Any trip abroad is a wonderful way to make new acquaintances, expand your horizons and even learn English language. Many people can travel abroad for free in 2020. Volunteer work, corporate trips abroad - all this allows you to travel completely free of charge.

The most popular volunteer programs of 2020 include:


Study and work programs

Study and work - these words do not sound tempting at all. However, in reality, it is one of the best ways to enjoy life to the fullest and expand your horizons abroad. Language courses, which are organized several times a year for residents of some countries, are very popular. Over a period of time, a group of people is recruited and sent abroad to improve knowledge. Typically standard courses last three months.

Many people know about these promotions. They represent short trips, a social package, an opportunity to make new acquaintances, relax at sea and even earn money. Of course, this work will not improve the tourist’s qualifications as a specialist in a certain field, but interesting vacation and improvement of intercultural communication experience is guaranteed.

Internships

An internship is another way to travel abroad for free. Typically, young people from 23 to 20 years old with higher education are sent for internships. Most large American companies look for employees abroad, provide them with training and internships, and then offer them to get a job and stay abroad forever.

To get an internship at one of these companies, you need to decide on the field of activity in which you can work. Then, on the Internet or in advertisements, it is recommended to view relevant and recent posts. The last step is to write a letter to the director or organizer of the program.

Standard conditions for courses and internships include payment for accommodation, travel, meals, ticket costs, consular fees, and visa processing. Companies may pay “bonuses” to particularly diligent and hardworking people during their internship. These are small bonuses, but they provide significant assistance to a person.

Trainings and seminars

A corporate event abroad is a trip of an entire team of employees from a certain company abroad to participate in a seminar or conference. This is one of the methods of international cooperation that allows the exchange of information, new knowledge, developments and technologies. Such trips abroad will allow you to get acquainted with famous people.

The contacts and acquaintances made in this informal environment can have a positive impact on career growth in the future.

You can leave and participate in trainings only if such an opportunity has been presented to your company. You can also add your own company to the list of candidates for participation in the seminar. Then you need to wait for a response from the organizer.

Such events take a little time. Mostly they take from three days to two weeks. During this period, several days are devoted to conferences, discussion and solution of important problems.

Conducting training

The rest of the time can be spent relaxing at sea, sightseeing and taking part in excursions.
Organizers of trainings or seminars cover all expenses related to travel, accommodation and meals for participants.

Lotteries and drawings

Not everyone can travel abroad on their own. To visit foreign countries for free, you can participate in lotteries or sweepstakes in 2020 and try to win. This is one of the available options. As a rule, each program defines the conditions for participation.

The lottery involves a random selection of participants. There is no questionnaire to fill out before participation. You will need to answer the questions only after the lottery, if you manage to win. Winners are determined by random method, most often special programs are used for this.

Popular lotteries include.

Some people have the misconception that this map allows you to travel to the USA for free. In fact, this is a lottery that is very popular all over the world and allows you to legally stay in the country.

This action was approved by the US Congress and has legal status. Once a year, 50,000 people from all those who submitted applications are identified using a computer.

People from all over the world can participate in this lottery. Knowledge of language, education, age does not matter. However, this program also has one caveat - if more than fifty thousand immigrants have left for the United States from any country over the past five years, then it cannot participate in the drawing.

Participation in the lottery is absolutely free. The application is submitted online. This takes a few minutes, but obtaining a Green Card takes one or even a year and a half. It gives you the opportunity to legally reside and work in the United States.

Of course, this is not a free trip for entertainment purposes, but it will save you money and give you the opportunity to work there legally. For many, the Green Card becomes a lucky ticket to new life and opportunity forever.

Typical American street

How to travel for free: for this you will need a pillow - in a dream you can travel around the world for free and even fly to the moon.
For other cases - when traveling you will need money.

I continue the series of articles addressed to the progressive class independent travelers started in this:

First, a couple of charts that you can create yourself by going to one of the “currency converter” sites
By playing with the ratios of different national currencies to the ruble, you can notice the peg of a certain region or country to the dollar or euro.


As you can see, the dollar has more influence in the world. The approximation of the national currency to the euro is noticeable only in Europe. Yes, there are still national currencies in Europe: the Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary, Lithuania, Bulgaria, Romania, Serbia, Albania….


