Image credit: Image by Arcturus, February 2008

There are many advantages of being young: most youths feel good and have a lot of energy.  Here’s another one: you could also travel for less.

Youth or student tickets can be cheaper than the going rate, but this is not always the case.  While they are not always the cheapest rate of the day, they will in all likelihood have more flexibility.

Here is a list of a few general rules for youth air travel.

• Age.  18 – 35 is a good measure, although it varies between different airlines depending on their rules.  Some of the upper limits are 29, 33 and 35 years
• Validity.  Most youth tickets are valid for a year and some for 18 months or even 2 years.  The idea is that the journey must be completed within a year of the date of issue.  There is an important exception: If you have already travelled on the outward leg of the ticket you can change the return date so that it is up to a year after the date of departure (no longer the date of issue).  This will have the effect of extending the validity of the ticket, but still subject to the maximum validity determined by that particular carrier.
• Changes.  In almost all cases, the airline permits one free change to be made.
• Re-route.  A re-route does not constitute a change, so although a change is permitted, re-routes are usually not permitted on youth fares.
• Date ahead, out of the reservations system.  Airline reservations systems usually have inventory for 11 months ahead.  If your return date is out of the system range, they will usually permit a free change when it becomes available.  This is not guaranteed and is still subject to availability of the fare level booked.  This applies also to non-youth fares where the validity of the ticket is a year or more.
• Standby.  This in most cases is not permitted unless you are on a full economy class fare.  Should you get the check-in or ticket desk staff on a good day, they may waive this and allow you to go on standby.

Requirements.  While some airlines require proof of your student ID card, many youth fares are purely age based.  There is no harm in asking the travel agent what the youth fare is on the route and the restrictions.  It may be pricier than the lowest published fare, but then the published fare may have less flexible rules.

Fun! Adventure! Excitement!  These are adjectives that are used when advertising the youth travel tour market.  There is a large youth travel segment that specialises in packed tours for younger travellers:

Contiki: 18-35 years

Trafalgar: 21-38 years

Trek America: 18-35 years

Statravel: from as young as 12. Maximum age 65 (insurance restriction) if you have a valid student card (12 weeks or more per year counts as full-time), or you are a teacher.

Is it always the cheapest?

No.  It is often possible to make arrangements, either on your own, or through a travel agent and come out ahead.  If you travel independently you also have the ability to vary your programme if you see fit.  You may not be the drinking type, for instance.  Or maybe you would prefer to spend a day in a museum instead of being bussed between foreign shopping malls.

Gap year travel and volunteering

The economic downturn has made the gap year less popular than it was previously.  Even before that, instead of tramping aimlessly around the world a number of young people had chosen instead to volunteer for charitable work in far-flung, scenic, but poor areas of the world.  For those that could not come up with their own idea, the youth travel groups have been helpful in identifying projects that might be suitable for them.

Accommodation

It is not all tenting and youth hostels, depending on the tour operator and the price range that you are booked in.  Contiki, for instance, have three classes of accommodation for  their European tours: Camping, in which you share a three-man tent with another person; Concept, where you stay in  a variety of places including cabins in their own “villages”, and some hostels; and timeout/superior, where you may stay in an actual hotel.

Social

The social side of things is emphasized.  The common factor is that the same folks in your tour group are with you everywhere and a number of friendships form and often romantic attachments.  While that may often not be wise, it is one reason behind its popularity and a number of youths take the tours in the hope of carving notches on their bedposts.  This may result in unwelcome attention if you become an object of desire.

Depending on the destination young folks may encounter cultures where drinking is commonplace at ages a few years younger than may be the case at home, and pubs and clubs are usually featured high on the list of places to go.

Lisa Wooldridge, Contiki’s vice president of marketing explains “It’s not your grandmother’s tour” and their web site indicates that they create “eye-opening experiences for young travellers”.  Suffice it to say that it is not a protected environment.

Many youth orientated tours also make it a constant feature that their tour guides and managers fall within the same age gap as their clientele.  While this may make it more ‘fun’, it is the course of wisdom to have older people in charge, who have more experience.