Nantes

Traveling to a foreign country on a tight budget can spark grueling internal warfare. On one hand, you want to make the most of this once in a lifetime opportunity in every possible way - on the other hand, every cool experience seems marked with a price tag that would only create an even bigger hole in your wallet. 

As someone who’s worked two small part-time jobs throughout college and full-time jobs during summers to make this work, I’m writing to tell you that it is entirely possible to have amazing French cultural experiences AND have enough money for important stuff, like food. With a few money-saving strategies, you can sacrifice a bit of what you don’t need, in order to afford the fashion, cuisine, or activities you’ve been dreaming of. (For more tips on prioritizing your spending abroad, see my blog “Growing Pains are a Side Effect of Growth”). 

Below is a list of strategies that I’ve employed during my first semester in Nantes. Pick and choose what works for you!

Plane Tickets

At first, I was shocked to find prices that were well out of my price range on all the major airline websites. Luckily, CheapOAir came to came to my rescue! With the CheapOAir website, I was able to find plane tickets up to $2,000 less. And CheapOAir isn’t the only cheaper site, I suggest you do some research to find the best ticket!

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Packing

After buying your ticket, more savings can happen before you even leave the US! By packing everything useful and within reason that you can envision needing in Nantes before arriving, you can save yourself big bucks. Here are some pricey things would be best to avoid buying in France, if you already own them in the US:

An Umbrella or a Rain racket, or both. During the winter, it rains in Nantes, a lot, and I have yet to find an umbrella in Nantes under 12 euros. 

A water bottle. It’s good for the environment as well.

Food containers. It can help you to store food in the refrigerator or carry food with you on adventures, which is much cooler than having to buy meals everywhere you go. 

A winter coat. Or, if degrees in the 30s doesn’t face you, maybe just a thick sweatshirt. In October, its already chilly and many people are already sporting puffy jackets - save yourself the 20+ euros and bring this with you. (or see below: clothing)

Running shoes. Exercise is imperative to maintaining health while abroad.

Also, try packing as light as possible to save on airport fees. It’s possible to arrive at Nantes with simply one rolling carry on and one backpack - I did it! Just tie that winter coat around your waist if you need to. 

Food

Your prepaid, IES Abroad fees include 5 dinners a week and all breakfasts with your host family. That means you are in charge of 2 dinners and all lunches every week. Buying traditional french food can get pricey in the town center, so here’s my advice: dine the french cuisine at your host family dinners, and otherwise save your money most of the time by preparing your own food at the IES Abroad Center (access is limited to host family kitchens).  

There are two grocery stores that I know of close to the IES Abroad Center: Monoprix and Carrefour. Of these, Carrefour is smaller but has slightly cheaper options for some items (ex: a large bag of cashews here is the same price as a puny bag of cashews at Monoprix) 

Hot Tip: On Tuesdays, IES is open late for a Club of Conversation between French students and us Americans, and if you ask the host of the event, they’ll probably let you prepare a quick microwave or sandwich dinner during this time as well. 

(I also highly recommend eating at the cafeteria at Universite de Nantes. You’ll get a student card upon arrival - which will let you buy a full, delicious, traditional french meal for only 3.25 euros)

Clothing

If you find that you forgot to pack something essential, or are looking to go home with some new french styles, thrifting can help! I recommend these popular Nantes thrift stores:

Le Comptoir du Solilab

With a bit of a warehouse feel, this place stands out for its chic French styles and unbelievable prices (I found a stylish, warm winter jacket for just 5 euros, and books are just 1 euro!). It's about a 25-minute walking distance from the IES Abroad Center, close to île des Machines, or you can take the bus C5 from Commerce to its last stop, “Hangar à Bananes”. 

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Frip’in Shop

This place looks and feels like a fashionable boutique, holding styles from the 80s and 90s to more modern looks. It seems popular - with lots of young women crowding around the racks. The prices are somewhere between Comptoir du Solilab prices and those you could find at normal clothing stores (I found a chic long-sleeve shirt for 10 euros). It has two locations on the road “Rue Maréchal Joffre”, close to Foche Cathedrale.

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Health and Exercise

While the University of Nantes offers student prices for gyms and sports, this can still be pricey for some budgets. In that case, I suggest…

Running

Studying abroad only strengthened my passion for this sport. It is entirely free and by running around the city you feel more integrated with its sights and people. I personally love to run down a scenic path on the L’Erdre river.

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Travel

Very cheap travel options are available between Nantes and nearby villages by bus. For example, on “BlaBlaCar”, you could get a ticket from Nantes to Angers for 5 Euros. This is a great way to experience more French culture during the weekends, without breaking the bank. 

Free/Cheap Activities

There are plenty of cheap ways to have fun in Nantes, such as...

