Traveling While Abroad: Don’t Stress!
Traveling while abroad can seem quite intimidating. I know when I first arrived here, I was so worried about the many boxes to check off when planning a travel weekend: booking trains and flights, making daily itineraries, finding a place to stay, all at a reasonable price. It seemed like so much to bear, and strayed me from wanting to travel at all, because of all of the work it entails! As I moved along my semester, I learned so much about traveling well, and how to create a seamless, affordable, and fun travel weekend. There are many resources available to aid you, it is just a matter of finding them! This blog is here to help, providing the best travel tips throughout Europe and beyond from current study abroad students!
Getting There: In the Air or on the Tracks!
When planning a trip, first things first you should decide the means in which you are getting there, and with what services you choose to go through. For a study abroad student in Florence, the Florence Airport is very small and offers fewer flights a day compared to bigger airports in Pisa, Rome, and Milan. Additionally, a lot of the time flights directly from Florence were a little more on the expensive side. I would recommend checking the prices from the Florence Airport first. If they are in your price range, great, because a lot of the times traveling directly from there saves you time and a train ticket.
If they are outside your budget, you then should start looking at flights from other accessible big cities in Italy. Rome, Milan, and Pisa are all good options as I mentioned earlier. These airports are bigger and offer a larger range of flights usually at a cheaper price. On the other hand, consider the cost of your train tickets (to and from) these other cities. Sometimes with the combined cost of the train tickets to the central station and then to the airport, it winds up being more expensive than just flying out of Florence. Take this into consideration when planning your flights, and also book train tickets as far in advance as you can for cheaper prices.
Airlines and Navigating Trains and Strikes
Firenze Santa Maria Novella (S.M.N) is the main train station in the city center of Florence. It is easy to navigate once you get the hang of it, but the first few times it can be overwhelming. You can choose to take a regional train or a high speed train. Regional trains operate on slower moving tracks, so it takes longer, but they are usually much cheaper than the high speed trains. If you have enough time and don’t mind looking at the hillside scenery for longer, regional trains are your best bet as they are more affordable. These trains also run more often and have a more flexible schedule, usually with no need for a reservation ahead of time. You can find region train tickets online through websites such as TrenItalia or you can also purchase them directly at the station.
Important tip: if you get a paper ticket in person, don’t forget to validate it! This is necessary for when your tickets get checked. To validate your ticket, there are green and yellow machines found at the train station, where you insert your ticket and it stamps it for validation. If you are having trouble with how or where to validate your ticket, ask a train station employee. Digital tickets do not require validation.
High speed trains are great if you are in a time crunch, and need to get from city to city in a short amount of time. The high speed train from Florence to Rome usually takes about 1.5 hours, and closer to 2 hours to Milan. They are more expensive than regional trains, but also offer more amenities. High speed trains have accessible wifi, snacks and vending machines on board, and often times bigger and more comfortable seats. When getting a high speed train, I usually use Italo or the TrenItalia Frecciarossa high speed train.
Tip: Omio is also a great resource for finding trains and other methods of transportation. It compares different trains, buses, and flights, and allows you to find the right train at a great price!
When traveling by train in Italy, you must be aware of strikes. Train strikes in Italy are not uncommon, and if not well-researched, could delay or cancel your travel plans. Luckily, these strikes are usually pre-scheduled and announced. So, if you pay attention and be aware of them, they can be avoided. Strikes are displayed on official railway websites or through social media, and lucky for us, our school ISI Florence kindly reminded us of train strikes in an email. They usually happen over certain days or certain hours, and sometimes there are trains not participating in the strikes. So make sure you know the days and times strikes are occurring, and how to plan around them.
Airlines: Which to Fly?
Flights can be expensive, but not if you do the right searching and planning. In any case, flights bought further in advance will be cheaper. But there are also some discount airlines for traveling through Europe that are widely used. Of these are RyanAir and WizzAir. They provide affordable flights, as long as you are willing to sacrifice some of the usual amenities of flying.
Beware! Discount airlines like RyanAir and WizzAir often have a strict bag policy, if you do not purchase a carry on bag. They allow you to take a backpack and a small personal item (ie. purse, fanny pack), but the backpack must be packed correctly and fit in their sizing bin. If it does not fit exactly how the employee wants it to, they will make you pay a fee to check the bag. I recommend to wear any bigger items you may be taking. Whether this is a big coat or boots, it will save room in your bag for other items, and will ensure that your bag does not exceed the maximum size. The RyanAir and WizzAir free bag dimensions are pictured below.
Smart Trips and Bus2Alps: Travel Done For You!
If you want to do less of the planning, and just go along for the ride, then Bus2Alps and SmartTrips are great companies for you. These are student-focuses study abroad travel companies that provide a full package including transportation, accommodation, and some tours. These trips are often budget friendly, and they take care of the logistics for you, so you can travel stress free. Personally, I chose SmartTrips for my weekend to Interlaken Switzerland, and it worked out perfectly! The trips are planned around the weekends when study abroad students are able to travel, and it also a good way to meet more study abroad students from your city. They arranged the bus to Switzerland, the hostel, and many optional activities you could choose to do. If you want a more hands off approach to your weekend destinations, these are both great options!
Accommodations: Where and How to Find a Place to Stay
When looking for a place to stay, it is important to take your budget, and number of people you will be traveling with into consideration. HostelWorld is a great place to start for cheap accommodations. Hostels are less-expensive than hotels, and are usually arranged in a dorm style set up. Which you choose all depends on your levels of comfort. Hostels offer various types of room set up. Mixed rooms are commonly with male and female travelers, and if you are not a big group there will most likely be people in your room that you do not know. These are the cheapest rooms available, but can also be a great way to meet new people with similar travel tastes! If this is for you, make sure you get a lock for your travel bag, and always have an eye on your valuables since you will be sharing a room with strangers. Hostels also provide female-only dorms, as well as private rooms. I always traveled with a larger group, so we usually got a private room to ensure that we were living with only our group during the stay. These are usually a little more expensive, but still affordable, and provide you with the comfort that the only people in your room are those you know!
In terms of AirBnb, in my experience these provide the best deal for a bigger group. Most AirBnb’s I find have more space and can fit more people, making them more expensive. Often times though if you have a big enough group, splitting this cost is still very affordable, and in my case, sometimes was cheaper than staying in a hostel. AirBnb’s are perfect for larger travel groups, and for those who like having their own space, a private bathroom, and a kitchen and other amenities.
Final Thoughts + Comprehensive Video
To see what happens when you use all of these explained tips and resources, check out our Spring 2025 Florence Abroad Travel Recap Video:
Planning your travel while abroad can seem quite demanding, but with the right tips and resources it is easily simplified! Using these you can travel through Europe with confidence, and affordably. Whether you plan the whole thing yourself, or let SmartTrips do the work, you are bound for some great memories and unforgettable experiences!
Buon Viaggio!
Written By: Kate Youngmark