June 29, 2009
It is often a good idea to have multiple ways of paying for things while you’re away. If you’re planning on taking a credit card with you, there are a number of things to be considered.
Many cards that are relatively commonly used in the UK have significant charges for overseas spending. Withdrawal charges can be 2.5-3% of the amount, which can be a sizable sum, particularly as you’re likely to be working to a budget where every penny counts.
If you’re likely to be withdrawing cash from machines, it is usually best to use a debit card. While there may be overseas loading fees and withdrawal fees, as with most credit cards, there shouldn’t be any interest to pay.
Within Europe, Nationwide’s FlexAccount Visa Debit Card offers no overseas loading fees, no withdrawal fees and no interest on withdrawals. It’s still a good option outside Europe as well as the loading fees are only 1%, which is still less than the majority of other cards.
If you’re working abroad for a period of time, by far the best approach is to open up an account in that country and have your wages paid into that, enabling you to avoid foreign payment charges with your own bank.
June 24, 2009
Amazingly, up to 25 percent of people who travel do so uninsured. This is hugely unwise as travel insurance protects you when you fall ill abroad or lose belongings.
Gap year travel insurance is often sold as a separate policy, sometimes known as ‘backbacker’ insurance. Annual policies are also available, but they usually stipulate that you can only be away for a certain duration at any one time – typically a month.
Gap year travel insurance will cover you for longer trips, although many feature limits on where you can travel. Different policies cover different regions, so always check in advance that the policy you’re taking out covers the countries that you’re intending to visit.
You should also consider any activities that you might participate in while you’re away. If there’s a chance you might go bungee jumping or white water rafting, you’ll need to check that your policy covers you for these things. Many gap year policies will cover a lot of these things as they come with the territory, but it pays to check exactly what you can and can’t do.
June 15, 2009
Many people who have already entered the world of work take gap years to do a variety of things. Volunteering either within this country or abroad is a popular and beneficial way to spend your gap year for many reasons, not least the great amount of personal satisfaction which this will give you.
For many people however, the biggest issue for them to resolve before they begin their gap year is what are they going to do after it? Are they, for example, going to return to the job which they were in previously or are they going to move on to new challenges?
This is very important to consider and ideally you need to have all of this planned out, at least in your mind, when you leave. Even if you are not planning on returning to your old place of work when you return, it is critical that you leave there on a good note. This is essential for two reasons, first of all you never know where life will take you and one day in the future you may want to return to your old company.
Secondly, you may well need your former employers to provide a reference for you in the future and parting on bad terms is not ideal. Whatever you plan to do after your gap year, make sure that you keep as many options open as possible and ensure that you will have no regrets at all.
June 8, 2009
Before you embark on your gap year volunteering abroad, there are numerous things which you will have to make sure that you are able to take with you. Some items are more important than others of course, but if you plan well in advance then you should not be in the horrible position of leaving something which you cannot do without at home.
Yet one of the most important things which you can bring with you on a gap year abroad is an open mind. There will be many challenges ahead of you and some could well be outside your comfort zone, but it is absolutely imperative that you embrace these to get the most out of your trip.
If you are travelling with friends then ensure that they also are as open minded as you are, as the last thing you want is to be tied down by others when all you want to do is experience as many things as you can.
Sometimes it takes a lot of courage to step outside your comfort zone and the challenges which you will face could seem insurmountable at times, but persevere and keep that open mind and the rewards will certainly come.
June 4, 2009
When you embark on your gap year abroad, one of the things which will play a prominent part in your mind is absent friends and family. It is always hard to leave behind people who are so dear to you, even for a short amount of time, but with the right planning before the event, the intensity of this can be diluted.
First of all, make sure that your phone is set up for international calls and determine which tariff is best. Recently some phone companies have abolished roaming charges and this could well be advantageous to you during your trip. The sound of familiar voices will be a great comfort to you, especially during the initial stages of your trip and therefore it is imperative that you plan accordingly before you leave.
Secondly, there is email, which is incredibly popular. It is quick, can store large amounts of information and in many places is free. Make sure that you set up an email account before you leave and circulate the address to all of your friends and family so they can all keep you bang up to date with everything which is going on back home.
Blogs and online diaries are also incredibly popular and will provide you with a lasting reminder of your experience. It is a good idea to start this well before you leave as not only will you be able to document your thoughts prior to your trip, you will also be able to ensure that everything is working as it should.
With the above in mind, it is highly recommended that you locate the nearest place where you can connect to the internet on your trip as soon as possible.