What money to take with you on a trip

If you are going abroad, forget about rubles. Well, will it be useful to you on a trip around the Republic of Belarus?
If you are going to spend Christmas or New Year in the Czech Republic or Hungary - take euros with you
And if your path lies in countries other than Europe, there is only a dollar
I don’t argue that the ruble is accepted in exchange offices in Thailand, but if you didn’t skip math at school and know how to solve fractions, you will see the advantages of preparing a dollar at home and then exchanging it for baht in comparison with direct exchange of rubles in the land of smiles - there will be no time for smiles

Card payments and ATMs

Only cash + cards linked to foreign currency accounts (in euros or dollars)!
No ruble cards
Firstly, you cannot guess whether your bank will be able to celebrate its next birthday; simply put, no one will tell you anything about its health
Secondly, having rubles on your card, you lose their dollar equivalent every day the national currency falls. In addition, you will lose abroad on conversion at the bank rate - nowadays banks include in their exchange rate differences between Sale/Buy dollar (euro) / ruble more points with a margin - all this if you have a ruble card account
Thirdly, you will lose by withdrawing money from an ATM. In the case of Thailand, both the Thais - the owners of the ATM, and the Russian bank - where your money is, will take a bite

Important addition and correction to this paragraph:

Cards linked to an account in dollars or euros allow you to save on the dollar (euro) / national currency exchange rate

A fresh example from today's Alfa Bank statement, account in Euro:
Payment of expenses at the MADINAT JUMEIRAH DUBAI hotel: 1040 Dirham => 226.81 € debited from the account => Rate 4.5853
We look at the currency converter: http://www.oanda.com/lang/ru/currency/converter/

The cash exchange rate in Dubai is 4.46264 (in the parameters I set the interbank rate to 5%)
By setting a typical interbank +3% on the converter I get a rate of 4.55659 and for an ATM (+2%) 4.60356

Currency exchange - just not at the airport or hotel

The worst exchange rate for your dollars or euros will be at the airport or hotel.
Wow, the best exchange rate in Sri Lanka will be in jewelry stores, and in the capital of Burundi, Bujumbura, in the construction market.
Based on this, before your intended trip, find out the best places to exchange your money
Also check with the exchange offices to see if they charge a commission for the exchange operation.

Overhead, minimization

It's time to count the money. If earlier it was possible to make mistakes, now these mistakes are expensive.
When preparing for your trip, carefully study the booking conditions. Refuse additional fees - all kinds of insurance, fees for paying for air tickets credit card, additional expenses for breakfast in hotels (there are also free breakfasts, as well as free transfer from the airport), additional belongings in the form of an additional driver or GPS when

Bargain anytime, anywhere

Bargain from the moment you step off the plane. Trade even if there is a price tag attached to the item being traded. Use the acting skills that any enlightened person has: gesticulate, walk away and return, appeal to the audience... but don’t overact, otherwise you might get into trouble. That is, feel the enemy, and the seller - he is your opponent, the enemy, with whom you need to play a draw - neither you nor me. Otherwise, you can get screwed again. If the enemy defeats you, then you are a loser in his eyes and will remain one forever

Are there cheap countries in the world?

Of course there is. When going to Thailand, look away. When going to Brazil, know that

Tourists, like almost everything in this world, can be classified. And even break it down by type and subspecies. Then it will become clear that among them there are many people who are terrified of flying. But they love to travel. And such an aerophobic tourist is faced with the question of where, exactly, to go. And on what?

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Tourists, like almost everything in this world, can be classified. And even break it down by type and subspecies. Then it will become clear that among them there are many people who are terrified of flying. But they love to travel. And such an aerophobic tourist is faced with a difficult question - where, exactly, to go. And on what?

Of course, there are options. But we will not talk here about automobile tourism, just as we will not talk about bus tours. And even more so, we will not talk about hiking tourism. We will tell you where you can go abroad by train. And, in fact, you can go to almost any corner of Europe and Asia (Kim Jong Il came to us in his armored train). There would be time.

The first thing that comes to mind is, of course, Crimea. It seems that we are already abroad and there is a sea. But only the lazy don’t know about Crimea. Meanwhile, there are other places.

