08 Feb 2020

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve probably heard of Contiki. The travel company has trips across most of the world and is a super popular way of getting around, especially for first-time or solo travellers.

But there’s a lot of misconceptions when it comes to Contiki. Maybe it’s because their trips are aimed at young people and we’ve been labelled as a group of avo-eating whingers with our eyes glued to our screens. Or maybe it’s because there’s still a fair bit of stigma surrounding taking time off to go travelling or take a gap year (even though there’s plenty of evidence that it’s beneficial).

Turns out, despite what you might have heard, a lot of the rumours around Contiki are false. So, if you’re thinking of booking a trip with them, or are trying to convince your parents it’s a good idea, it’s worth doing your own research first.

1. It’s just a big booze fest

A lot of people seem to immediately associate Contiki with drinking. They picture it as a huge party that lasts the entire time, with hungover bus trips every morning and your Trip Manager forcing shots down your throat every night.

This is not the case. I mean, it could happen, if that’s what you’re after… but what I’ve discovered is that a Contiki trip is whatever you want it to be. If you wanna turn your trip into a world party tour, then Contiki has you covered. But there are no obligations; travel is your own opportunity to grow as a person, so if you want to go sightseeing, get a fancy dinner, go on a culture binge, or just stay in bed for the night -  it’s your call, and no one is going to judge you.

2. You don’t get to spend enough time in each country

Another issue people have with Contiki trips is the idea that just as you’re getting settled somewhere, it’s time to leave. Two nights in France isn’t really enough time to say you properly saw the place, so it can give a bit of a “fake travel” vibe to your trip.

But, a lesser-known fact about Contiki is that they offer “In-Depth Explorer” trips which zero in on one country. They’re made for the traveller who wants to experience everything that a single country has to offer, from various quirks of each city to the changing cuisines as you move throughout the country.

3. It’s bad for the environment

It’s easy to think that Contiki might not be the most sustainable way to travel. Moving around in a huge, fuel-guzzling bus, hauling tonnes of people and their luggage across huge distances, and disturbing local cultures all sounds a bit disruptive towards the planet. Not to mention the single-use plastics that many travellers consume in order to use convenient, on-the-go products.

Fortunately, Contiki are pretty conscious about this sort of stuff. Their Contiki Cares initiative focuses on sustainable travel, from working with local communities in order to preserve culture, to protecting and educating travellers about wildlife, to encouraging travellers to offset their carbon footprint. They’ve even pledged to completely eliminate single-use plastics from their supply chain by 2022, the bloody legends.

On top of all that, that ‘fuel-guzzling’ bus we mentioned? Turns out Contiki Coaches are the greenest going around; especially their Euro 6 coaches. These are top notch and have an engine that uses a product that coverts dangerous fumes into products that are completely harmless for the environment (water and nitrogen). Pretty nifty, don’t you reckon?

4. You lose the thrill of organising your own adventure

We realise there are more than three things that people get wrong when it comes to Contiki and one of them is that you lose the thrill of deciding your own overseas adventure.

A big part of travelling when you’re young is embracing your new found independence. But it can be hard to celebrate freedom when you’re locked into a set schedule for the whole time you’re away.

However, Contiki trips aren’t as concrete as you think. There are so many different options available, and they’re all customizable so you can choose which experiences tickle your fancy

The point of doing a trip through a company like Contiki isn’t for you to sacrifice the spontaneity of travel and have a “standard” travel experience just like everyone else. The purpose is simply that Contiki just gets all the boring admin stuff out of the way and connects you to the best experiences, so that you can put all your focus into actually enjoying the travel.

If Contiki is suddenly sounding not all too bad, you can check out what they’ve got on offer and register your interest over here.