Stuck at home? Fear not, because there’s so much we can still do from the comfort of our home. Now is the opportunity to have some alone time and do the things that you can’t do with others constantly around.

Take this time to fully relax, tick off a few things that you need to get done and entertain yourself.

It’s important to remember that things will get better, so why not use this time to pick up a hobby/skill to have along with you on your future travels.

So what is there to do while stuck indoors? We’ve come up with a list of 7 different inspirational things you could do to make your time at home interesting and to keep you healthy mentally.

#1 GET OUT THE OLD TRAVEL PHOTOS AND SHARE THE GREAT MEMORIES

When was the last time you got out your old travel photos and had a good giggle looking back at the memories you made? Time to blow the dust away! Get them out wherever they are, on your phone, in an album, in a box at the bottom of your cupboard. Let’s remind ourselves of the experiences we’ve had and the stories we’ve created along the way.

#2 START YOUR OWN TRAVEL BLOG USING THE EXPERIENCES YOU’VE ALREADY HAD

During your adventures, there must’ve been a time where you thought – “I should start my own travel blog”. 💻 Take this time as a precious moment to reflect on those amazing adventures. You can get up and running very quickly with a microblog using Twitter or Instagram or if you’re feeling adventurous try your hand at a wordpress template.

And when you’re ready, reach out to us & we’ll feature 5 of the best blog posts on our own [E]xplorer blog!

#3 PAY ATTENTION TO YOUR MENTAL HEALTH BY TAKING UP YOGA OR SIMPLY ADOPTING MINDFULNESS MEDITATION

All of this no travel stuff is stressing us out. Is there that one happy place you love to travel to but can’t right now? Yeah, we feel the same.
For us, it’s our yearly team meetings in Barcelona. The team always take a walk on the beach which is right outside our Safestay Barcelona Sea hostel.

Breathe in, breathe out. Repeat and relax. Meditation is about bringing the mind home. So sit back, take a deep breath, close your eyes and try visualising that happy place.

#4 CATCH UP WITH THE TRAVEL FRIENDS YOU MADE DURING THAT AMAZING BAGPACKING TRIP BUT LOST CONTACT WITH ALONG THE WAY

Do you remember that one backpacking trip you took and had such an amazing time exploring, with people you’d only just met! It was so great that you added them on Facebook thinking it would be awesome to do it again, but life took over and you ended up losing touch.

Now is the time to catch up with those travel friends you made along the way. Facebook is so great because it allows us to keep contact without the need to talk every day. Why don’t you start today by messaging 3 travel friends on Facebook you lost contact with. Check-in and see how they’re doing today or give them a DM and get the conversation going!

#5 GET INSPIRED THROUGH A TRAVEL DOCUMENTARY OR WATCH DAVID ATTENBOROUGH’S SERIES EXPLORING STUNNING PLACES ON EARTH

Feeling uninspired and unmotivated? 10 minutes of any David Attenborough travel documentary will have you feeling inspired to visit the whole world! Or follow Gordan Ramsey’s culinary journey to see the most remote places on Earth. Panoramic shots and feats of human bravery, you won’t be able to help yourself – you’ll have to start planning for the next adventure.

#6 LEARN THAT NEW LANGUAGE YOU’VE BEEN PUTTING OFF AND DIDN’T HAVE TIME FOR

We’ve all wished we could speak another language and have always promised that one day you will but in the end never got round to it. Learn a new language with Duolingo for free and prepare yourself for the next adventure. Even learning basic words will take you a long way. Here’s a tip: Make your language lessons fun by humming songs in a foreign language!

How many languages can you speak?

#7 USE YOUR TIME AT HOME TO READ, LEARN AND IMPROVE YOURSELF WHILST THE WORLD IS IN HIBERNATION

As much as we would like to sit around all day and binge on Netflix. Why not read a travel book that will inspire you to go out there after the storm is over. While these are great and informative, it’s the stories that make you want to travel and relive the pictures they paint in your mind.

Whilst the points above may not change the state of play around at the moment, it may change our perspective on how we value this experience. To stay up to date and for more information, visit www.safestay.com/covid-19-update.

You probably know that hostels are a type of affordable accommodation shared among travellers, helping your budget go further. But, what you don’t know is the unique, energetic and social atmosphere amongst these travellers which will change your trip forever.

Never stayed in a hostel? Let us debunk those crazy myths and take you on a journey through the Safestay hostel experience. This blog will cover everything about hostel life and hostelling. So sit tight, buckle up and get ready to learn everything about hostelling there is to know.

What is a hostel?

In a nutshell, a hostel is an affordable accommodation which revolves around the shared guest experience. Hostels tend to lead to more interactions and cost a lot less than a hotel. A cheap night with a memorable experience with like-minded travellers. How could you say no to that?

