Ciao a tutti!

I am glad to write to y’all after another amazing month abroad! This month I have finally been able to do some travel outside of Rome and look forward to sharing some of my experiences and tips for longer voyages across Europe!

As much fun as it is to travel around, I have certainly had some ups and downs when it comes to travel logistics, so I hope that by sharing my authentic experience with you, I can help you not make the same mistakes that I did!

So far, I have traveled to Spain and Germany, and had very different experiences in traveling to each place. First of all, I will not sugarcoat it: it is not very cheap to travel across Europe, especially if you want to stay comfortable and especially if you wait until the last minute to book your trips as I have unfortunately done.

When it comes to travel, I recommend that you fly. It may be a little more expensive, but it is worth the extra few dollars. A great airline that I recommend which services most of Europe is RyanAir; it is reliable, affordable, and easy to navigate. WizzAir is similar but is a small step down in my opinion. My only time to travel outside of Rome is when we don’t have class at John Cabot University, which is usually 3 days, Friday through Sunday. You want to spend as little time traveling as possible to maximize your time at your destination, and flying is a great way to cut down on the commute. A good tip I have to find a reasonable flight is to use the SkyScanner app or website: it sorts through every airline to find the best overall, cheapest, and quickest flights for a certain date. It has been a real game changer for me.

Book your flight at least a month in advance, or as soon as you decide you want to travel. For example, I went to Germany for Oktoberfest and made the decision to go a few weeks before my trip. By then, the flights were $1,000+ round trip, so I had to settle for a miserable sixteen-hour bus ride each way from Rome to Munich. This was booked through a third party company called EuroTrips for around $380, which also included bare minimum lodging at a campsite and breakfast. Also, when I went to Spain, we took a ferry from Barcelona to the island of Ibiza, which was much cheaper, but it also took ten hours and was not ideal due to the lack of comfortable seating for sleep and the length of the ride.

Finally, when it comes to lodging, it depends on your preference. I am a person who prioritizes comfort, so I am willing to pay a little extra for a hotel. But with that being said, there are a lot of good hostels out there that are cheap, safe, and reliable. A hostel is a cheaper way to go about lodging and is typically accommodating others traveling on a budget. They tend to have dorm-style sleeping arrangements and vary when it comes to specific amenities and accommodations. I recommend HostelWorld.com; you can add all your preferences and it has tons of ratings and reviews.

When it comes to full cultural immersion in the place you are traveling, it comes down to doing your research. Whether it is a simple Google search for the most authentic restaurants and neighborhoods, or consulting a friend who has already visited the location, I will always recommend trying to get as immersed as possible. It is easy to meet locals and make new friends, it just may take a little bit of jumping outside of your comfort zone!

At the end of the day, when you are thinking about booking a trip while studying abroad it is very important to prioritize what is important to you in travel: whether it is comfort, cost effectiveness, or immersion. Regardless, I could not recommend enough to travel outside of your study abroad city, because you are not in Europe every day!

You can find this blog on the UTK Abroad Website here

Written by: Braden, Fall 2024 Rome student from University of Tennessee, Knoxville