College Travel Tips

Being an out-of-state student, I have had to fly more than the average college student to visit family. Though all of us can agree that these are the best years of our lives to travel because we are young and in college. These are the last few years of our lives before reality truly hits us, so lets take advantage of that! Before you start searching the web for the next flight out of Austin, here are a few tips and tricks for traveling that might help you.

1. Prepare for all sorts of temperatures

You may be leaving Austin in the middle of our perfect Springs, but heading to Boston where you will need a snow jacket and boots. Make sure you wear layers while traveling so that you can add on or take off clothing to adjust to the temperature. There is nothing worse than being freezing on the plane, or being uncomfortably hot and almost suffocating. Give yourself options.

1. Wear minimal makeup

If you like to sleep on the plane, your full face of makeup is going to rub and smudge all over the place. It makes everything a lot easier to put on the very least amount of makeup you need, so that you can apply the rest after the flight and not have to start from scratch. Airplanes tend to dry your skin, so I would recommend wearing a CC cream that gives you enough coverage and moisture.

1. Bring you essentials in your carry-on

There will always be the fear that your luggage gets lost. That is why I always put my most valuable items in my carry-on. It could be the dress you are wearing to an important event that night, your makeup case, jewelry, your homework, whatever is most valuable to you on that trip. It’s a lot easier to carry a little more weight than having to worry about losing it completely.

1. Take advantage of your flexible schedule

I have lucked out way too many times by volunteering to take the next flight when mine is full and ending up with $500 travel vouchers for that airline. Most passengers either have to be somewhere for a business trip, or have kids and don’t want to spend the extra time in the airport. So, take advantage of your flexible schedule and volunteer. I have never minded being in the airport for another 3-5 hours because I always just bought some coffee and started working on some homework or reading a book.

1. Prepare for delays

With that being said, delays and cancellations are very common and it is important to make sure you prepare for this. If you have an important event the next day of your arrival make sure you book a flight that gives you enough time to make it, even if you do have a delay. Bring extra snacks in your carry-on so that you don’t have to spend a ton of money on the expensive airport food. If you have assignments due, make sure that you bring your school material, and check to see how flexible your teacher is with handing in late assignments.

Ultimately, traveling is extremely easy for college kids. Write a list of the places you want to go and go visit them! You’ll never regret spending your money on an experience that is priceless.

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