The Thermal Bath Experience in Budapest

Budapest thermal baths

One of Hungary's most exciting attractions are the thermal baths - large hot tub-like baths that are open to the public. Budapest became known as the City of Spas in the 1930s with its number of baths around the city that drew in visitors. Last winter I went to the popular Szechenyi baths in Budapest and my expectations were blown away by how cool thermal baths actually are. The Szechenyi baths have large baths outside as well as some smaller pools and saunas inside. I went on a regular night, but there are often spa parties with crazy lights and laser shows.

The Thermal Bath Experience in Budapest

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It cost 4300 ft (about $19 USD) for entry and a locker at the Szechenyi baths. I also rented a towel and a swimsuit. I forgot to bring my swimsuit, and I regretted it - while it's nice they offer ones for rental, you can tell how old and used they are. I'm sure they clean them, but in my opinion it's just more comfortable to be in your own swimwear.

Instead of a traditional key, you get a waterproof bracelet that you tap to lock/unlock your locker. It was so nice to not have to worry about having a key with the possibility of getting it lost or stolen while you were in the bath. I put my clothes, shoes, and handbag in the locker. Outside by the outdoor pools there are mini lockers that your tap bracelets work with as well. I used one of those to put my camera and some extra cash in.

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I used some cash to get a drink at the mini bar outside ;) but just know that you can't take your drink into the water!

There are three pools with people relaxing and mingling. One is a whirpool which is a lot of fun.

Since I went in the winter, it was very cold outside! Luckily the baths were warm. Also, when walking from one bath to the other there was a little "moat" of warm water lining the pools. I'm pretty sure that's to wash your feet before you get into the pool but it was nice to take a few steps in to warm up my feet when switching from one bath to the next.

After a couple hours we left and grabbed our stuff from the lockers before heading back to the hotel to shower and change and go out for the night. All in all it was a fun experience and I highly recommend going to the thermal baths in Budapest during your visit!

3 Things I Learned During My First Solo Trip

My long weekend in Paris this summer was the first time I ever traveled solo, and I learned a lot within that short span of time. I had a lot of questions before I left, which I can assume are the same nervous jitters most people get when they travel by themselves for the first time, especially to a foreign city. Starting in Paris was a good "intro" to solo travel, so if I ever travel by myself again, I have a good impression of it.

3 Things I Learned During My First Solo Trip

1. Do your research

I read travel blogs, looked up places I was going on TripAdvisor and Yelp, and skimmed a couple guide books. Since I didn't do any formal tours of the city, I looked up a quick history of the main attractions I'd be walking past to have a little background knowledge. Most importantly, I found quite a few tips and tricks over TripAdvisor and Yelp about where I was going - like cutting my time in line at The Louvre in half by going in the underground entrance! Research also helped me be aware of the tourist scams so I could avoid them.

2. Walking is the best way to see the city

I lucked out in Paris with beautiful sunny weather every day, which made walking everywhere enjoyable. One morning I got up early to make an hour-long trek from my hotel to Notre Dame. I loved seeing the city slowly wake up and the peacefulness of walking along the Seine. I took a couple wrong turns (but quickly found my way!) and stumbled across cool things I never would've found, had I taken a cab or public transportation.

3. People are friendly

The hotel staff was very friendly, because, well, they're a hotel staff. They were so nice and gave me tips and showed me scenic routes to walk on a map. But even out in the city, people were friendly too. If I had to ask a Parisian something, of course I would try to attempt my best to say it in French first, or at least ask them in French if they spoke English. I never experienced any of the stereotypical "Parisian snottiness," everyone was friendly. I met a number of other people traveling as well who were from all over the world. Smiling is the universal language.

Paris in the summer was a great intro to solo travel for a number of reasons: it's already a pretty safe city, and since it's high season, there are plenty of people/tourists out and about; it happened to be warm and sunny, which was great for walking (and saving money on not using public transport); and there is so much to do in the city that you're bound to avoid boredom and loneliness. I would definitely suggest Paris as an intro to solo travel.

Why It's Worth It To Get Up Early When You Travel

This article was originally published at College Tourist. Click here to read the full article!

When you travel somewhere new, it’s easy to just want to sleep in a few extra hours and lounge in your bed before taking on a new city. Though there are a number of advantages to waking up early when you travel – here are five of them:

1. Banish jet lag faster

If you have a nasty change in time zones, it’s tempting to keep hitting snooze on your alarm, but if you force yourself to get up and outside, your body will start to adjust from being out in the sunlight. The faster you beat jet lag, the more time you spend enjoying your destination overall.

2. Enjoy a longer and more leisurely breakfast

Getting up earlier gives you more time to sit down and enjoy a meal without the stress of being in a rush to get somewhere on time. Why eat the leftover pretzels from the airplane as you head out the door when you can eat what the locals do instead – and have time to enjoy it?

Click here to read the rest of the list!

