Take a gap year

Whether you’re putting your studies on hold or taking a career break from work, a gap year is an adventure of a lifetime that will expand your horizons. You can sign up as a volunteer or just take time out to see the world and you don’t have to be one of the 200,000 17 to 28 year olds to do it (source: www.gap-year.co.uk). ‘Gappers’ include men and women of retirement age and even families with a zest for new experiences and exploring. If you want an all-out action adventure in Australia, to volunteer in Africa, or spend your time learning new skills in the UK, the choice is ultimately yours. Where to go It all depends on what kind of experience you are looking for. If you want to avoid masses of tourists, then you should take note of the hot travel trends. A recent survey conducted by The Year Out Group (www.yearoutgroup.org) predicted that India was the hottest destination for 2007 followed by Peru, Tanzania and China. India is a hot favourite with travellers because it offers a varied and contrasting mix of cultural and natural diversity. However, China’s popularity is rising mainly due to the media frenzy surrounding the 2008 Beijing Olympics. High-ranking English-speaking countries include Canada, South Africa and Australia as it’s easier to get work when you speak the lingo (even with an accent). For more information about where to go, you can pick up travel brochures from your local travel agent, check out travel books at your local library or visit www.lonelyplanet.com. Lonely Planet boasts an impressive list of destination overviews from Antarctica to the Arctic and everywhere in between. Providing insights into people, culture, climate and more. You can also speak to a specialist travel agent like STA Travel.

They can advise you on multiple country and/or round-the-world trips. What to do With so many people taking gap years, there’s an abundance of information about what to do, how to do it, where to do it, and more.

The Gap-Year Guidebook 2008 comes highly recommend by the Sunday Telegraph and The Guardian. It has tips on everything from working your way around the world to volunteering and sports courses. You can buy it online at www.gap-year.com. More useful reads and websites that offer ideas for a gap year include: • Taking a Gap Year and Work Your Way Around the World by Susan Griffin. Crimson Publishing www.crimsonpublishing.co.uk • Lonely Planet’s The Gap Year Book: The Definitive Guide to Taking a Year Out by Joe Bindloss and Charlotte Hindle www.lonelyplanet.com • www.gapyearjobs.co.uk • www.gapadvice.org • www.realgap.co.uk The Government recently launched a new Global Fellowship scheme for school leavers. It focuses on sending 18-year-olds to emerging economic powerhouses like India, China and Brazil.

The students spend six weeks away and then report to the Global Fellowship scheme about their experiences on their return to the UK. For more information and application details visit www.globalgateway.org. Travelling solo or with company? Whether you like to do your own thing or prefer to travel with friends or in a group, you are bound to meet fellow travellers and locals wherever you go. It’s entirely up to you how you decide to travel but if you’d rather not do it alone, it is possible to find a travel mate before you go. Visit www.gap-year.com and check out their travel companion page. You can post an advertisement for a travel mate complete with details of your trip. If you choose to go this route, always meet your travel mate before you leave and make sure you get on. If your personalities clash during the trip and you feel you’d be better off without your travel mate, then agree to go your separate ways rather than let it spoil your experience. Stay in touch Thanks to social networking sites like Facebook, Myspace and Bebo, staying in touch with friends and family has never been easier. Plus there’s always email, phone and text messaging. If you want to share your gap year experience with a wider audience, you could start an online travel journal. You can sign up for a free page on www.travelblog.org and update your friends and family whenever you feel inspired. If you need help planning your trip, you can sign up for a trip planner at www.tripit.com. Whenever you book a flight or hotel room on the Internet, simply forward your confirmation emails to your 'tripit' account and it creates your own personalised travel itinerary. You can share your itinerary with friends and family so that they can keep track of where you are and where you’re heading. ‘Tripit’ is also useful to link up with fellow travellers en route. Your safety should always come first wherever you decide to go. It’s advisable to get tavel insurance for both short and long trips so that you know you’re covered if anything goes wrong or you get sick. Before you get a travel insurance quote, make sure you have all the details of your trip including your destination, what you’ll be doing there and how long you are staying.