To give you a better idea, here’s a list of the most common phrases used to describe a hostel from our guests…

• Fun
• Lively
• Adventure
• Price
• Friends

Why should you stay in a hostel?

Here are three reasons…

#Because it saves you money! Let’s face it, travel is expensive, flights, food and activities. Add it all up! We all don’t like to spend so much, especially for an ordinary room at a boring hotel. A dorm at Safestay is only a little over £10 for a night, so why not? You could save little money for accommodation and splash your money on night outs and souvenirs.

#Hostels are in the best locations. Safestay hostels are concentrated in tourist-friendly areas. This means that you’ll have access to the best bars, restaurants and attractions around the city. Also, the best thing is that our hostels are in walking distance from places to dine and explore!

#Hostels feel like a community. People were strangers and close friends who you travel with throughout the city. The receptionist will know the best bus routes, budget-friendly tours and free events in the city. Gain travel tips, info for tourist sites, meals and hidden quirky locations.
Get to know the staff, the locals, your friends and the area, you feel like you’re part of something special.

What facilities to expect in a hostel?

At Safestay, the tangible benefits are special. The communal areas, bars and spacious shared rooms allow travellers to meet and create a special bond that may last a lifetime. Today, having the right connections can also be key to setting your future goals at a young age. Here’s a list of the Safestay facilities for you to network whilst relaxed in travel mode.

1. Food and Breakfast

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day. You can not start your day of travelling and exploring before fuelling up which is why we offer a selection of different treats for you to enjoy.

2. Bars

Take a seat and relax at our bars such as Bar 60 located in Safestay London Elephant & Castle. We’ve got delicious food that you can enjoy in our comfy and cosy bar. We serve an eclectic mix of spirits, beers and cocktails along with New York Bagels and Ooozy Cheese Toasties to Castle Burgers and Pizzas.

3. Rooftop Terraces

Our Terrace has the right mix of hipster cool mixed with a dash of relaxation. Just like our drinks! It’s the perfect place for after-work drinks, pre-night out cocktails, having a lazy afternoon or just catching up on some sun.

4. Common Areas

Chill out in our common areas where you can meet like-minded travellers to share your travel stories with. Some of our hostels even have board games or table football, so now you can invite your friends to a game or two.

5. Computer Areas

Take a seat in our computer area to catch up with your work emails or even chat with family and friends who are half-way across the world and share your travel experience with Safestay.

6. Events

Join us at Safestay Elephant and Castle for our Rock Nights where you can meet new people while enjoying great music and drinks! Trust us, this is a perfect hideout for music lovers.

To kick start your hostel experience with Safestay, get the best rate when you sign up for our membership to continue your savings journey. Get your membership discount code here
https://www.safestay.com/membership/

One of the best things about staying in a hostel is that you’ll never know who you’ll run into. Bursting with an electric mix of backpacking buddy travellers from across the globe, get ready to meet the 6 different types of people you’ll meet in a hostel…

#1 Party Animal

They have only one thing on their minds and that’s PARTYING. If you’re traveling solo or want a night out to socialise, they’re the best people to hit up! This person knows every hostel event and the best party spots. Why? Because they’ve been there and done that already! Here’s a tip: a buzzing bar is the party animals’ most natural habitat.

#2 The Solo Traveller

The solo traveler is super friendly and enthusiastic. They’re always looking for a chat and to swap their best travel stories. The best thing about this traveller is their flexibility and openness, so they’ll always be up for doing a last-minute tour with you. No matter where you are in the world, there will always be one around in a hostel prepared to embark on a journey of authentic travel experiences.

#3 The Blogger

These people are always taking pictures posing next to things. Whether it be a gimbal or a selfie stick, they’ll make sure to capture every moment of their travel experience. They’re ALWAYS on their phone or laptop, typing away on their hostel bed. You’ll think they’re normal people just like you, only until you search them up and find out they have over 10k insta followers!

#4 The Friend for Life

The smallest connection can spark a friendship of a lifetime. You might bond over a travel story, the same taste in music and books. In every hostel, you always have that person that you’ll stick together through thick and thin! Maybe it’s the excitement of travel within the air or the fact that you’re sleeping metres away from each other. But these are the moments you will treasure forever.

#5 The Gap Traveller

They’ve just started out and they look like they might just explode with excitement. They’ve become jaded travellers whose minds are blown away from all the awesome stuff in the city! Gap year travellers can be quite reinvigorating, so feed off their energy!

