Summer on a Shoestring

Stuck with what to do this summer on your miniscule budget? These are some websites you NEED to know in order to still have a great summer even if you missed out on the Goldman Sachs internship money that could have funded it…

www.festivalvolunteer.co.uk Travel round and work a few hours (usually two short shifts) at loads of the best UK festivals and get a free ticket! Many jobs include free food vouchers for the amazing festival food stalls which are a massive plus.

www.oxfam.org.uk/stewarding If you fancy some good karma this summer, check out charities such as Oxfam who supply stewards for many of the best festivals! Wear a high vis jacket, point people in the right direction and score yourself a free ticket.

www.citruseventstaffing.co.uk  Citrus also supply bar staff at festivals and are good if you are seriously poor. I worked at Secret Garden Party last year and made about £200, but be warned: if you do paid work you will usually have to do ALOT more hours than the volunteers, meaning less festival.

www.gocarshare.com Need a lift to a festival/country/home? Have a spare seat and need petrol money? Car sharing is a win win.

www.workaway.info From horse riding in Australia to teaching English in Spain to D.I.Y in America to bar work in Vietnam…whatever floats your boat there will be someone somewhere in the world who wants your sharp Warwick brain (haha) or heavy lifting skills in return for somewhere to sleep, some food and maybe, just maybe even some money.

Www.wwoofinternational.org. Worldwide Organic Farming, or Wwoofing, is a great way to meet interesting people from around the world for cheap! Fancy helping some retired Californian Hippies pick avocadoes on their farm in Guatemala in return for free accommodation, food and use of their yoga barn? Or picking grapes somewhere in the Mediterranean and getting drunk on free wine of a balmy summer evening? For a few hours day a work you could be there, getting your tan on and working on your downward dog. And it’s organic. Bonus.

www.couchsurfing.org  is an online community full of lovely people with lovely couches to surf. Initially I was a bit dubious, as most people are when I try to convert them to the couch surfing way of life, but after spending a considerable amount of time looking for people to stay with in New Zealand and Mexico I was won over. Even if people don’t have free couches (or beds or floor space) many are happy to meet for a coffee to dish out advice or show you around their area. Also most people have references, and you don’t have to have a couch for them to stay on one day; many people are on it just so they can have interesting people to come stay.

So you see it can be done; as the old saying goes, where there’s a will (and a savvy person with elbow grease) there’s a way (to get some cheap travelling in!) May your summer be filled with fun and festivals and free stuff.