Travel Tips

Travel tips for planning your next trip

Whether you’re taking your first solo trip or planning several months away, the decisions you make before leaving can affect your budget and how comfortable you feel on the road. I’ve put together these travel tips from my own experiences with booking, hostels, meeting people and travelling with dietary restrictions. Start with whichever topic you need help with most.

Budgeting, booking and finding travel deals

If you’re still working out how to afford your trip, start with my guide to budgeting and saving for travel. It explains how I set a savings target and looked for expenses to cut before leaving. My five tips for more affordable holidays covers choices such as destinations, travel seasons and accommodation.

Once you’re ready to book, my guide to booking travel independently is a starting point for organising the trip yourself. You can also explore how I look for travel deals and learn what flight error fares are. Prices, websites and airline policies change, so check today’s terms before booking anything.

Solo travel, meeting people and staying in hostels

I enjoy travelling alone, but arriving somewhere new can still feel daunting. My solo travel tips for meeting people cover hostels, activities and ways to start conversations. If you meet someone you’d like to travel with for a while, my guide to temporary travel partnerships explains why it helps to discuss budgets, interests and personal space early on.

Hostels can make solo travel more social and affordable, although they’re not right for everyone. If you’ve never stayed in one, read what it’s really like staying in a hostel for a look at rooms, shared spaces and the people you might meet. My hostel packing essentials guide covers small items that can make shared accommodation more comfortable.

Travel apps, phone access and dietary restrictions

Keeping in touch, finding your way around and making reservations are easier when you’ve planned how you’ll connect overseas. My phone-use guide compares ways to get calls and data on the road. I’ve also shared apps I’ve used while travelling and websites for planning a trip. Some services and features mentioned in those older articles may have changed.

Food is another part of travel that deserves some preparation, especially if you avoid certain ingredients. In my travelling with dietary restrictions guide, I share ways to research meals, explain what you eat and prepare for destinations where your usual options are harder to find.

Longer trips and volunteering overseas

If you have more time away, volunteering may be something you’re considering. My guide to volunteering overseas draws on my experiences and discusses how to look for opportunities and what to question before committing. Always research an organisation’s practices and its impact on the local community before joining a project.

Where to start

I’d begin with your biggest question rather than reading every guide at once. Sort out your budget and bookings first, then focus on the practical details that match how you travel, whether that’s hostel stays, phone access or food. The latest Travel Tips articles below bring everything together if you’d like to keep browsing.