My first thought about spring break was pretty negative. Usually spring break is the week in the school year that I sit around or work all week. This year was different.
My friends had planned on heading down to one of the most infamous places for college spring breakers to go: Panama City Beach, Florida. One of the girls had to cancel so the invitation was then extended to me and my roommate. After the stress of asking my parents, switching hotels and sorting out money, we finally had a plan. Having three of us to take turns driving worked out pretty well, and of course we were all excited. Panama City has been one of the biggest places for spring breakers to go, and there are tons of events planned for the whole month of march so that everyone is guaranteed a good time. Overall the trip was eye opening and of course it was fun, but here are a few tips that could help you out for planning any sort of trip with your friends.
1. Plan ahead. We were the worst trip planners ever. We switched hotels so many times and stressed about how much money we were spending on a place to crash for the night. After sleeping in the worlds creepiest motel and then switching into the nicest resort on the beach, we were all drained. We ended up cutting our trip a day short because we just wanted to go home.
2. Make sure you’re all on the same page. After moving into the nicest resort, we made a ton of new friends. Our neighbors for the days we were there just so happened to be really nice, and wanted to hangout with us all basically every night. There were three of us, which made things kind of difficult. Me and my roommate wanted to go out and meet new people, while the other girl we were with wanted to stay in. She was okay with just staying in the room and hanging out alone, but then got angry when my roommate and I left. So, long story short, stick together and make a group decision.
3. Save money. Please take this all a warning; trips get expensive. We had to eat out for basically every meal because there was no way to cook, but then there were also the cute souvenir stores and miscellaneous expenses that I somehow knew would put a hole in my budget. If you take my earlier advice and plan ahead, saving money should be planned too. It’s also a good idea to see if the bank you bank at is in the area you’re visiting so you don’t have to deal with ATM fees.
4. Take pictures. I look back at these pictures all the time just to remind myself of the fun times I had (it was also my first time at the beach so I was in awe.) Taking pictures is important for any trip because you’re going to want to post #TBT’s and print out those photos for albums or scrapbooks.
5. Look at scheduled events and make a plan. We went to Panama without looking at any event schedules. We missed Tyga performing, by one day, I was really upset. Also, if you find a club that’s having several concerts the week you’re going to be there, most offer some sort of “party card” that you can purchase for a cheaper price than just buying individual tickets, plus it is free entry into the club. I wish that we would’ve planned ahead and found out about these earlier, because in the end it was a great deal.
6. Have Fun! No matter what obstacles you face while on the way to your destination, or even while you’re there, just remember to have fun. If you focus on negatives of the trip, like the stress or the fact that you know you’ll be broke when you return home, you will not have as good as a time. With that being said, focus on all the exciting people you meet and the crazy memories! I met some really interesting people, like an Australian, a South African and people from Ireland. Spring break can be some of the best memories you have, so make the best of it.
