Budget Travel Websites and London Websites

We can not urge you enough to do a bit of research before you go on any trip. While we encourage you to ‘get a little lost,’ the more you know about where you’re going, the better your trip will be. Below is a list of useful websites that can help you plan your trip. If you have any questions that you can’t seem to find an answer for, stop by the Activities Office on either campus. Our staff will do their best to help you.

Budget Airlines(from the UK to Europe)

www.ryanair.com – An Ireland based airline that flies out of Stansted Airport. Many of its destinations are to smaller airports around Europe that are a short train ride away for major cities.

www.easyjet.com – Flying mainly out of Luton Airport, but also Stansted and Gatwick.

www.flybmi.com – an airline with “frills” that flies out of Heathrow.

www.ba.com – British Airways has slashed prices to most of its European destinations in order to compete with the budget airlines. With departures out of Heathrow and Gatwick, flying BA is definitely more convenient than the budget airlines.

Also check the national carriers like Lufthansa, Swiss, Alitalia, Aer Lingus and others. Like British Airways, they have also lowered their prices to compete with budget airlines.

Airport Parking

Big discounts are available for advance purchase airport parking. The golden rule is never to arrive at the airport car park without pre-booking. Even booking online on the day of travel will save you money. Try these:
Holiday Parking UK – Cheap airport parking and discount airport hotels at 28 UK airports.

Gatwick Airport Parking Discounts – Parking for both North and South Terminals, with Summer Specials and big Winter discounts. Undercover parking also available, plus a range of good value airport hotels.

Heathrow Airport Parking Discounts – Parking for all 5 Terminals plus a range of good value airport hotels. Off-airport parking deals close to the airport, make the best savings.

Luton Airport Parking Discounts – On-airport and Off-airport parking deals.

Good discounts up to 25% off at Luton Airparks.

Stansted Airport Parking Discounts – Cost savings at Pink Elephant Parking plus other on-airport deals and local hotels.

Other Travel Websites

www.statravel.co.uk – has an interactive site for pricing flights and availability. It also sells Inter-rail passes, International Student ID cards, package holidays, and can arrange accommodation.

www.eurolines.com – Eurolines connects over 500 cities in 25 European countries by bus. More economical than train passes, but a bit slower, obviously.

www.raileurope.com – a US-based website that’s for getting rough ideas about train times and prices.

www.eurostar.co.uk – Everyone should ride the Eurostar at least once! Eurostar travels to Paris, Disneyland Paris, Calais, Lille, Brussels and Avignon.

During the winter Eurostar also runs trains to ski areas in France. Students can buy a return ticket on Eurostar for as little as £79.

www.roughguides.com – A good start to finding out information about where you’re going. This site can give you information on how to get around, where to sleep, what to eat.

www.timeout.com – This website is constantly updated to bring you the latest on what’s going on in cities around Europe as well as practical information about where to sleep and what to eat.

www.whatsonwhen.com – An excellent site for finding what’s going on when in the world. Simply enter the date and destination.

www.iyhf.org – The International Youth Hostel Federation is a network of youth hostels around the world that offers budget accommodation for all – not just the young – with a hostel card. The card costs about £15 and is valid for one calendar year.

www.hostelworld.com – This site is a reservation service that lets you book independent hostels all around the world.

www.casamundo.co.uk – This site provides accommodation throughout Europe and the USA at a discounted price for students.

www.youngpersons-railcard.co.uk – The Young Persons Rail Card gives students and youths 1/3 off most rail fares in Britain. It’s valid for one year and is a bargain at £30 (2017 prices). British rail is not cheap so it’s well worth investing in this card. It practically pays for itself after one trip!

www.the-backpacking-site.com – This website contains useful information, from advice on passports and visas, travel insurance through to what to pack. There is also specific gap year advice, information on working abroad and tips on transport too. Visitors can browse country guides which give an introduction to the location and gain advice about working there, you can also browse hostel listings to help them find the right budget accommodation.

Obviously there are many, many more websites you can visit to find out more information. If you are planning to backpack around Europe over the summer, we highly recommend getting a rail pass and a good guidebook before you go. If you want information specifically about London or the United Kingdom you might try these:
www.londontown.com This is the official website of the London Tourist Board and can give general information on the sights and attractions of London.

www.visitlondon.com The London Mayor’s office manages this site. It’s full of ideas of places to visit and has an events calendar so you can check out what’s happing in the capital city.

www.thisislondon.co.uk The on-line edition of London’s own daily newspaper is a wonderful source of information about what is happening in the capital.

www.visitbritain.com If you plan, as we hope you do, to step outside the boundaries of London, the British Tourist Authority present an excellent starter guide for you.

www.your-rv-lifestyle.com/things-to-do-in-england A list of 100 amazing things to see and do in England.