#6 The Guitarist

Usually found in the common rooms strumming away at his strings on his sticker adorned guitar. Remember this traveler, has held his guitar on his lap throughout the long bus drive, carried and dragged across the airport and all the way to the hostel, just to please the rest of the group and provide melodious tunes. You can request a song, only if its Wonderwall by Oasis.

Whilst many smartphones have great cameras allowing you to take photos of your travels, the use of phones is now much broader. Your phones application store is home to many of the best holiday apps out there that can help in all of your adventures.

These apps can impact your whole travel experience. We’ve created a list of all the best holiday apps that you need on your phones. They range from ones that help you at the airport, during a flight and also when you explore your destination!

Holiday Planning Apps

#1 Hopper

Hopper is great! It allows travellers to find the cheapest flights possible. This is great if your dates are flexible and are looking to save some cash. Once you put in your home city and destination, Hooper shows you a calendar of the coming year with dates colour-coded to reflect historical price averages.

#2 Service

Service will help you save money for your travels – automatically! For example, if your flight is delayed the app will recognise this, inform you about the delay and also file for compensation! Think of it as your own personal travel butler that takes care of everything. Also, it will update you in case there are any price changes that can save you money. An example? Say the price of your accommodation had reduced, it would go about rebooking it for you at the cheaper rate. Now that’s handy!

#3 FlightAware

The FlightAware app allows you to track flights online to check on delays, cancellations and gate changes. This app is especially helpful if you have a tight connection or when picking friends and family up at the airport. You can track their flight and see updated landing times or delays.

#4 Roadtrippers

Perfect for organizing that epic road trip you’ve always dreamed of! Roadtrippers will be able to plan out the best driving route and also shows you the best activities along the way. You can find some really cool off-the-beaten-path roadside attractions as well as cool restaurants and can’t-miss landmarks you can bookmark.

#5 PackPoint

Imagine all the stress of packing gone. Well introducing PackPoint, the app shows you what to bring based on the length of your trip, the weather in your destination and the activities you’re planning along the way. It even allows you to account for washing your clothes and wearing them multiple times. We’ve also created a blog on How to travel with only a backpack!

Holiday Apps for the Airport

#6 Loungebuddy

Loungebuddy is a great app that helps you find & pay for airport lounges around the world. Also, if you find a lower price for the lounge, the app will refund you the difference.

#7 Grab

Searching an airport for food isn’t fun. With Grab, you can easily see restaurants at the airport. You can simply search for the item and order it from the app and walk right up to grab it and go. No waiting in a queue, no trying to weave in and out of people to get your food. It’s all done.

In Flight Holiday Apps

#8 Timeshifter

Want to cure your jetlag? Timeshifter is perfect actually starts helping you to avoid jet lag long before your flight takes off. It also suggestions on what to do during the flight and post-flight. The app uses a heavy dose of science to provide personalized recommendations for each traveller whilst considering your age, gender and normal sleep patterns — as well as specifics about your trip and travel plans. Timeshifter maps out when you should avoid or seek light, take a nap or stay awake. It even tells you if you should consider supplementing with melatonin or caffeine.

#9 Netflix

OK, so Netflix isn’t really a travel app, but it can be a lifesaver during a long flight on an aircraft without seatback inflight entertainment, or at the airport during an unexpected flight delay or boring layover. If you have a Netflix account, the app allows you to download your favourite shows onto your device to watch offline. Just make sure to download your shows while connected to Wi-Fi before flying and check them again pre-flight to make sure they haven’t expired (you can usually renew any expired downloads but you must be connected to Wi-Fi or data to do so).

#10 Sky Guru

SkyGuru is an app actually designed by pilots to help people who are not comfortable with flying. It provides weather and turbulence forecasts for the route you’re flying. And whilst there is nothing really you can do it does eliminate the element of shock and allows you to be mentally prepared.

Holiday Apps to help you get around

#11 TripLingo

This app will help you sound like a local and help you adapt to a new culture. You can learn essential phrases, instantly translate your voice or connect to a live translator, get a crash course on the local culture and so much more. Perfect to avoid accidentally offending someone. Speaking about mistakes, have you seen our blog on the WORST mistakes to make when planning a holiday?

#12 GlobeTips

In some countries, if you get this wrong it not only can look bad but can sometimes get you in trouble. The app will detect the country you are in automatically, and help you split the bill with your companions, rounds up calculation results, excludes sales tax, and provides complete tipping guidance based on the local culture and traditions.

#13 Tricount

Travelling in a group can be fun but can also be quite hard to organise, especially when it comes to finances. At the end of the trip, you’re spending a few days working out who owes who. Tricount calculates shared costs and splits bills so you don’t have to think twice about who owes what. Enter your trip and currency and invite your travel mates to join your trip. Each time someone pays for something, you enter the amount in Tricount and the app splits everything evenly.

