Travel Resources
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When planning a trip there are so many things to think about, from booking flights, accommodation, visas and what to do in each city or island. We try our best to help you plan your best trip possible with travel guides and itineraries after we’ve visited a destination.
Now we’re excited to share with you all of the companies and websites we use when travelling – all on one page!
Quick Travel Resources
- Book accommodation on Booking.com & Hostelworld
- Rental car with Discover Cars
- Transport in Asia with 12.Go
- Transport in Europe with Busbud or Trainline (UK)
- Activities worldwide with GetYourGuide
- Activities in Asia with Klook
- Reliable E-Sim with Airalo
- Don’t forget travel insurance with Safety Wing
Accommodation
Hotels, hostels and guesthouses can be one of the biggest expenses when travelling. We are budget travellers and will sometimes pay slightly more for comfort or an amazing deal. Here are a few websites we love using:
This is our favourite website to book accommodation and we always find great deals here, you gain more discount after 15 stays and there’s free cancellation for most properties. There’s also a filter to look at recent reviews which is so helpful. Book your stay with Booking.com here!
We make sure to check Hostelworld before booking a trip as they sometimes have different options to Booking.com. We’ve always had good experiences with hostels and they’re a great budget-friendly way to travel. They also have private rooms on their website too! Search for hostels on Hostelworld here!
Agoda is another great website that we used throughout Southeast Asia the first time we travelled. We swapped to Booking.com when we couldn’t find recent reviews.
We’ve also used Workaway for accommodation and are excited to use Trusted House Sitters in the future!
When searching for accommodation we use filters to find the perfect stay – lowest price first, higher than a rating of 7 and great recent reviews from previous guests!
We also look for kitchen access when travelling in Europe or North America.
How to book Flights
We always use Skyscanner to find the best flights when we want to book. It will compare many different airlines on every day of the year to find you the best way to get to your destination. Once we’ve found a great price and date, we open a new browser on the Airline’s website and book directly through them. Sometimes the price changes slightly, but we always find it safer to book directly through an airline.
Check flights on Skyscanner here!
We also use Google Flights!
Check if you need a visa
Before booking your trip to another country – check what type of visa you’ll need. Depending on your passport, you may need to pay for a visa ahead of time or on arrival. Double-check each country before you book your flight so you know all the information before travelling.
Working Holiday Visas – This is a great way to travel the world whilst earning money at the same time. We lived in Canada for 2 years on a working holiday visa and couldn’t recommend it more!
Travel Insurance
This is ultimately one of the most important things when travelling, we will never go on a trip without travel insurance.
As we’re from the UK, we use CompareTheMarket to compare various travel insurances. We’ve luckily only had to claim once when we had a phone stolen and it was completely fine. We’ve heard so many great things about WorldNomads which is a great option if you have the budget for it, however next time we travel we’ll most likely use SafetyWing as it’s designed for long-term travelling and digital nomads.
Safety Wing – A flexible monthly rolling travel insurance with good coverage – Find your travel insurance here!
Dive Assure – If you’re heading on a diving trip, you’ll need good medical coverage! We used this on our Liveaboard in Australia.
Transportation
There are so many different ways to get around the world, from renting a vehicle to catching a bus, taxi, plane or train! Here are a few websites we recommend in different areas of the world.
Rental Cars
Discover Cars – A great international car rental website!
We’ve also used Turo in Europe and North America which is run by using local cars and in Vancouver, we use Evo.
Buses & Trains
Southeast Asia
12.Go – The best way to book your transport in advance and check the times of travel. Book on 12.Go here!
Europe
- Busbud is a great comparison website to find the best ways to get around.
- Flix Bus – An affordable way to get around Europe! Also, check local bus companies in each country.
United Kingdom
- Trainline for trains (book in advance for the best prices),
- Megabus and National Express are the most affordable ways to get around the UK.
North America
Flights or Greyhound. We’ve also used Megabus in the east of Canada/US.
Worldwide
12.Go also works around the world. Many countries have their own local bus or train systems such as WillerExpress in Japan or Korail in South Korea.
Maps – we use Google Maps pretty much everywhere we go and Naver Maps in South Korea.
Activities
Activities are one of the best parts of travelling and we love both free and paid activities! Throughout Southeast Asia, we usually book tours with local companies. Anywhere else in the world, we usually use local websites or GetYourGuide.
Klook – Throughout Asia, Klook has amazing deals for theme parks, tickets and Simcard deals. We’ve booked DisneySea tickets in Japan and Seoul Tower tickets in South Korea!
GetYourGuide – We highly recommend GetYourGuide around the world, especially in Iceland!
Viator – Another website for booking activities!
Another great way to explore a city is by a Free Walking Tour! Search for a free walking tour in any city around the world and you’ll find local companies offering some of the best information. It’s recommended to tip these guides so they can continue sharing their knowledge!
Volunteering
If you have the opportunity to volunteer whilst travelling, it will be life-changing. Whether you’d like to work with animals, or people or learn some new skills, there’s a volunteer experience for everyone. We have used Workaway and a local Thai company (Lanta Animal Welfare) to book our volunteering and we think everyone should try it at least once in their life!
Check out our experience Volunteering at Lanta Animal Welfare in Thailand!
Jobs to do on the road
- Freelance Creative Jobs – Using online companies such as Fiver, Appen or UpWork. (Amy has used UpWork and Appen over the last 5 years)!
- Teaching a language – Teaching English is very popular around the world and online. You may not even need a TEFL to teach English in some countries.
- Ski season – Go to Japan or Canada and work at a ski resort!
- Cruise Ship – This may be more demanding, but you can see part of the world working on a cruise ship!
- Anything you want with a working holiday visa!
Travel Essentials:
We’ll create a packing list soon with all our main travel essentials. For now, here are a few items we always have with us including our camera!
- Amazon Packing Cubes
- International Worldwide Travel Adaptor
- Stainless Steel Water Bottle
- Sawyer Mini Water Filter
- Waterproof Bag 20L with Waterproof Phone Case
- Joby GorillaPod 3K Pro Kit & Sony A6000
What bags do you use? Dan uses Osprey Fairpoint 40 litre and Amy uses a Mountain Warehouse Ventura 40 litre! We always travel with carry-on and fit a small day bag into our backpacks at the beginning of a trip. When taking transport we always make sure our valuables are in our small bag on our laps or in sight.
Check out our The Ultimate Southeast Asia Packing List | 2024
Bank accounts for UK Travellers
We have only had banks in the UK and Canada, but we when we travel we always use Starling. There are no currency fees when using the card abroad and we can take out around £300 a day from an ATM in another country.
Note – Some countries do charge a small fee for foreign cards. We’ve had this issue in Thailand, South Korea and the Philippines, so we usually get out the maximum each time to avoid the fee multiple times.
The Best E-Sim For Travel
Airalo – Getting an E-sim online is the easiest way to travel these days. You can keep your current number and don’t have to worry about getting verification codes. We use Airalo whenever we travel and it’s so easy to set up!
Here’s a discount code if you’re a new user (NEWTOAIRALO15) and sign up with DAN8993 in the referral section to earn £2.50 credit for purchasing! if you’ve used Airalo before you can use this code (AIRALOESIM10).
