
Student travel insurance
Whether its for a weekend trip to Paris or a year's world travel backpacking policy there are many flexible and economical travel insurance policies available. Travel insurance covers not only the loss of important travel documents like tickets and your passport, but also your luggage, belongings, travel delays, cancellations and more seriously injury and even kidnapping. Insurance is not just for emergencies, but also to help you enjoy your trip, secure in the knowledge that you are covered against the unexpected. It may not be as exciting as planning your trip, but travel insurance is probably the most important purchase you'll make for your trip. The student friendly Endsleigh provides good travel insurance coverage at a reasonable price which includes a student discount, also consider the online providers such as Insurefor.com and .
American Express is a highly regarded provider of travel insurance with its policies rated five star by independent financial services research company Defaqto. The good news is this comprehensive coverage is far more competitive than you may think due to the scale of AmEx. They have specialist Gap Year/Backpacker travel insurance that covers trips in Europe or Worldwide from 3 to 12 months. Many sports are covered as standard, with an additional Adventure Sports option (incl bungee jumping!) available.
If you're off to the ski slopes this winter then Endsleigh are offering a week's winter sports travel insurance policy (including off-piste coverage) for under twenty quid.
Budget accommodation
For a wide range of hostel or budget hotel beds in towns all over the world use Hostelworld or Hostelbookers to book cheap youth hostel beds online, making sure you have a place to stay for at least the first few nights of your trip. Hostelbookers also have a free group booking service if there's a bunch of you on the trip. For budget hotels, hostels and b&bs Budgetplaces lists 40,000 accommodation providers across 80 locations. For slightly more upmarket, but still heavily discounted accommodation try Thomas Cook's Hotels4U offers the best deals in the market across 100,000 city & beach hotels in some of the most popular holiday and city-break destinations in the world. Alternatively Hotelopia is part of TUI Travel PLC, the world’s leading tour operator. As an hotel accommodation specialist, they offer reduced-rate accommodation with 35,000 properties in over 2,500 destinations worldwide. Hotelopia's service includes instant hotel confirmation, a lowest price guarantee and fully inclusive quoted rates with no additional credit card fees.
Or try the giants Expedia and Hotels.com.
Ok so you want better than budget? How about free then? Try Couchsurfing, AirBnB or Crash Padder, but that last one you have to pay for, but just a bit.
Cheap student flights and discount airport car parking
For comparing low cost flights at different times, dates and across airlines (including budget operators like Ryanair and Easyjet) it is hard to beat the 'screenscraper' comparison site Sky Scanner. It is also worth running searches on Expedia, eBookers or Opodo, but it's also worth keeping an eye on both British Airways and Virgin Atlantic as they have frequent sales on and it can be just as cheap to book direct with the airline. Alternatively Cheapflights.co.uk compare prices from both Expedia, Opodo etc as well as airline sites all on one page. If you need to park at the airport then book online in advance with BAA Airport Parking or Purple parking for big savings.
Discount Student Car hire
Booking your car hire online in advance of your trip can also yield big savings.
Holiday Autos, part of Lastminute.com is one of the big players, and also have a look at Auto Europe, with over 7,000 locations worldwide, for a competitive comparison quote. If you're bundling with flights and hotels then Expedia do good packages.
Interrail and Ferries
Check UK rail times and save on average 43% on train fares by booking in advance with The Train Line, however be aware that the site charges a booking fee so it is worth checking with the train operator directly (who typically don't charge booking fees) to see if you can get the same ticket.
If you're looking to inter-rail round Europe this summer then Rail Europe have flexible rail passes you can buy online. They also run sleeper ski trains direct to the Alps in the winter. If you're looking to travel by rail further abroad then International Rail specialises in the sale and distribution of Rail Tickets and Passes for travel in Europe, Australia, Asia and The Americas.
For ferries there's P&O Ferries for cruises and ferry crossings to the continent. Or for cheap ferry tickets to France, Spain, Ireland and other destinations,
Ferrycheap.com offers competitive online bookings for all the leading ferry operators.
UK and European coach travel
National Express's scheduled coach network offers easily the best value way to travel to 1200 destinations throughout the UK, to airports and into Europen with Eurolines, as well as offering 35,000 £5 coach fares a month across the UK. Their website offers easy access to a journey planner as well as printable e-tickets. Upon purchasing a discount card, they offer discounts for students and under 25s.
Megabus offers low cost inter city travel by coach and rail from £1 + 50p booking fee to over 50 UK destinations. NUS Extra card holders are entitled to an additional discount off the standard ticket price. This summer you can travel to anywhere in the UK and pay no more than £8! Travel must be booked at least 14 days in advance for journeys between 1st July and 2nd October 2011.
If you're looking for a cheap way to travel to the Alps this ski season then consider saving money by going by overnight coach with Eurolines.
Package student holidays
Now where to go to celebrate the end of exams or to get a cheap bit of late September sun in before the new term? Thomson is part of the largest tourism group in the world with access to over 65,000 hotels, apartments and villas to choose from in over 100 destinations. LowCostHolidays.com offer over 60 million holiday options with the most competitive flights and accommodation in the market. Also easyJet Holidays offer a choice of over 100 holiday destinations and 100,000 hotels, further use voucher code AUGUSTPROMO for £20 per holiday for off any bookings made by 31st August 2011. Or there's always Lastminute.com.
