How to smash Christmas for Warwick students on a budget: A guide

It’s no secret that the festive season can be expensive. As soon as you hear that first note of Mariah Carey you can feel the money draining from your bank account.

This phenomenon, multiplied by the fact that most university students aren’t known for having an abundance of funds available, can make surviving the holidays slightly challenging. However, fear not, as there are fun and easy ways to get through this month as a student on a budget.

Travel

Whether you’re planning to visit your friends or family over the break, or perhaps just want to do some sightseeing now that the term is over, seeing the price of train tickets could put a dampener on the Christmas cheer. Nevertheless, there are still ways to get around. Although they might take longer than trains do, coaches are an excellent solution for broke students. National Express, for example, offers up to 30 per cent off the price of your ticket with a code from a website such as StudentBeans or UniDays and those with Amazon Prime student accounts also get 15 per cent off all year round. Sure, you’d possibly have to deal with road traffic but it’s still a better alternative than seeing your account go into overdraft. And if you’re also willing to sacrifice some sleep, those 3am journeys can be seriously cheap.

Food

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Food is typically one of students’ biggest expenses (and we are not advising to cut down on it). However, during the break many students head back home and  might just get a chance to finally eat something other than pot noodles and Red Bull and opt for home cooked dinners instead. Nevertheless, even if you’re spending the break on your own, it doesn’t have to be expensive. Mix in some turkey with the ramen noodles and throw some mashed potato on the side and you’ll have a festive meal.

Decorations

Do you crave cozy, festive decor that looks like your Pinterest board but cannot justify spending the rest of your savings on it? Don’t worry! You don’t need a thousand new ornaments that would start collecting dust in a box once the season was over anyway. A great investment you can make to add a christmas-y feel to your room are some Christmas fairy lights. Hang them around your room and you’ll nail down that 2000s Christmas aesthetic. Or even make some paper chains and snowflakes from any coloured paper you have lying around!

Gifts

Maybe you’re participating in a Secret Santa exchange or simply trying to find some gifts for your family. Whatever the reason, gift giving can get expensive. But it doesn’t have to be, and you don’t have to limit it to a hug and sorry look either. If you have even an inkling of some artistic talent the obvious answer would be to just make the gift yourself. handmade gifts are so thoughtful. However, if that’s not really your style or if you’d still rather buy something, there are ways to do that without spending a fortune. Things like Charity shops, etsy or Ebay can be your friend. Just as long as it’s a meaningful and personal present, the price doesn’t matter. Someone might have been looking forward to getting a new mug for a while or maybe they’ve mentioned really wanting a poster from their favourite TV show. As the saying goes, it’s the thought that counts.