Indie Travel Podcast

Vienna, known for its elegance, its opera, and its schnitzel, is the capital of Austria and one of our favourite European cities. It was ranked first equal for quality of life in the Economist's 2005 report; it was the home of Mozart and Freud; and the Hapsburg empire, the Holy Roman Empire and Hitler were all based there at some point. Fact box Name: Vienna Place: Capital of Austria Population: 1.7 million Known for: The Third Man & Before Sunrise Average temperatures: summer 22-25 degrees / winter 0 Airports: Vienna-Schwechat Airport OR: Graz, Linz or Bratislava Price of a pint: €3-4 Price of a dorm bed: €20 Price of a public transport ticket: €1.70 single Layout It's easy to get lost in Vienna, since the street names change often, but then again it's also easy to get around. Most of the main attractions are in or around the multi-named ring roads, including the Rathaus, the Museumsquartier, the Opera and a variety of parks and squares. Mariahilfer Strasse heads west up to the Westbahnhof, the main train station, around which you'll find the backpacker mecca of hostels, supermarkets and cheap eateries. Accommodation There's a huge variety of beds to choose from. We like Hostel Ruthensteiner, near the Westbahnhof, and Wombat's nearby is also popular. Check Hostelbookers for a wider range Food You're spoilt for choice in Vienna. Have a sausage from a street vendor or sample one of the ubiquitous kebabs - they're cheaper near the Westbahnhof than at the other end of Mariahilfer Strasse. Definitely have a coffee in one of the Viennese coffee shops, but be aware that the coffee might taste different to what you expect! While you're at it, sample Sachertorte at Cafe Sacher. Yum. If you're on the cheap, buy rolls at the supermarket or eat at University mensas (eating halls). Making lunch your main meal will save you a packet due to the prevalence of meal deals at lunchtime. And visit a heurige for an authentic local experience, sampling local wines and locally produced food. We love the Naschmarkt for the variety of restaurants, especially the Japanese one where you can get a bento box for €7 even at dinnertime. Transport €1.70 for a single ticket will get you almost anywhere you want to go, but most of the attractions are walkable. The transport network is excellent though if you do use it. Attractions - free Vienna's a great city for just wandering around in. Visit Mariahilfer Strasse for shopping, or the banks of the Danube for a beer in a floating pub. See more at http://indietravelpodcast.com

Many people dream of travelling full-time. Most never fulfill their dream, since it seems too expensive, too difficult, too much work. But it can be easy if you prepare in advance, sort out your finances and start dreaming specifically rather than generally. Money Travel isn't as expensive as you think it is. We love to pamper ourselves on holiday, to make up for having to sit in an office for the other 50 weeks of the year. And the flights are expensive when you're only going for two weeks. But the flights seem cheaper if you're travelling for six months, and you can spread your money more widely if you stay in hostels rather than hotels. Plus, you won't spend as much on food if you don't eat in flash restaurants every night. Finding the money You do need some money though, to pay for the flights and to have a buffer for if things go wrong. But you probably have plenty coming in if you just spend a little less and organise it better. Check out episode 67 on our cash budgeting system to give you some ideas. Start by killing debts and cancelling subscriptions, and cut down to just three bank accounts: a current account, a savings account and one credit card. Remember to never spend more on your credit card than you can pay back at the end of the month. The cash trap Don't fall into the trap of buying heaps of expensive travel gear. Make a list of what you need and budget a certain amount per week to buy it. Keep the money that you would have spent on gear in the bank and buy yourself several meals in Malaysia or a week's accommodation in West Africa. Timeframe Keep dreaming, but set a date for your escape. Give yourself plenty of time for the preparation you need - we gave ourselves four years to pay off debts and save, which took the pressure off our finances and a lot of stress out of planning. Having a rough date set for departure will give you motivation to prepare and should keep the dream alive. Social Research Start researching by subscribing to travel blogs like Almost Fearless, Nomadic Matt, and Ottsworld; and listen to podcasts like the Amateur Traveler, Everything, Everywhere, or of course, the Indie Travel Podcast. Join online travel networking sites like Matador, the Thorn Tree, Couchsurfing or Hospitality Club. The last two give you the opportunity to offer your couch or spare bed to an incoming traveller for a few nights, and in return you can stay with people all over the world when you do start travelling. Training Do some training so you can work on the go. Bartending or teaching English are great jobs for travelling, or investigate if you can use skills you already have. Learning a language can be a great way to get into the travel spirit - you'll want to go so you can use it. Spanish, French or German are useful in Europe, or try Mandarin or Japanese for Asia. Try to find a language exchange group rather than shelling out on a school course. You can travel full time. Start preparing now.

Last week we featured an interview with Graham Kingaby, who is the Insurance Director at World Nomads Travel Insurance. We talked about travel insurance tips, what to look out for and about how World Nomads specifically caters to travellers' needs. This week we want to talk about our approach to travel insurance as well as look at how to find travel insurance and approach making a claim. Finding insurance Finding insurance can be hard. There's lots of small print to get through and plenty of traps. Not to mention really strange pricing. The three main types of policy are: Single trip Multi trip, and Backpackers When looking for insurance, if you have any questions AT ALL about your coverage, pick up the phone and ask. The wait times and treatment you experience as a potential customer won't neccessarily show you how good their customer service is, but it'll help. Ask about: Do I need a home address? Must I be in my country of origin when I start and finish? Do they cover each country you're going to? It is more expensive for some countries? If so, can you specify when you'll be in the expensive ones? Do they cover flights home in case of emergencies? What about cancellations or bankruptcy? How do you make a claim and what's the average response time? Chris and Marta from http://atravelaroundtheworld.com have just been pricing insurance for a 11 month trip. They're based in the UK, and you can read their quotes here. http://www.atravelaroundtheworld.com/2008/11/insurance-dilemma.html Recording Purchases So how can you make sure you're actually going to get what you claim? This is the big question and one that makes me really sceptical about insurance. Obviously travellers are not going to keep paperwork! We try to: Scan/photograph receipts. Keep them locally and upload them to a website and email them to ourselves. We use flickr.com and their private settings. Try to create believable evidence. Acting responsibly Last week Graham's main tip was to act as if you were uninsured. If companies can prove you were acting negligently, it's probably they won't validate your claim. Finally, a tip from twitter.com, where we asked about experiences with travel insurance. Achuka said: "don't let travel insurance expire while you are out of your native country... ask J - she'll know the prob with that :)" We do! That's why we've ended up using World Nomads for our insurance. You can start your policy from any country in the world. Thankfully someone does! Don't forget to check out the competitions on this month at Everything Everywhere and also drop by Irish Fireside if that's your cup of tea. Or shot of baileys. Our poll of the month asks what you'd like to hear more of on the Indie Travel Podcast. Please take a moment to vote or email us - mail@indietravelpodcast.com