Bulgaria

How to get there
Two trains depart daily from Sofia - No. 382 at 19.20 and No. 3 at 21.34. Travel time is a little more than two days - about 58 hours.

What to do
Sofia, in itself, is a quite interesting city. There is a lot here that will remind you of the times when Bulgaria was considered the 16th republic of the USSR - both architecture and people. Many people speak Russian, and they treat Russians well.

And then everything depends on your imagination - you can book excursions to the ancient Bulgarian monasteries, which for the most part are in amazing beautiful places, among mountains and forests, and you need to get where you need to either by car or by bus. You can choose your own ski resort.

Or you can go to the sea. Bulgaria is not Siberia, and it takes less than a day to travel from one end of the country to the other. There are three main resorts on the coast - Albena, Golden Sands and sunny Beach.

Golden Sands is perhaps the most respectable resort. There are the most good five-star hotels there and the highest prices. Albena is a little more democratic, but even there almost all three-star hotels are decent. For those who like to remember the past, there are two-star hotels - they are not much different from typical Soviet boarding houses of the 70s and 80s. But they are also extremely cheap. The beaches there are sandy, the entrance to the sea is convenient, and the sea itself is clean.

By the way, if you go from Sofia to Albena or to Sands, it’s worth spending a day and stopping on the way to ancient capital Bulgaria called Veliko Tarnovo. The city is very beautiful, located in the mountains, and below, visible from almost everywhere, a river flows. Here, by the way, was previously the dacha of Zhivkov, the last Secretary General of Bulgaria. And the party elite, as you know, bad places I didn’t choose it for relaxation. There are many hotels in Tarnovo, most of them are inexpensive, but very cozy. How inexpensive the restaurants are here - dinner for two with all the delights local cuisine(a separate chapter needs to be written about it) and alcohol will cost about 20 dollars.

And finally, Sunny Beach. It is located closest to Sofia and is today almost the most developing resort in the country. Prices here are the lowest, there are many hotels to choose from for every budget and taste, and the beaches are sandy. For those who like to live outside of hotels, we can recommend going to a nearby hotel. ancient city Nessebar - you can easily rent a house there cheaper than in Crimea, with all the amenities. And the sea there is the same - only on the other side.

In general, Bulgaria is almost an ideal option for an inexpensive holiday without flights.

Germany

How to get there
Two trains depart daily to Cologne - No. 11 at 22-15 and No. 249 at 18.19. Travel time is 37 hours. From there, on Mondays, Wednesdays and Saturdays, train No. 13 leaves for Berlin at 8.38. Another Berlin train, number 247, leaves the station on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays at 13.30. Travel time is a little more than a day - about 28 hours.

What to do
In Cologne itself, by and large, there are two attractions. This is the cathedral of the same name, which is located next to the station, and the Cologne Carnival, which takes place here annually in the second half of February. Then a lot of tourists from all over the world come to the city and hotels need to be booked in advance.

But in general, few people go to Cologne. The local train station is a huge connecting terminal, and from here you can travel to any city in Germany, as well as almost any city in Europe. One of the most popular routes is Moscow - Cologne - Paris. Just a few hours after the Moscow train arrives in Cologne (you will have time for both the cathedral and beer), the train departs in the evening for Paris, where you will arrive early in the morning. In other words, Cologne should be considered as a transit route on the way to Europe by train. Well, where you want to go is up to you.

Of course, there are also trains from Berlin to Europe. But it’s stupid to go there in transit (especially since it’s more convenient to get to Paris through Cologne). You need to go there just to see the city. Moreover, Berlin is now called almost the most fashionable and modern city in Europe. Architecture of new styles and trends, many progressive clubs, etc. In short, this is a metropolis for a new generation. Or, as they write in fashion magazines, this is the mainstream of the youth movement. But it’s clear that other generations have something to do here too. Especially if you remember our history. By the way, here is almost the best zoo in all of Europe.

Finland

How to get there
Every day two trains depart from Helsinki - No. 31 at 17.42 and No. 32 at 22.50. Travel time is just under 14 hours.

