Erasmus Experience in Lancaster, United Kingdom

Why did you choose Lancaster for your Erasmus year?

I decided to go to Lancaster because from the options that I had to choose from, it was the only place where I could spend the whole academic year (not just one semester) and because I wanted to go to a country where the official language was English. Also, I met an English girl who was an Erasmus student at my university who was studying in Lancaster, and she recommended Lancaster to me.

How long was the study placement? How much money did you receive as a grant?

The placement was 9 months (a full academic year) and I received about 100 euros a month as an Erasmus grant. In addition to this, I also received other grants; 100 euros a month from the Basque Government and another 100 euros a month from my Spanish bank.

What is the student life like in Lancaster?

The atmosphere is unbeatable. There are so many international students who are all eager to meet people and party. What's more is that so many social events are organised so that you can meet people and on the second day of the university year, there is a Fresher's Fair where you can sign up to different societies and clubs on campus. For example, I signed up for the Erasmus society and the Latin society, and they organised parties, dinners and trips... all perfect for meeting and getting to know other students.

Would you recommend the city and Lancaster University to other students?

Absolutely! The university is enormous, with lots of students and a great atmosphere. You have everything you need in everyday life, supermarkets, bars, restaurants, cafés, hairdressers, banks, laundrettes, shops and lots of other things...

The town is small but everyone is friendly and it has everything. You can go everywhere by foot and the town is very safe. It has many clothes shops, a small shopping centre in the centre of town and a cinema.

What is the food like in England?

English food isn't great but there are lots of international restaurants, Indian, Italian, Chinese... and they are quite good. After a while, you get used to it.

How did you find your accommodation?

My university told me that because I was an international student, I would get accommodation on campus (in student halls) but two months before arriving, they told me that the halls were full and the option they offered me was living with a family in the town. I didn't want to do that so I looked for accommodation on student websites such as Easyroommate and Studenthousing Lancaster.

Was accommodation expensive? Was the city expensive in general?

The cost of living is expensive in England but Lancaster seemed quite cheap to me, especially because it is a town completely aimed at university students. I was paying £250 per month to rent a room.

What about the language? Did you go to language classes in university?

I started out with an already quite good level of English but the first days I could hardly understand my flatmates because they come from the north of England so their accents were quite thick. In general, I understood people well, there were lots of internationals, but the English natives had quite a rare accent for this area of England. But I got used to everything.

What is the cheapest way to get to Lancaster from your city?

From Bilbao, there is a plane to London and from there I took another flight to Manchester. From there, one of my flatmates picked me up in her car because she lives in Manchester and we drove to Lancaster the same day. However, there are also trains to the town centre from Manchester, Liverpool and London.

What places would you recommend to go out in Lancaster?

Depending on which day of the week, each club has its own party.

• On Mondays, you can go to Liquid.
• Tuesdays, to Toast or to Cuba.
• Wednesdays to the Carleton (which is in Morecambe, a town just outside of Lancaster. The university organises buses to take you there and pick you up).
• Thursdays, you can go to Lounge.
• Fridays to Cuba.
• Saturdays to the Sugarhouse.

There are other clubs which are also good such as Walkabout, Revolution, Varsity and Hustle. There are lots of options! The night-life is good any day of the week!

What are your favourite places to eat in Lancaster?

In the actual university, The Venue, Pizzeta, Sultans, the Hub Cafe and the hamburger restaurant in Grizedale college are all good. In the town, I would recommend Verdes, Latinos and Bella Italia.

What are the cultural sites like?

In Lancaster, it is worth visiting the caste, the church, Ashton Memorial and the canal. The best thing about Lancaster is its location, it has a train station so you can get to lots of different places in England in a short amount of time. I would recommend to go to York, Skipton, Leeds, Manchester, Liverpool, Edinburgh and London.

Any advice that you would give to future students coming to Lancaster?

My advice would be to make friends with lots of people and not just people that can speak Spanish, which is always the easiest option. It is best to live with native English speakers as this is the best way to improve your English. I would join societies, or sports teams which is the best way to make friends from different countries.

As for practical advice, I would open a bank account in the university (so that you don´t have to pay bank charges each time you use your credit card) and I would get a train card for young people from the travel agents in the university, from which you can save a third of the price of train tickets for the whole year. I would try to travel as much as possible in the area (or in the rest of Europe! There are direct flights from Liverpool and Manchester to lots of cities! ) and party and socialise as much as possible!