How Should You Start Preparing for Your Spring Break?

When should you start preparing for your spring break?

Spring breaks are such fun getaways from the chaos of the semester and the academics. But they get even more exciting when you are abroad. This article has all the tips and tricks of when to start planning your spring break, and how you can travel on a budget while checking off countries from your bucket list! 

1. START PLANNING!

It can be stressful to plan a trip for every single weekend, but it is better to do it early than later. If you know you have a friend that you are going to visit, book your flights asap. Even before you get to your study abroad location ideally, or if you plan on going to Dublin for St. Patrick’s! The initial excitement to travel to all these places will be your motivation to start planning. We got our schedule from IES Abroad Milan regarding classes and we had a few Fridays where we didn’t have a class. I used that to plan my weekends and holidays in advance.

2. FRIENDS & FLIGHTS?

I’m the type of person who doesn’t need to do everything with a buddy. I like to be on my own, so I wasn’t worried if I was going to places by myself, with a friend, or in a large group. A group of people is a good move though, if you don’t like planning. Me and my friend booked our flights two months in advance for our spring break and it cost us about 30 euros to go from Milan to Budapest and like 35 euros from Budapest to Athens. Then we had two more friends who joined our plan a little later. 

3. WHERE TO GO?

I can share the places I covered, but Europe is so beautiful, no matter where you go it is going to be awesome! I went to Rome by myself the weekend when our spring break started because it would be embarrassing to tell people that I had studied abroad in Italy but hadn’t seen the capital yet. Honestly though, keeping the Milan versus Rome rivalry aside, I loved it! From Rome, I took a flight to Budapest with my friend Lilah, and we met up with the rest of our group.  We spent two days in Budapest and flew to Athens for two days. From Athens, we spent three days in Santorini, just calming our nerves down by the beach after all that traveling. I think covering the entire Italy on spring break would also be sick since you can take the bus or train everywhere, or Island hopping in Greece!

4. ACCOMMODATION

I scream book a hostel! Hostels are a lifesaver in Europe for young travelers. You will meet people like yourself, but from different parts of the world and save money. Private hostel rooms are a great way to be more comfortable and peaceful while living with your friends. Airbnb’s in Greece were pretty cheap, so you should check that out for each city. I like hostels because the location usually isn’t the problem, it has mostly been in the center of the city so I didn’t have to worry about public transport. 

5. GETTING AROUND

That brings me to my last point, public transportation. There were times when I got a taxi from the airport to a certain location, but I’m a big public transport supporter haha. I would rather spend money on clothes than an Uber ride. Check out your transportation options and make a wise decision. Also, most cities are walkable in Europe and you will get your steps in!

Hope that helped, folks! Reach out for questions, concerns, or comments, and don’t forget to have fun ;)