What to do
The city itself is small but nice. As someone said about Finland, everything there is as it should be in our country, but it’s unlikely to be. Helsinki in particular and Finland in general should be treated with this thought. There are no special attractions here, but it’s nice to just wander around, go to a restaurant and taste old Russian cuisine. But once you get to Helsinki, you can take, for example, a ferry and go to Stockholm. As a matter of fact, there are many places you can go on cruise ships or ferry ships from Helsinki. But it is advisable to plan all this in Moscow.

Also in Moscow you can pre-order a small house on the lakes. Such pleasure costs from $500 for a house for 4 people for a week. And then you find yourself in a pristine forest, with lots of mushrooms and berries (in summer, of course), surrounded by a network of lakes with crystal clear water and lots of fish. Plus, the house package usually includes a sauna and powerboat. The only problem is that apart from berries, mushrooms and fish - that is, pasture food - food is not provided in such houses. And you need to take everything with you. For example, in a rented car.

Croatia

How to get there
Train No. 15 departs on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays at 20.30. Another train No. 205 leaves for Zagreb at 7.10 on Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays. Travel time is two days.

What to do
Zagreb itself is often called little Vienna for its resemblance to the capital of Austria. And that's true. It's worth spending at least a day there to see all the sights. Well, then - just a few hours' drive away are all the famous resorts of Croatia, and here the only question is choosing - where to go. By the way, you can relax for a week in Croatia, then go to Montenegro for the second week, fortunately it is nearby and fortunately there are also trains from Belgrade to Moscow.

Montenegro

How to get there
From to Belgrade two trains depart daily - No. 15 at 20.30 and No. 344 at 8.20. Travel time is two days.

What to do
If our tourists have already actively explored Croatia for a long time, then Montenegro is still an unknown place for them. But in vain - because this, without any exaggeration, is one of best places in general in the world. Here is the most pure water in the Mediterranean - it is so transparent that the bottom is visible even at a depth of 50 meters. There are magnificent beaches and mountains here, the second largest canyon in the world on the Tara River, which is a national park, is located here, there is the beautiful Skadar Lake, surrounded by ancient monasteries. In short, there is everything you need for relaxation. And, most importantly, it is still relatively cheap here.

Austria

How to get there
From to Vienna train No. 202 departs daily at 21.40. And on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays there is another train No. 21 - departure at 23.40. Travel time is a little over 30 hours.

What to do
You can write a separate book about Vienna, and more than one. One has only to say, no matter how trivial it may sound, that this is one of most beautiful capitals Europe. With a lot of attractions, a lot of cultural events, and simply this is the city that you need to see at least once in your life if you want to feel involved in world history and culture. Well, after that you can go to ski resorts- there are more of them there than in Moscow casinos.

Slovakia

How to get there
Two trains leave for Bratislava every day - No. 21 at 23.40 and No. 705 at 19.50. Travel time is 33 hours.

What to do
Bratislava is a small city, but very picturesque, spread out on both sides of the Danube. In general, you should go to Slovakia either to the ski resorts - here, if there are good slopes, it’s more or less cheap, or you should go for treatment - almost everything Slovak resorts one way or another oriented towards medicine. But the country itself is beautiful - most of it is located in the mountains, and the views here are breathtaking. And since the tourism industry began to actively develop here several years ago, there have been no problems with service.

Hungary

How to get there
Two trains depart daily for Budapest - No. 15 at 20.30 and No. 16 at 18.25. Travel time is just under 40 hours.

What to do
Budapest is one of those few cities in the world that you immediately fall in love with. And forever, you just have to be there. Moreover, there are views here for every taste - on the right bank of the Danube, the city soars up, drowning in forests, and the left part of the city, flat, lies in front of you in full view. The Danube with its openwork bridges lies in full view. In a word, Budapest is such a self-sufficient city that there is no need to go anywhere else besides it. You can easily spend a week there and not get bored. But even for this case there are places in Hungary. Like, for example, the largest lake in central Europe, the name of which almost everyone has heard. Balaton is his name. And it completely replaces a vacation by the sea. In addition, Hungary ranks one of the first places in the world in terms of the number of explored and used thermal springs. medicinal waters- there are more than a hundred balneological resorts. In short, there are a lot of options for relaxation here.