#14 Google Translate

The Google Translate app is amazing. You can translate anything into 103 languages by typing and access nearly 60 languages offline. You can also use the camera translation function where you simply take a picture of a sign in a different language and the app will translate it!

Holiday Apps to meet people

#15 Meetup

Meetup is an app designed for interacting with locals and other travellers who you share mutual interests with. Whether you’re travelling or at home, take what you love and do more of it with Meetup. The app shows you groups that are formed around particular interests in the city you are in and you can join these groups to get updates on particular events you may want to participate in.

#16 TheFork

TheFork is one of the most useful apps for making restaurant reservations in Europe. Browse different restaurants by category and make reservations. It is available in over 4,000 cities within 11 countries. The added benefit is that with this app you can get great discounts. In some instances, you can get 50% off!

Holiday Safety Apps

#17 TripWhistle

This is a great app to keep you safe in another country. The app maps your location and easily allows you to text and call emergency services without remembering the number.

#18 Sitata

Sitata monitors the world for safety threats, disease outbreaks, violent protests and anything else that might be dangerous for your trip. It ranks locations based on safety ratings and highlights regions with increased levels of risk. If something dangerous occurs while you’re travelling, the app will send an alert to your phone to keep you updated.

#19 NordVPN

NordVPN a Virtual Private Network (VPN) when travelling abroad is necessary if you want to stay safe when using the internet, especially if you’re using an overseas public Wi-Fi spot. A VPN takes your internet traffic and reroutes it through an independent server so whatever you do online stays hidden from anyone trying to access your browsing data via your I.P. address.

Many travellers have learnt how to pack efficinetly so that they can travel with only carry on luggage. This blog will show you how you can travel with only a backpack.

Let’s first consider the benefits of only travelling with a backpack

• Save time at airports – Get ready to avoid check-in queues and problems with ‘overweight’ luggage’ and head straight through security.
• Save money – Sometimes airlines charge you check-in luggage so by not taking any you’re actually saving money!
• Reduce stress – You don’t have to worry about your suitcase when you don’t have one! And also you don’t want to be lugging it around a busy city as well.
• More freedom – You have one less thing to worry about when choosing what activities you go as you don’t have to consider where you will keep your suitcase and can also be more spontaneous for activities.

Now we’ll consider how you can travel with only a backpack. The following list will be tips on how you can save space and pack smart.

#1 Wear your bulky items

This is probably the best tip in our list. Bulky items can take up a lot of space in your bags so the best thing to do would be to wear them. Things like thick jackets and trousers are the best examples of what we mean.

#2 Pack your backpack it right

The way you fold your clothes is important to save space. You can either roll them up as this helps to minimise space and avoids creases in your clothes. Or, you could either group them together as daily packs.

Be sure to check out Travel Dave’s tips on how to pack clothes in a backpack 

#3 Consider the weather

We understand that when you choose your clothes you have to consider the weather, and normally when its cold ou expect to be carrying thicker items but that doesn’t always have to be the case if you want to travel with only a backpack.

You can still layer multiple thin layers to stay warm rather than pack a thick coat. Also, you can get jackets that fold and fit into a small pocket-sized bag.

Just to let you know, check out our ultimate travel tips for backpackers blog for more great advice!

#4 Pack items that you can wear multiple occasions

It’s not about being a fashion icon but rather seeing whether you can wear multiple items for different occasions.

The best clothes are the ones that can be mixed and matched with other colours. Opt for plain T-shirts and thing shirts as these can pass off for formal events and casual events.

#5 Choose accommodation with a washing machine

Opt for accommodation where you can wash your clothes as that way you can pack less knowing that you will be able to wash them.

Here at Safestay, our hostels and hotels have washing facilities as well as ironing facilities for you! Next time you are planning a trip to anywhere in Europe be sure to check us out!

#6 Use Packing Organisers

This is a great tip to make sure you separate your items and also make all your items square in shape. This will allow for easier arrangements in your bag rather than packing obscure items together.

We recommend your items as the following;
Clothing, Underwear & Socks, Laundry, Medical kit with ziplock bags & Chargers / Tech.

#7 Toiletries

As you’ll be taking your bag on the flight you will be restricted to travel-sized luggage. But that’s okay as firstly it’s easier to fit them into a small backpack and it’s a lot easier to buy them locally saving space in your luggage and is also one less thing for you to worry about

#8 Search for compact items

If you need to take a specific item that is normally quite bulky you can bet that there is a smaller and more compact version on the market. For example, instead of taking a big towel, you can opt for the thin microfibre towels! We’ve got exactly those towels at Safestay which you can buy and use for your whole travels!