Beijing, China
I like to plan. Looking back on my semester abroad the best memories came from well organized, stress-free days. Having a rough inventory allowed for less stress, as well as a platform for excitement for each country. All of which made my in-country experiences worthwhile.
The countries I did not plan well for went terribly wrong. One of the last ports I visited on Semester at Sea was Kobe, Japan. My friends and I had bought flights to go to Tokyo but that was the extent of our planning. I had been so tired of planning I decided to try my hand at the #wonderlust method.
Some travelers are spontaneous. They can jump on a plane and figure out the rest when they reach their destination. I am not that kind of traveler.
The train system in Japan was more complicated and the ticket prices were higher than expected. These two factors stressed me out so much that I limited my time and my willingness to explore Japan. I deeply regret not planning ahead for my time in Japan. Especially since there are so many tools to make planning trips on a budget so easy.
Founder: Stephen Kaufer
About: The Trip Advisor app is a free travel agent in your pocket. The app provides recommendations for restaurants, hotels, tours, and popular sites for just about any city in the world. The app is easy to navigate. Yet the most important part: every option shown is reputable and held accountable by their reviews.
Why I use this application: Trip Advisor was a huge help to me while studying abroad. In countries like Spain, Vietnam, and China where I was not on Semester at Sea affiliated programs I have to independently plan my own itinerary. Trip Advisors vast database of restaurants, hotels, tours, and popular sites made fast work of planning my time in-country. Trip Advisor also saved the day on multiple occasions when my friends and I had not planned enough. We were able to jump on the app while eating lunch and Trip Advisor would use our exact location to inform us of the fun things to do nearby. Best of all it is FREE!!!
Founders: Fredrik Carl Størmer & Espen Odegard
About: StudentUniverse is a deal comparison site, similar to Expedia. The difference if that StudentUniverse provides exclusive deals for students and adults under the age of 26. StudentUniverse’s mission is to provide quality flights and hotels at a price that is attainable for students and young adults.
Why I use this application: I use StudentUniverse because I know that they are reputable and the price comparison makes it easy to find times, prices, and locations that work best for my needs. While I was in China, I flew from Shanghai to Beijing and back for $460 on China Air. I bought that ticket a week before and it was the best deal by far.
Founders: Scott Hintz, Andy Denmark, & Gregg Brockway
About: Tripit is an organizational tool for planning trips. Tripit combines all reservations (flights, hotels, tours, etc.) related to your trip from which it creates an itinerary. One of the major features of the Tripit app is that it keeps up with your reservations and notifies you of delays and cancelations. It then gives options for correcting these inconveniences. It is all in all a great asset when planning trips.
Why I use this application: I use Tripit to keep track of what I am doing and when. I am not the most organized person. My room is always a mess and half of my life fails to ever get jotted down in my personal planner. While a plan gives me solace; making that plan, for me, is not a fun affair. Which is why I relied on Tripit to create my itineraries. While I thankfully never ran into any kind of delay the interactive aspect of the app came in handy. The app made sharing information with family and friends with easy. Best of all I could easily keep track of what I was doing so I could better enjoy my experience.
For further travel planning tools:
girlonthemove.travel.blog 