Top Tips for Couples Planning a Gap Year
Forget long walks and candlelit dinners. For the ultimate romantic experience, couples today are choosing to embark on a gap year together. A year abroad with your partner is the perfect way to encounter new cultures, cuisines and ways of life, whilst sharing it all with the special person in your life.
However, a year of travelling abroad can put a strain on any relationship. So, be sure to catch up on these top tips for guaranteeing the experience is a positive one.
Find your dream destination
This is one of the most exciting parts of planning a gap year: deciding where in the world you want to go. With the right planning, gap year experiences can take travellers to nearly every corner of the globe. They’re an excellent opportunity to see new places, sights and cultures, and offer the perfect chance to start ticking things off your bucket list.
Travellers need to decide what sort of experience they’re hoping to get from their time abroad. Is it a fun party year to let their hair down? Or are they hoping to give something back to poor communities in less developed countries? Sometimes it’s also worthwhile considering a destination that acts as a good base for travelling, like the UK’s easy access to the continent.
Consider your vocation
Once you decide on a destination, the next step is to decide what you plan to do with your time away. Some of the common gap year experiences include volunteer placements in destinations like Africa or South America. Another popular choice is working as a teacher’s aid in a boarding school. Many gap year travellers prefer to get a temporary job that bankrolls their travel plans.
Whatever you plan to do abroad, research is always key. You need to find out whether your visa allows you to work in your chosen destination and, if so, for how long? If you’re opting for volunteer work, organised placements are a great way of finding safe and rewarding work.
Do your research
Before you depart make sure you’re up to speed on local customs, currencies and traditions. Expat community forums can be helpful for finding temporary placements, not to mention advice for securing a bank account, phone plan and finding affordable accommodation.
If you plan to stay in the same location for an extended period of time, it’s also worthwhile learning some of the local language. Be sure to find out how multi-lingual your destination is. While English speakers can often explore Europe hassle-free, people coming to destinations like the US, the UK and Australia are advised to learn some English.
There are excellent options when selecting an English school in London, but be sure to consult an independent directory like Qype. Sites like this provide profiles on the best services to choose from, such as the ESL – Language Travel’ +’QYPE profile.
Being independent
Travelling as a pair can have its pros and cons. A year abroad together means many hours together, often in quite stressful situations. It’s worthwhile making sure that both members of the couple are completely independent, particularly in terms of their finance.
In the event that you decided to go your separate ways whilst travelling, it’s vital that you both have separate bank accounts, phones and an organised way of getting home. Learning the local language plays a big part in feeling confident and independent in a country.