Romania

How to get there
Every day two trains leave for Bucharest - No. 3 at 23.34 and No. 382 at 7.39. It's almost two days to travel.

What to do
In fact, it is difficult to ask such a question in Romania. If only because there is also Mountain peaks The Carpathians, and the majestic Danube with its untouched nature, and the Black Sea beaches. Here you can ride alpine skiing and lie on the beaches, here you can wander around Bucharest for days with its unique Franco-Romanian style of architecture, or you can travel through the ancient Transylvanian cities. Where you will certainly be reminded of Dracula. Instead of blood, it is better to drink very good local wine. Here in Romania, the Byzantine style and the Orthodox monasteries of northern Moldavia and Bukovina are mixed. Western Romania looks like a surviving fragment of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and, for example, in Constanta, the hand of both the Romans and the Ottoman Empire is visible. In short, Romania is like a kaleidoscope.

Czech

How to get there
Two trains depart daily to Prague - No. 21 at 23.40 and No. 209 at 22.18. Travel time is a little over 30 hours.

What to do
Thousands of guidebooks have been written about Prague, and they all have one thing in common - you should visit it at least once in your life. Nowhere else in the world can you sit in a beer hall located in a 13th century building, nowhere else can you find such a combination of undestroyed antiquity and rhythm modern city. But besides Prague in the Czech Republic there are also ancient castles, and health resorts(Karlovy Vary has become so long ago Russian health resort), and unique cuisine and... In a word, read Hasek again - it says everything about the Czechs.

China

How to get there
There are four trains to Beijing from. On Tuesdays No. 4 leaves at 21.57, on Wednesdays No. 3 leaves at 7.40, on Fridays No. 20 at 23.53 and on Saturdays No. 19 leaves at 22.50. Travel time is from 131 to 144 hours.

What to do
At first, you will be looking out the window for almost a week - China, as you know, is not close to us. And after such a journey you will rest for several more days. But further - if you have endured such a journey, then you can take another train and head, for example, to the coast - this will be the only opportunity for you to see sea ​​world South-East Asia without using an airplane. Believe me, there is a lot to see there - the beaches of China are not much different from Thailand or Bali. And the rest is China, a country with such an ancient and powerful culture that even a few years are not enough for a complete inspection. Although a trip to China by train in itself is already exotic.

Russian aircraft have been banned from flying to Egypt for two years now. Russians feel left out and are trying to find alternative routes to resorts on the beloved Red Sea. These attempts are not unsuccessful; there are several options for both independent holidays in Egypt and traditional package tours.

Is it possible to buy a trip to Egypt?

Flight ban Egypt continues to operate and there are no plans to cancel it in the near future. The most optimistic forecasts indicate the resumption of flights by mid 2019 and then not to the resort area, but to Cairo. We are not talking about tourist charters at all yet.

Immediately after the ban on the sale of tours in Russia, the most devoted fans of Egyptian beach holidays took a thorough break from the Internet and quickly found several options. This is the purchase of tours through tour operators of neighboring countries- Belarus, Ukraine, Georgia and Kazakhstan. For their part, enterprising travel agencies former fraternal republics very quickly turned to face Russian tourist and organized a convenient online sale of trips to Egypt.

Where and how to book a tour

Of course, not everyone works with Russians. According to reviews, they offer the most convenient interaction algorithm Belarusian operators "Travelhouse", "Malibu Travel", Belarusian branch of "TEZ-Tour". Charter flights are possible not only from Minsk, but also from Mogilev, Vitebsk or Gomel, which is a little cheaper.

Travelhouse even offers a free transfer from the station to the airport in Minsk for families or organized groups of 4 people or more. All operators work approximately the same:

  • the first step is selecting a tour;
  • the second is the execution of the contract, which is also done via the Internet;
  • next - payment;
  • and the last thing is receiving documents.

At the same time, a manager works with you who takes into account your wishes for the hotel, level of relaxation and price.

To purchase a tour from Belarusian tour operators, just make an online application and pay for the tour in Russian rubles directly on the website of the selected company.

You can also transfer money through a bank using an invoice. After receiving the required amount in a couple of days, the tour operator sends you everything Required documents. As for the cost of such a tour, today you can buy it for 500-600 dollars.