How To Pack For 2 Weeks With Just a Carry-On

I was recently in Europe for about 2.5 weeks (18 days). While the first few days in Paris were just for fun (and my first solo travel experience), I then went to Vienna, Prague, and Berlin for a work trip. I needed to pack both work and casual clothes, my shoes, toiletries, makeup, laptop, and camera, and leave a little room for souvenirs.

Checking a large bag is a hassle, plus it's heavy to drag through the airport. Also, a multi-country trip means a lot of transportation, and a large bag is just annoying to pack and re-pack. Therefore, I packed for my whole two and a half weeks with just a carry-on, and want to show you that you can too!

First off, my carry-on is the largest size for standard American flights. Since all my flights allowed for one free checked bag up to 50 lbs, my carry-on easily fit the size and weight requirements to check it.

I didn't have to check my carry-on, but going hands-free through the airport is so nice. All I had to hang onto was my Longchamp. Since I was traveling by myself, this made things like going to the bathroom or buying food at a crowded kiosk much easier since I didn't have to lug a roller bag around the airport.

How did I do it?

Space Bags

Once I started using Space Bags, I can't believe I traveled for so many years without them. They come in a number of sizes, and I was able to fit two carry-on sized Space Bags into my suitcase. You can find them at Target or similar stores!

Roll your clothes

Even with the Space Bags, I still rolled all my clothes. Rolling clothes takes up the least amount of space. If your clothes are wrinkled once you get there, use the hotel iron. No iron? Hang your clothes in the bathroom while you're showering to steam out the wrinkles.

Travel sized toiletries

I used to always bring my big toothpaste tube with me on trips. I don't know why I did that, because I had a number of random mini tubes I got for free from the dentist over the years. Two mini tubes of toothpaste lasted my whole 2.5 weeks, and I just threw them away before I left. I did the same with my mini shampoo bottle, body wash, etc.

Be realistic about what you'll actually wear

I brought four pairs of shoes: 2 pairs of flats, 1 pair of boat shoes, and 1 pair of sandals. I love heels, but knew that with the cobblestone streets + jet lag + hours of walking, I wouldn't wear them. So I didn't bring heels. I also exercise every day at home, but was about to be working 15 hour days for the majority of my trip, which left very little time for exercise. So I didn't bring athletic shoes or gym clothes.

There you have it! How I was able to fit everything I needed for 2 weeks into carry-on. Have more tips? Leave 'em in the comments!

8 Essential Steps To Planning a Trip Abroad

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Planning an international trip can seem like a daunting process. There is a lot of preparation and planning involved, but if you break it up and take it step by step it becomes easier to handle (and to not procrastinate).

1. Get a passport.

Because you can't go anywhere outside your country without one. Get one as early as possible too - sometimes getting a passport can take months.

2. Decide exactly where you want to go.

If you think, "I want to go to Asia this winter," it'll probably take you longer to plan your trip because you don't know exactly where in Asia you want to go. And there are a lot of countries in Asia. Do you want to take a big trip to China? Thailand? The Philippines? Central Asia (all the 'stans)? This is a good time to set a "SMART" goal for your trip.

3. Book your flights (or whatever transportation you're using).

Do this early instead of waiting 'till the last minute and paying double the amount (I know this from experience, unfortunately...).

4. Do some research on where you're going.

Read blogs, look at TripAdvisor, Yelp, etc. To be completely honest, I learned a TON of tips and tricks from blogs, TripAdvisor, and Yelp - more than I did from guidebooks. Though I wouldn't completely rule out guidebooks. They can be helpful too, as long as you read updated versions.

5. Book your accommodations.

Or be spontaneous and do it while you're there. Though if you do book it once you arrive, make sure there will be accommodation available (for example, many hotels and hostels are already sold out for Oktoberfest 2014 in Munich, since it's a huge event. Also, consider holidays as well).

Again, TripAdvisor is a great review resource for finding good accommodations.

6. Notify your bank that you'll be abroad.

So they don't freeze your credit cards.

7. Pack your bags.

Make sure you don't forget these items.

8. And go!

Enjoy your trip and have fun!

Using "SMART" Goals To Take Action Toward Your Travel Dreams

When I was working at a leadership conference recently, I was introduced to the SMART goal system. Basically, using SMART goals turns a vague goal into something more specific. A detailed outline of your goal will help you reach it faster by putting a reasonable plan into action. Last year when I was still in college, my travel goal was: "Go back to Europe."

"Going back to Europe" is extremely vague. When would I go back? How would I do it? For how long? What would I do to make sure I made this happen? How would I evaluate whether I had achieved this goal or not?

This is where creating a SMART goal really helps you define what you want and how you will achieve it.

"SMART" stands for:

SPECIFIC: A goal needs to really focus in on the specifics. Think of the who, what, when, where, and why.

MEASURABLE: Establish criteria for which you will measure your progress on your goal. Often the measurable part includes numbers - think, How much? It also answers, How will I evaluate if this goal has been met?

ACTION-ORIENTED: How are you going to reach your goal? This is where you put your action or steps toward reaching the goal in place.

