The i-to-i Campfire online travel community - Meet. Share. Travel with Purpose

Responsible travel is a bit like The Big Bang; most people believe in it but can’t always explain it! Well, while I don’t know much about the origins of the universe, I can certainly shed some light on what responsible travel’s all about and a few ways of being a responsible traveller, especially while on your gap year. Firstly, to nail my colours to the mast, I believe in responsible travel. I believe both in...

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Of all the countries in Latin America the one place I have a real yearning to go to is Colombia. Everyone I've met who's been there raves about how beautiful it is, how friendly the people are and what a great place it is (excluding one or two areas!) to travel. Any one out there been? Am I on my own wanting to explore Colombia or do you think it's going to be a popular...

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A gap year is a fantastic opportunity to see the world and expand your horizons. But being away from home, living in a different culture and always being surrounded by the unfamiliar – well that can take its toll. If you find yourself feeling uneasy, homesick and skulking back to McDonalds for Western-style comforts for the umpteenth time that week, you might well be suffering from culture shock. Don’t let it ruin your gap year...

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It goes without saying, but safety while you’re off travelling doesn’t start and end with the in-flight safety demonstration on the plane out. And while wrapping yourself in cotton wool isn’t an option (it’d make you look mighty silly for starters), there are several wise moves you can make to reduce the risk of coming unstuck on your adventures. Before you jet off Believe it or not, staying safe starts before you set off! As...

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So, you’ve decided to ditch school/uni/work/daytime TV for a year and venture out to see the big wide world. Awesome… but how to get it all sorted? There’s the question of where to go, how long to go for, what to do, how to get there, and that’s not even starting on the money! Don’t panic… just sit back and let a seasoned traveller walk you through the whole process… 1. Work out your budget...

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Budgeting and looking after your cash when you’re off on your travels is something of a dark art, but I’ve tried to put together some top advice to make sure you don’t have to make that humiliating call to your mum to get her to wire more funds! What to take? When it comes to taking money abroad the motto should always be ‘plastic is fantastic’! Debit cards can be used all over the world...

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Cultural differences make travel exciting. If you arrived in Beijing and saw everyone wearing the same clothes and doing the same things as at home, you’d want your money back. Perhaps due to the number of visitors they receive every year, people in Asia are very forgiving of cultural ignorance, but you’ll receive a much better welcome if you try to respect cultural practices. To help you avoid disapproving looks (or even a jail term!),...

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In an age when hundreds of thousands of people enjoy wonderful volunteering trips every year, it’s strange that internships don’t enjoy similar popularity. Demand for meaningful travel fuelled the growth of volunteer projects, and given the increasing need to gain an advantage in the jobs market, the number of internships could well be about to grow too. No longer are they seen as simply unpaid work, but rather a great opportunity to learn the ropes....

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Africa is home to some of the best adventure travel destinations in the world. So whether you’re after a full-on adventure holiday, or just want to chuck some adrenaline-inducing activities in with your volunteering, Africa is the perfect place to do it. Tanzania Ever since Chris Moyles, Cheryl Cole and a bunch of other celebrities climbed Tanzania’s Kilimanjaro for Red Nose Day 2009, the mountain’s been getting a lot of coverage. But you don’t have...

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I was lucky enough to spend a few days in South Africa a couple of weeks ago. Why lucky? - simply it's one of my favourite countries in the world full of incredible wildlife, warm and friendly people and a sense of being a 'real' country a world away from speed cameras, TV and mindless media! The perception of modern South Africa we have here in Europe couldn't be further from what faces a visitor....

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