Category: Lodging & Hostels

YOLO… Let’s Go Solo!

Written by Andre Grossberg

While GTE fosters amazing friendships and wonderful group trips, I’m writing this blog to you from the Vienna Airport, solo. I’m just back from a trip I planned the night before I left. This loosely put-together journey impacted me much more than I expected. So, let’s talk about solo travel for those thinking about hitting the road alone.

First off, solo travel wasn’t my original plan. My weekend plans got canceled due to poor weather, making the hiking trails dangerous. Not wanting to waste a weekend, I decided to seize the moment and travel to places I hadn’t planned before. Wednesday night, I pulled out my laptop and found an extremely cheap one-way flight back from Vienna. The new plan was to figure out how to get to Vienna and fly back Sunday night.

Now, having arrived at the airport, I’ve spent a night in Colmar, France, an afternoon in Zurich, Switzerland, and two days visiting Salzburg, Melk, and Vienna, Austria. I climbed a mountain, attended the largest free open-air music festival in Europe, and listened to Mozart while overlooking his grave. While these experiences were incredible, what really struck me was how different it was to do it alone.

To be completely honest, there were many moments on this trip when I would have loved to have a companion or two. I even felt lonely at times. However, this solo journey allowed me to learn so much about myself. Without anyone to share meals with or discuss views or art, I experienced everything in silence. Solo travel reveals what YOU truly find amazing. You have the freedom to do anything you want, at any pace and time. I danced alone at a concert, sat alone at the top of Mount Untersberg, and wandered the streets of many cities solo. It gives you the chance to reflect on your enjoyments, dislikes, thoughts, and limits.

Andre chilling on Mount Untersberg, on the border between Germany and Austria

I’m not saying solo travel is a must. It’s important to exercise strong caution while abroad, and growing close to others through travel is one of the most valuable experiences you can have. However, if solo travel is something you’re considering, for whatever reason, it’s worth it. You can create lifelong memories and have wonderful experiences by yourself. Some even say it’s hard to go back to group travel after experiencing solo adventures!

To wrap things up I wanted to give some tips for the solo traveler! Hostels are amazing. Many nights were only $30, and making friends with your roommates is fun! Bring a lock. Most hostels have places where you can lock your things for the day so you don’t have to lug them around. Ask around. It’s okay to ask locals for help or for things to do, usually they are more than excited to share. Finally, plan… but no need to stay on schedule. This is your trip and you can do whatever you want so explore! 

Happy Travels,

Andre Grossberg

Andre looking confused at the Belvedere Palace in Vienna, Austria
Andre listening to classical music with Mozart, Beethoven, and Franz Schubert
Andre fighting the urge to jump in the river in Colmar, France

There Is No “S” in Hotel

Noa gave hoStels another try during her trip to London, and this time around it was much better! Check out her latest blog post to get some ideas on what to do during your trip to London.

Hello again!

I am now the self-proclaimed cheap flight-finding queen. After my 20 euro trip to Milan, I have become slightly obsessed with finding cheap flights because they are less stressful than trains. With trains they can just sort of cancel them, give you no other options at 1 AM, and when you ask for other options they pretend to Google things for 25 minutes until telling you in German that you could take a taxi for 400 euros.

That being said, I quickly found a cheap trip to London for the next weekend! My friend and I decided we would give a hostel another chance since it wasn’t as last minute as Amsterdam. Also, for those who don’t know, one of my best most avid readers, my 12 year old sister, kindly sent me an edit saying, “you wrote hotel wrong, you put an s in it btw just lettin’ you know.” Just in case any other 12-year-olds reading my blog are confused, hostels are a version of a hotel that you do not want to stay in. The s stands for “super bad.” 

When we got to the hostel in London, called the Wombat, it was actually “Super great!”  Everything was clean, the staff was really nice, and there were no cats in our beds. We got in really late so we went to bed, and the next morning we had a free breakfast at the hostel before we all split up. I visited Oxford Street and walked around all of the shops until I met up with my friend in Chinatown to drink boba. I may be inconsistent about posting my blogs, but at least I am consistent about my nutrition. From there we decided to head over to Camden Market, which I absolutely loved. It reminded me of Pike Place Market in Seattle a bit, but also those indoor jewelry markets in NYC. Definitely up my alley. I love unique jewelry and art vendors, so it was really fun to see.

After the markets we met up with our third friend at an incredible taco restaurant. I cannot remember for the life of me what it was called, but they were exactly what I needed. The most exciting part of London for me was that a few days before with the help of my families convincing, I bought a ticket to see the Book of Mormon. I was worried spending a lot of money on a ticket, but let me tell you that after watching that show I would pay triple what I had paid for. It was by far the funniest show I have ever seen. So crude and hilarious, and the cast was so talented. I have not stopped listening to the music ever since, and I can’t wait to watch it again one day.

