Holiday or Travel?

• "I am a travel enthusiast also and have been to 3 of the 7 continent so far. Reflection on my travels, I have questioned whether there is a difference between travelling and holidaying. When looking back at the places you've been, have you been travelling or holidaying? Do you think they're different, same or overlap!"

- Filipo

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This is a question I've asked myself many times!

I think there is a difference but I also think the terms "travel" and "holiday" can overlap on occasions.

For our continuous trip around the world I would call this travelling as we planned on-the-go and some of our main aims were to 'see the sights', visit the attractions and experience the cuisines that each location was famous for e.g. The Great Wall in China and the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. In my opinion the term travelling/travel is associated with longer trips, trips where you're visiting several locations, and trips that involve being dynamic i.e. planning on the move and reacting to changes along the way.

On the other hand, I think "holidays/holidaying" are trips for leisure where the main goal is basically to relax and have fun. For example, when we visited Lanzarote in 2017 I would certainly call that a "holiday" as we weren't going to see sights or historic landmarks, rather we wanted to enjoy the sea, sand and sun!

Finally, I also do believe that the terms can be used together, and for this I use the examples of the short trips we've taken to various cities in Europe. For instance, when we visited Paris in 2018 this was for Rebecca's birthday and we booked a nice hotel and aimed to enjoy some of the restaurants and bakeries etc. that Paris is known for. Meanwhile, we also wanted to see all the sights, as you do while "travelling", and we were able to visit many great landmarks like the Louvre, the Arc de Triomphe, the Notre-Dame, and of course the Eiffel Tower. I would class Paris, along with our trips to Amsterdam, Prague, Budapest and Venice, as "holidaying/travelling"!

How do I manage my budget abroad for a prolonged period?

- Chris

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Sticking to a budget is annoying, but absolutely essential. If you don't manage your money you could end up having to come home early or miss out on some of the dream things you've always wanted to see. Equally, if you're too strict on your spending you won't get to enjoy everything you've traveled so far to see! So here are the top ways to easily manage your money so you can have the best trip possible.

1. Plan ahead - if you know you have a lump sum of cash, do some research for flights, accommodation, food costs etc. so you can get a general idea of how much you'll be spending per month or week on living costs and attractions. It's also important to look at the particular countries you're going to visit, as 1 month in Thailand is likely to be far cheaper than 1 month in the USA.

2. Give yourself a strict allowance - if you know your trip will cost £1000 a month don't spend more than this. It seems simple, but it is easy to get carried away when you're abroad and having a great time. Just remember, anything you overspend will take money away from your future destinations so think carefully. If you're happy to spend more in 1 area and less in another then that's fine, but just think about it first.

3. Use international debit cards - These cards are so useful and I whole-heartedly recommend them. I used a Revolut card abroad, which didn't charge me currency exchange fees and it was connected to my phone so I could see my online banking and what money I had spent on what. This makes it really easy to monitor your spending and keep an eye on your money. In some countries having cash is better, but you can withdraw cash in different currencies from a Revolut card so I would recommend getting one regardless of whether you want to use cash only. It's also a lot safer to carry a debit card in your pocket than a big sum of cash in my opinion.

4. Remember to treat yourself - At the end of the day, you've worked hard to save and plan for your travels so enjoy it! The beauty of budgeting is that it gives you the opportunity to spend a bit more money on something special from money saved elsewhere. We decided to treat ourselves to an overnight cruise in Ha Long Bay, Vietnam and I am so glad that we did. We knew that this was one place in particular that we wanted to be really special, so we budgeted more heavily in China so that we could splash out and have a bit of luxury in Ha Long Bay.

Sticking to a budget is important, making sure you don't OVER or UNDER spend will ensure you have the best experience possible!

How can I make sure I see all of the attractions whilst I am travelling?

- Libby

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Unless you have unlimited time and an unlimited budget I would say it is unrealistic that you will see absolutely everything an area has to offer, and in all honesty you might not be interested in all of the attractions anyway!

However there are ways to ensure you get to see as much as you can and it's about being organised with your money and time.

I would research the 'top' attractions in each place before I visited, by looking at blogs, talking to others who had traveled there or online reviews. I would then select any that interested me and I would add their location to my google maps. This allows you to create a visual overview of the things you want to see and how you can group activities that are close by. This then allows you to use your time wisely, by visiting multiple attractions on the same day which are close together, meaning you don't waste time travelling around the area going back and forth.

Additionally, I would always try and be realistic with your time-frame and what you can visit and experience. There is no point trying to see 50 attractions if you only have a week because you will rush everything and not actually enjoy yourself fully. This is when prioritising is important. Choose the things you absolutely MUST do/see and plan your itinerary around these. Then anything else you get to see is a bonus!

It is also important to evaluate your budget - would you rather spend all your money on 1 extravagant thing, or split the cost and see 6 awesome attractions? It's all personal choice, but it's essential to weigh up your priorities, budget and time-frame so that you can really enjoy your time travelling!

PS: Not all of the best experiences are reviewed attractions or expensive, sometimes the greatest things are free and only found through unplanned exploring so make sure you give yourself enough time to just explore the area generally too.