Mar 24th, 2022, 01:00 PM

AUP Visiting Students Use Weekends to Travel

By Molly Wilhelm
Image credit: Molly Wilhelm
Visiting students aim to make the most out of their semester abroad in Europe.

While many students chose to attend the American University of Paris for its prime location in the largest city in France, visiting students are using their weekends to travel outside of Paris and explore new cities.  

Mackenzie Lyons, a visiting student from The George Washington University, has plans to travel to at least five different countries for upcoming weekend trips this spring semester. 

“Most use weekends to travel,” Lyons said, referring to other AUP visiting students. Lyons mentioned she had mostly recently taken a weekend trip to Reims, a city roughly 144 kilometers out of Paris, according to Google Maps. 

Image credit: Molly Wilhelm
 

Lyons expressed that her schedule design has made it easy for her to complete her schoolwork during the week in order to travel on weekends. “I scheduled my classes to only be on Tuesday and Wednesday. So, I do all my schoolwork on Mondays, Thursdays, and Fridays,” Lyons said. 

“I had a list of places I wanted to visit before my study abroad.” Lyons said. “I am most looking forward to Lisbon, Portugal,” she added. “I love the experience of learning about a new culture, cuisine, and art.”  

Image credit: Molly Wilhelm
 

Sydney Brooke, a visiting student from Loyola University Maryland, also has plans to travel frequently throughout the semester.  

“As of right now, I have approximately five weekends throughout the remainder of the semester that I plan to stay in Paris for,” Brooke said. “Some of my upcoming travel plans include Hungary, Austria, Czech Republic, the United Kingdom, Italy, the Netherlands, and Spain,” she added. 

Brooke suggested that students who are only at AUP for a single semester want to make good use of the minimal time that they have in Europe.  

“I think we are mindful of our limited time here,” Brooke said, alluding to AUP visiting students in similar situations. “If I was a full-time student, I think I’d have a stronger desire to space out my travel and enjoy my time in Paris on the weekends,” she added.  

Lily Pike, visiting student from the University of San Francisco, had a similar sentiment to Brooke. 

“This is really a once in a lifetime experience to be living in Europe so close to so many amazing cities,” Pike said. “My current plan ideas are to go to Amsterdam, London, Lisbon, Madrid, and Luxemburg."

 Image credit: Molly Wilhelm
 

Pike spoke about the motivation to increase the frequency of her travel. “Now that we are halfway through the semester, I feel like I need to step up my planning and turn these travel ideas into reality,” Pike said.  

Pike offered advice to other AUP visiting students who hope to plan upcoming weekends trips. “Stop stressing about how to plan your trips and just jump right into it,” Pike said. “Be spontaneous and book it so that you don’t regret not making the most of your time abroad,” she added. 

Traveling students recommended the use of sites like Skyscanner, Hostelworld, Expedia, and Omio in order to find the best budget-friendly prices when planning an excursion.