How I did it: I travelled for the first time from Ontario, Canada to South Carolina, US... and I did it alone! I took the greyhound bus, which is a very cheap way to get there (~1300 miles, only $140). It was a fairly long trip, with having 5 bus transfers each way, making the total trip for one way 1 day 16 hours. Passed through many states, I'd say this is a really good first start to me travelling abroad! I don't make that much money, so even accomplishing this was amazing for me. It took me three months to save up money - I waited for tax season for my tax return, cashed in my vacation pay, received money for my birthday instead of material things... ended up being able to have a total of about $1100 saved. This amount covered the cost of the tickets, food while I was down in SC, my rent & bills at home, and also the amount of work I would miss with the 2 weeks gone. I stayed with my boyfriend at his house. We didnt spend much money while I was there, but opted for free entertainment/things to do instead.

This is a great baby step for me, gave me a good taste of what its like to travel (especially on my own), and what to look out for in terms of safety, and gave me new responsibility.
It took me about 3 months to save up money, but I only really decided on going on the trip & planned out the details in about a 2 week span. I managed to sort everything out (which is a lot, considering I wasnt prepared at all for any kind of travel). Next time, even though I was fully prepared for the trip by the end of it, I'd want to give myself more time to plan... just to reduce the constant high stress level of getting everything done in time.

All in all... definitely well worth it, will eventually want to plan trips on the greyhound so I can actually spend some time in each city I passed through... exciting experience though!

Lessons & tips: If you are planning on going by Greyhound, make sure to stay aware of your belongings & especially your luggage. It is really easy to lose your luggage while travelling on the bus (I lost count how many times bags were left behind, on this one trip alone). It's your responsibility to check on your luggage... I made it one of my top priorities during my trip to actually physically see my luggage under the bus still after every boarding stop. Another tip -- definitely bring your own bottle of hand sanitizer! A good bit of places were run down during my trip, even a couple had no running water. There's also a pretty good chance the restrooms on the buses will have no sanitizers/soap... which btw, I would highly suggest trying to save the bus restroom for if you REALLY have to go, otherwise just wait until your next meal stop.

Above all, stay aware, assertive, and use common sense. People will be able to sense you being worried/afraid. If you look like you know what you're doing, you'll generally be left alone. If you're concerned about safety, stay nearer to the guards at each station.
Just go with the flow, relax, stay smart, and do your research before leaving.

Resources: Ehow.com , googled tips for greyhound travel, read stories, asked people at my work & other people I know about their experiences both with travel, greyhound, passing the border, etc. My family was supportive and my friends helped calm my initial fears.

The idea might seem really daunting; scary; intimidating even... in the end its really not that bad! The whole experience was amazing! So gulp down those fears, & go out there and just do it! :)

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Apr 23, 08:57AM PDT | 0 comments | 3 cheers