It has been only about a month since Winter Break, but the thoughts of spring break are already on the minds of students. Daytona Beach, Mexico and Jamaica are just a few of the many places that will be occupied by thousands of college students come this March.
Fun in the sun is the main goal of these students, but this can also make a nice dent in their checkbooks. There are many alternatives to spending a whole lot this spring, and there are many places to help out students.
“If you want to go somewhere sunny, it takes effort,” said Dan Geiger, the director of the Outdoor Program. “But it can also be a great vacation for adventure.”
For spring break ideas, students on a budget can go to the Outdoor Program’s office located in the EMU basement. The Program offers activities such as river rafting, hiking and climbing.
“Every spring break there are usually seven to ten trips, and one big river trip,” said Outdoor Program Director Dan Geiger. Most spots for planned trips fill up by late February, so interested students should act quickly, Geiger said.
He added that the program enables students to plan trips on their own, so they can limit costs and do it their way.
Those who do not mind spending a little more money can plan a trip involving an airfare. Finding discounts takes time but on-line booking has made it more convenient.
Web-Sites are now becoming more popular with travel, and can sometimes offer the best rates. What is even more important about these sites is that students can gain advice to just about anything they want to know. Whether they want to travel to Jamaica or New York, they can find out what the best restaurants are, where the parties are, or even where to stay.
One such site is collegeclub.com where students can research trips and other things to do during spring break.
The site is affiliated with Student Universe, an online travel agency. Members can gain valuable discounts on flights, sometimes as much as $200 to $300.
To make it even better, the site works with charter companies that are reliable, said Andrew Arias, a collegeclub.com representative.
“Students should not have any problems with Student Universe,” Arias said.
Many students use the break to return home and visit with friends.
Emily Gaskey is a freshman from Sweet Home, Ore. and plans to make the short trip to the coast.
“Since we are all pretty much poor college students that cannot afford to go to Mexico or Florida over the break, we decided to venture to the nice, cool and windy Oregon coast,” Gaskey said. “It will be a good time for us to catch up on what has been happening and it will be like old times again.”