To end the night my friends and I sat at a jazz speakeasy, which was really nice. We met a good group of people that had recently graduated from Cambridge, and we spent the rest of the night hanging out with them. The next morning we woke up after only a few hours of sleep, walked around Notting Hill and Kensington Palace, and headed back for the flight home.

These weekends are extremely quick but every one of them has left me with memories that I hope will last me a lifetime. I am feeling really lucky recently and am thankful for everyone in my life. I’ll definitely let you all know about my spring break as soon as I have another chance to write!

For now, thanks for reading!

In Someone Else’s Shoes

After a semester at Georgia Tech-Lorraine, students become experts on their priorities when traveling. In her latest blog post, Aria discusses her thought process when deciding where to stay when away for the weekend.

Not often do you get to live in another country. Even weirder is living in someone else’s house. Through my weekend travels, I have experienced a range of accommodations, with most found on Airbnb. Each trip feels like a trial run in someone’s life. I eat their food, stay in their bed, and in the case of Amsterdam, experience their near vertical stairs. One even let me borrow clothes, so for fun I tried on a pair of pink velvet boots as I happened to be the same size as the owner. From a hostel room with 8 people to an apartment so nice I couldn’t leave, my weekend housing has largely shaped my experiences.

The attitude for most GTL students is that we simply can’t afford to stay somewhere nice. Travelling every weekend, with no income, means the time to try out that fancy resort is after we have gotten that engineer’s salary we keep hearing about. However, speaking as someone who has been tired my entire life, my sleep is important to me, and it’s not hard to find something cheap and nice. So here, I present my best tips for optimizing your weekend stay:

  1. Book Early

This is obvious. For any sane person going on a trip to Europe, they would book all their major reservations months ahead of time. The thing is, GTL students aren’t exactly sane. We plan new trips to new countries with new people every weekend. When the professor turns his back, we whisper airline confirmation codes. The best way to find a cheap place to stay is to check early and check often. Find a place with a flexible cancellation policy, and you can get your money back if you decide to change your travel plans later. Airbnb prices fluctuate much more than a hostel, so checking as frequently as you can will sometimes allow you to grab a new listing that is cheaper than it should be.

  1. Location, Location, Location

While price is king, location matters. Staying within walking distance of a train station, especially the main one, is insanely convenient and can save money on public transportation. Also, the station is usually a bit removed from the most popular real estate, making it more affordable. I now always check where the station I’m arriving in is located, and look there first. After hurting my ankle in Paris and having to walk up and down the metro stairs continuously, to me it is essential to ensure I have easy transportation. If not the train station, check for other accessible but cheaper locations. In Amsterdam, we stayed just outside the city lines in Zaandam. A train travels into the center often, and we got a ridiculously cheap stay in a gorgeous neighborhood while the rest of the city trended around $70/night minimum.

 

  1. Don’t Discount Perks

While I don’t travel for the housing accommodations, they can be significant. In Berlin, I stayed in an 8-person hostel room. This was the most affordable option, and I’d do it again, but it was incredibly hard having no privacy and essentially no room to spend time in, due to attempting to respect the wide variety of sleeping schedules. In contrast, we had an entire apartment 5 minutes from the train station in Antwerp for 2 people, for about $60 per night. This apartment was the nicest apartment I have ever been in, to the point I could barely get myself to leave, and we cancelled our place in Brussels so we could stay in another night. With its own espresso machine, free food, a giant TV and luxurious sleeping accommodations, I was planning how I could recreate this in my own apartment. The space was huge, and could easily have room for at least two more people on the L-shaped couch. I don’t know the legality of it, but fitting four people in an advertised two-person apartment would make this an absurdly good deal. With the free food, the savings were even greater.

My weekend in Amsterdam was largely chosen for the availability of a new Airbnb significantly under market price. This was the most wholesome ad I had seen, titled simply “My Home” and full of cute suggestions of accommodations the host was contemplating. As we were his first guests, the place was not in perfect shape, but he enthusiastically messaged me frequently as the day got closer. He made us soup upon arrival, later cooked an extensive Mexican dinner (hard to find in Europe), and allowed us to borrow his bicycles for free. We even saw improvements throughout the day, as our room on the upper level was still being built. Notably, a door miraculously appeared after he excitedly told us to expect a surprise upon our return. With all his little details, it really felt like home.

Like with most things at GTL, everyone has a different style in their travels. My personal recommendation is to not immediately base your decision on price, but to weigh the value of other benefits. Beyond just touring in a city, I have gotten the opportunity to live with locals, hear their recommendations, imagine their lives, and have a nice cup of tea on top of it all.