Castle: Château des ducs de Bretagne 

Amazing view (1 euro): Tour Bretagne 

Parks: “Jardin des Plantes” and “Ile de Versaille”

Cathedral and Art: Foch Cathédrale

IES Abroad activities are prepaid and a great way to spend time with your new IES buds

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Enjoy the Experience

Finally - Know that in order to achieve some life-long memories here, such as traveling to neighboring cities or countries, you are going to have to spend money, and that is okay. After college, you’ll probably treasure the experience a lot more than that extra 100+ dollars.

Growing Pains

After the conclusion of my stressful and sleep-deprived midterm exams, I’ve found myself sick for the second time this semester, munching on pieces of chocolate and rice crackers, hunched over a youtube video in my room at my host family's house. Not exactly the glamorous image of a young traveler fulfilling her dreams and having life-changing experiences in France

The truth is, With all that good growth that comes along with studying abroad there are sure to also be some ugly growing pains. In this blog, I’m taking a break from the adventures to address some of the struggles I’ve faced and shared with fellow IES students during the first half of our semester. By simply addressing these problems we can be more equipped for a smoother, second half of the semester.

Allons-y! (Let's go!)

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Growing Pain #1: I’m spending too much money

This worry strikes home for me and deserves a blog post all by itself (coming soon). In short, after the first month of study abroad a glance at my bank statement was enough to make my stomach queasy. A tight budget and a lack of budgeting meant that my meals out, bus tickets, and grocery lists were draining me faster than my bank account could manage. 

3 Key tips to prevent this problem:

CREATE A BUDGET. Before arrival, look at the amount of money that you are willing to spend and then divide that monthly - accounting for groceries and bus tickets. Make sure to subtract money for that trip that you absolutely need to take from the overall budget total. Then….

TRACK YOUR SPENDING. Especially during the first month of your time in your host country, when your budget is almost sure to change a bit as you become accustomed to local prices. After that month, you can reflect - if you are spending too much: where can you make sacrifices? This leads me to….

ESTABLISHING YOUR PRIORITIES. This process is totally unique and different for everyone. Do you want to come home from France with lots of cool trinkets and souvenirs in the forms of colorful scarves? Or, are you more of a foodie and would prefer that extra crepe lunch? Or maybe you have plans to travel to Europe? It’s impossible to fit everything in your budget, so pick wisely.

Also, realize you aren't alone in this struggle. TOns of other IES abroad students have had amazing semesters on a budget! Check out this recent IES blog for more tips.

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Growing Pain #2:  I miss my family

Abroad, it's easy to feel like there is no one available to talk about our difficulties since all our friends are hundreds of miles and a large time difference away. However, there is a world of support available if we apply ourselves to seek it.

The first available support system is the IES Abroad staff. They have been helping other equally-homesick students for years, and thus are an incredible resource. They are also genuinely really nice people. 

Open up to new people while abroad, and you just might find yourself with a brand new support system - a kind of second family away from home :) I feel incredibly lucky to have found a group of fellow students that I can laugh, worry, support, and get support from daily here in France. The struggles of our abroad experiences - being homesick together - have only pulled us closer, forming bonds that I believe will last long beyond the study abroad experiences. 

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Growing Pain #3: I’m in over my head

This is something people might feel to varying degrees, depending on any previous travel experience and French language levels. For myself, I came to France after only having taken two years of university classes in French, so it’s safe to say I was a bit unprepared for the journey. 

Tip: Life is made up of little acts of walking ourselves up to mountains that seem a little too high for us, and then actually climbing them. Chances are, you’ve already done something in the past that you thought was impossible; remind yourself of that event. These experiences are normal: they are how we grow. Or at least, that’s what I’ll be telling myself as I try to finish reading two giant works of literature for a class at the University of Nantes.

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Growing Pain #4: I can’t Stay Healthy

Don’t let all that work keep you from taking care of yourself. Staying healthy is imperative to a good study abroad experience (I'm learning this the hard way). 

In order to avoid overworking yourself for classes, or overstimulating yourself with adventures, take the time to create a weekly schedule that works for you. Schedule inadequate times to sleep, eat, and workout each week, then fill in the rest with a mixture of study and excursions. Both your classes and your downtime in France are important – make sure you include a balanced time for both (just perhaps add a bit more time to prepare for classes closer to exams).

It also helps to eat a balanced diet - that means paying the extra two euros for some spinach. Multivitamins can also lend a hand.

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Growing Pain #5: Regrets

I strongly believe that we shouldn’t be afraid to have regrets, especially while abroad. Why? Regrets are the result of having learned something after the event that we feel regretful about. Throughout the process of studying abroad, we learn a lot of things, so of course, we might feel bad for some of the decisions our wide-eyed selves made upon arrival.

I’m not saying you shouldn’t try hard to make this semester as great as possible; we’ve spent a lot of money for this experience and should leave feeling satisfied. I just mean, if not all goes completely as planned – if you spend too much money, miss your family and friends, don’t travel as much as you wish, or get sick, don’t feel so bad about it!

Life lasts a lot longer than one semester – and we can apply all of these lessons for better successes later on in life.

Source of Quotes: https://www.globe-trotting.com/les-citations-de-voyage