BY PURCHASING A SPACE ON A UNIVERSITY TRIP, STUDENTS AGREE TO THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS SET FORTH HERE:

• Students must be aged 18 or older to participate on overnight trips.
• The University operates a strict no refund policy. The University cannot offer refunds for trips or activities. In the case that a student cannot go, it may be possible to find an alternate student within the restrictions placed upon us by plane, train, ferry or hotel operators. Any cost incurred for changing names on tickets will be paid by either the student who is cancelling or the alternate student.
• Participating in a trip does not count as an excused absence. Check your schedule before committing to a trip. Internship students should note that they may be required to work on Fridays as part of their work/study program. Weekend trips depart either on a Thursday OR a Friday morning and return on a Sunday night. Students will not be issued refunds if they can not attend a trip due to a class or work requirement, and therefore should check before they commit to buying a space.
• Students will be notified via University email of the itinerary a few days before each trip. It is the student’s responsibility to make sure that he/she checks their University email account to obtain the necessary information. If the student does not receive notification via University email, it is each student’s responsibility to contact the Student Affairs Department so that the situation can be rectified.
• Spaces are offered subject to availability, strictly on a first come first served basis. The number of spaces on each trip is strictly limited, particularly in the case of weekend/week-long trips. Requesting a space through our website is not in itself a guarantee of securing a space. The earlier you make your request, the better chance you have of getting a place on a trip. Spaces cannot be held without payment.
• Details of the trips listed are subject to change. The details for the activities listed on the website are correct at the time of going live, but are subject to changes as circumstances dictate. You will be made aware of any changes to schedules etc., at the earliest possible opportunity via e-mail, posters and student mail.
• It is the student’s responsibility to acquire any necessary travel documentation such as a visa or individual travel insurance. Failure to obtain any necessary travel documents will not entitle the student to a refund. If you are not sure if you need a visa to enter a particular country, contact the embassy of the country you intend to visit.
• The University reserves the right to cancel any trip should there be insufficient numbers OR for any other reason they deem necessary such as social or political unrest in a particular country. Students will be notified as far in advance as possible should a trip be cancelled. The student will then receive a refund for the trip.
• The University cannot be held responsible for spaces which are not officially reserved as the result of an online booking error that is returned as a result of incomplete or denied credit card details.

The activities described on the website are available to all Richmond University students and can be booked online by visiting our website.

You will receive confirmation of your booking via email. If you have questions, please contact the Student Affairs Office at + 44 (0)20 8332 8214 or studentaffairs@richmond.ac.uk.

Disclaimer Statement

Richmond, The American International University in London has organized travel and/or accommodation for groups of students participating in the trips listed on the website. The University does not take control or operate any shipping company, coach or coach company, airline, hotel, transport or any facility, which it uses for these purposes. While every care is taken in organizing these trips, the University cannot be held responsible for any injury, death, loss or damage which is caused by any fault or negligence of the management or employees of any independent contractor. Also, we cannot accept liability or pay any compensation where the performance of our contractual obligations is prevented or affected by “force majeure”. This means any event that we or the supplier could not prevent, such as war, riot, civil strife, terrorist activity, industrial dispute, natural or nuclear disaster, adverse weather conditions, fire, strikes, or an act of God.

Trip Expectations

The Student Affairs Department plans trips within and outside of the UK each semester for the benefit of Richmond students.

The advantages of participating in a trip led by Student Affairs:

-Transportation and accommodation are pre-arranged for participating students

-An itinerary along with extra sightseeing options is provided by the trip leaders prior to each trip. Some of the activities may incur an extra cost and this will be marked on the itinerary. These activities are optional.

-Two members of University staff will accompany students on each trip to serve as a resource for students, and are also there to assist in case of an emergency.

Students who travel on trips through the Student Affairs Department should expect…

-To gain travel experience and build confidence to travel independently in the future

-To have free time throughout the trip. Students should research sites that they’d like to visit that are not included on the itinerary provided by Student Affairs

-To experience a new culture and way of life. This includes trying new foods and following the social etiquette of a particular country.

Please note:
The trip leaders are not professional tour guides or experts on the locations that are visited BUT are made up of extremely well travelled members of staff with experience of leading groups to foreign destinations. Each location that is travelled to has been researched in depth. Trip leaders are happy to assist students with obtaining any information that they may need while travelling with us as far as is reasonably possible. Our trips are not all-inclusive unless otherwise stated; everything included in the cost of the trip is clearly stated on the University website.