REALISTIC: This is where you need to be true to yourself on the work you're motivated to and willing to put in. You're much more likely to achieve your goal if it's realistic.

TIMELY: Set an attainable time frame to meet your goal. When are you going to start acting toward your goal? What specific date do you want to reach your goal by?

Now let's tweak my vague example of "Go back to Europe." Here's how I could've turned that into a SMART goal:

"Go back to Europe for at least one month starting in August 2013, by applying to 2+ jobs per week based in Florence, Italy from May-July 2013 and networking with individuals involved with international travel through email or LinkedIn. Follow up with employers directly after any interviews and again every two weeks until I found out whether I have an offer."

Budget is also a huge part of travel goals, especially with flights. Here's a SMART goal I could've made for saving up for that long-haul flight from Seattle to Florence:

"Save x amount of money per week from my summer job to pay for round trip flights to/from Italy on the dates I will fly in/out on. Track savings using my banking app and check balance weekly to ensure I'm saving enough."

Setting SMART goals are especially great for taking action on your travel goals, though SMART goals can be applied to any aspect of life. I encourage you to come up with some SMART goals, and if you have some you'd like to share, please post yours in the comments below.

Traveling Solo: 5 Questions Answered

Never did I ever think I'd travel on my own somewhere, by myself, in a foreign country, for fun. Though I had a great travel opportunity come up for work where I'd be able to make my flight dates flexible and could travel on my own before/after. This was a last-minute gig, so friends or family weren't able to join me because of jobs, expensive flights, etc.

I didn't let that stop me. I knew that if I wanted to do some extra travel, I'd have to travel solo.

Originally I was looking into planning a couple weeks in the Balkans/Southeast Europe: Romania-Bulgaria-Bosnia & Herzegovina-Croatia-Slovenia. That would've been too expensive at the time. Then I looked into Portugal-Spain-France-Belgium-Netherlands. That was too expensive too. So I settled for a weekend in Paris, and I'm glad I did. It was my first visit to the city, it held a high spot on my bucket list, and according to my research it was considered very safe for tourists.

Even though I was a little overwhelmed before I flew out of the airport, I felt more confident than I had in previous trips abroad. I was a little nervous to be all "alone" and by myself, but I had a feeling that it would be worth it. And it was!

I questioned a few things before I left, because I was nervous - traveling by myself was way out of my comfort zone. Here are the questions I had before I left, and my answers now that it's over:

1. How do I get photos of myself if I'm not with someone to take it for me?

The best way is to just ask! There were plenty of tourists in Paris, and especially if you're at a touristy spot (like the Eiffel Tower, The Louvre, etc.) there will be tourists taking photos. Sometimes you'll see a group of people attempting to take a selfie - this is the perfect opportunity to offer to take a photo of them, and then you can ask them to return the favor to get a photo of you. Win-win!

2. Should I eat at restaurants alone?

To be honest, I barely ate in Paris. Haha! This was the first leg of my trip and the jet lag made me really nauseous, and food was not appetizing at all. I was also major budgeting because I had two weeks of travel ahead, plus I was moving when I got back to the States. I ate at a couple cafes by myself, and I was fine. Nobody gave me weird looks. I didn't feel embarrassed to be by myself or anything, since there were other people by themselves too. At one cafe the guy working there was excited to find out I was from Seattle, because Grey's Anatomy is his favorite show, and was asking me all kinds of questions. As far as nice restaurants though, I didn't experience any...because the food in Paris (well, most things in Paris) was so expensive!

3. Will I be safe walking by myself at night?

There was never a moment I didn't feel safe by myself in Paris, day or night. I will note that it was "high season" for tourists, as well as summer, so there were a ton of people out and about on the main streets. I didn't stray into any dark alleys, or anywhere that seemed "sketchy." I just kept confident and knew where I was going, avoided the scammers, and navigated easily. I was fine!

Wherever you go solo, make sure to do your research beforehand. I was fine walking by myself in Paris in the areas I was in, but in other areas (or other cities) I might have not been. If you're ever in doubt, find an area with a lot of people around or take a (legit) taxi.

4. What if I get lonely?

I only spent about 3 1/2 days solo before I met up with the staff I was working with for the rest of the trip, and with so many things to do, I never felt lonely. There were plenty of other people walking around, so I was rarely "alone." And I met new people - something I wouldn't have done, had I gone with a friend.

5. What if I get lost?

I've never had the best sense of direction, so when the hotel guy handed me a map and pointed the route on how to get to The Louvre, a wave of fear washed over me as I stepped out onto the streets for the first time. Surprisingly, I kept the map in my bag and navigated my way to The Louvre easily. Getting around Paris was much easier than I thought, and since I was by myself and actually paying attention, I had no trouble finding my way.

Having a physical map, a phone with GPS (download maps to use offline), and the address and phone number of your hotel/hostel/accommodations are always smart to have on hand in case you get lost. If you're still stuck, then it doesn't hurt to ask someone to point you in the right direction - most people are friendly and will be happy to help you out!