They work in a similar way. Ukrainian tour operators, also happy to serve Russians. Departure from Kyiv, Odessa or Kharkov is possible.

To the cost of the trip, add the road to Minsk (Kyiv, Odessa, Mogilev, etc.) and back and you will get the amount that a trip to Egypt will cost you (with the exception of money for personal spending on vacation). Of course, this option of getting to Egypt is more suitable for residents of the European part of Russia. For those who live beyond the Urals, this will result in a lot of money.

And this is where it comes to the rescue Kazakhstan with departure from Almaty or Astana. Tours are offered not only by local tour operators. The tour can be purchased, for example, through the Kazakhstan branch of Biblio-Globus.

When purchasing tours in neighboring countries, think about health insurance. It is not very convenient to receive reimbursement of expenses in a foreign country (Belarus or Ukraine). It is better to apply for it at home, without being too lazy to look at the nearest insurance company.

Independent holiday in Egypt

Planning independent travel to the Red Sea, keep in mind that you won’t be able to relax there cheaply. Regular flights are more expensive, and in some cases you will also have to travel by land.

There is an option to fly to Egypt from Moscow. The flight ban affected only Russian airliners. Egyptian Airlines (Egypt Air) both flew from Cairo to Moscow and back, and still does. And now they are even thinking about changing the flight schedule to increase the number of flights. From Cairo you can reach any resort by domestic flight.

For example, a flight to Sharm el-Sheikh will cost $35; it is better to buy tickets on the website egyptair.com, here they are the cheapest.

It is possible to choose:

  • in Georgia (Tbilisi);
  • Turkey (Istanbul);
  • Israel (Tel Aviv - Eilat).

Numerous online services for searching air tickets will help you not only choose the most convenient route, but also show you the most convenient ones using the discount calendar. cheap options.

Road through Turkey

Planes fly from Russia to Istanbul:

  • Pegasus- from Samara, Omsk, Krasnodar, Mineralnye Vody, Volgograd;
  • Turkish Airlines- from Moscow, Voronezh, Yekaterinburg, Kazan and other large cities.

There is a transfer in Istanbul (without baggage claim). Now this is the most cheap way get to Hurghada through another country. A flight on the same route to Sharm el-Sheikh will cost more. Tickets can be searched on the carriers' websites. If the flight is not planned from Moscow, then it is better to look at routes to Istanbul and further to the desired resort separately.

Turkish Airlines offers flights Moscow-Istanbul-Sharm el-Sheikh for about $320 round trip. From other cities - the price is about 400 dollars.

To Egypt - via Israel

This is another (not the easiest) option to fly to the resorts of Egypt on your own. And the goal may not necessarily be the notorious Sharm el-Sheikh, but, for example, lively and democratic Dahab, filled with companies of surfers and freedivers.

Considering Israel as a transit point, you need to take into account that such a route to Egypt will be much more expensive than other options.

They fly to Tel Aviv regular flights from Moscow. Next you need to take a bus, which travels through the desert for 6 hours to Eilat. The second option is to change at the airport to domestic flight to Eilat. This is a city bordering Egypt. Having crossed the border by land, you find yourself in Taba. Here, too, there is a sea and hotels from where you can order a transfer to the resort where you plan to vacation.

At the land border with Israel, Egypt does not issue full-fledged visas, but only puts a Sinai stamp, allowing you to stay in the country for 15 days.

It is better to come to Eilat during the day; taxi prices at this time are a third lower than in the evening or at night. You can be smart and get on the bus, which goes from the border to Sharm el-Sheikh every day at 15.00 and costs several times less.

How to get to Egypt through Georgia

Options to get to Egypt through Georgia two - buy a ready-made tour from Georgian tour operators or fly connecting flights through Tbilisi. The interaction when purchasing a tour is similar to what happens with Belarusians or Ukrainians. You can simply buy a ticket to Tbilisi and from there take Turkish or Egyptian Airlines to any resort in Egypt.

If there Schengen visa, you can fly through Europe. This is done relatively inexpensively through Germany or Italy. The Greek airline Aegean airlines is also significantly reducing prices.