Category: Travel Tips

What is it like to be an au pair?

On By Lisa OwenIn Europe, Tips & Tricks, Travel TipsLeave a comment

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If you’re toying with the idea of a gap year, you’ve probably come across the concept of au pairing.

An au pair is a live in position where you look after children in return for board and food. You will also receive a small payment (basically pocket money) of around $100 AUD per week. Reasons people want an au pair is for a variety of reasons, but the most common ones are that they want their kids to learn another language or they would prefer their child be at home with someone rather than going to childcare. read more

Why it’s ok to travel solo

On By Lisa OwenIn Adventures, Travel Tips5 Comments

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I don’t know how many times people have asked me ‘are you travelling by yourself?’ with a look of surprise. Yes, yes I am. And it’s perfectly fine.

No I don’t get lonely or bored, sometimes I get scared in certain situations but I’ve only had a few near misses in eight years of travel. I have to take the occasional selfie – or trust my camera to another tourist. I have to be independent and find places on my own – but the journey is half the fun!

I don’t know if it’s because I’m petite or simply because I’m a woman that people are surprised I predominantly travel alone. read more

Packing for an Icelandic winter

On By Lisa OwenIn Iceland, Travel Tips, What To Pack1 Comment

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If you’re anything like me, then the idea of heading to Iceland in winter might be a bit daunting. How cold will it be? How many layers do I need? Does it snow everyday? What do I wear in the snow? Will a heeled boot be ok? How many pairs of socks will I need? Do I need hand warmers?

For most of my life, I’ve lived in a place where it never, ever snows so I asked myself all these questions and more before I headed to Iceland in January. Iceland in winter just sounds like it would be ridiculously cold. read more

10 essential carry on items

On By Lisa OwenIn Tips & Tricks, Travel Tips, What To PackLeave a comment

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Got a long haul flight coming up? In the past year, I’ve taken more than 50 flights – many of these between six and 15 hours – and I’ve got pretty good at figuring out what I need to help me get through those long haul flights.

Here’s the 10 things I can’t do without on a long distance flight.

1. Tablet/Kindle/Book

This is a no brainer. You want to keep entertained on your flight – unless you’re one of those amazing people who can sleep anywhere. Depending on the airline, you may or may not have in-flight entertainment and sometimes there’s nothing on there you would watch. I usually take both a tablet loaded with a few of my favourite shows or movies I wanted to watch and a book with me to fight the boredom. (I’m of the old school and prefer a book I can hold – then I just swap it for another at a hostel or leave it behind when I’m done.) read more