Moving to uni without a car

11

Hi there
I am starting at LIPA in September and long story short no one in my family or friends has a car so I will be going by train with all my stuff.
Any tips/thoughts?
I thought this might be most relevant to international students as they would have the same problem as me (not being able to bring the whole kitchen sink!)

Thanks in advance :smile:

Reply 1

Username123ab

17

For my year abroad I just took a suitcase and a rucksack and threw away all my kitchen stuff/bedding, etc (it was just cheap stuff I’d bought there)

Reply 2

BCU Student Rep

Official Rep

18

Original post

by wolfsky42

Hi there
I am starting at LIPA in September and long story short no one in my family or friends has a car so I will be going by train with all my stuff.
Any tips/thoughts?
I thought this might be most relevant to international students as they would have the same problem as me (not being able to bring the whole kitchen sink!)
Thanks in advance :smile:

Hi @wolfsky42

I'm a nightmare over packer so I always bring too much to uni. And realistically, I don't even use half of the stuff I bring. So you definitely can pack light and still have everything you need.

You could try limiting how many 'household' items you have to bring by buying/sourcing them when you arrive at your accommodation. You could buy them once you arrive, but as a head's up, shops like B&M and Home Bargains can get overrun with students in the first few weeks of the semester. You could possibly order these things online and have them delivered to arrive just after you do, so you have everything delivered all at once. I've never tried doing something like this so I don't know how costly or easy it is - but possibly worth a try.

Depending on how often you plan on heading home, you could plan to take just your essentials for your first move in - uni equipment, clothes, etc. - and then possibly bring a few things back to uni if you visit home once you know what you're missing in your accommodation.

For things like room decor and non-essentials, you could use this as an opportunity to socialize with your flat mates. For example, you could plan some time to make some decorations for your flat together, possibly go charity shopping together to find some soft furnishings for your room, or DIY some picture walls for a personal touch. You can find things to do together, and you don't have to spend a fortune. So save some space in your bags for your essentials and get your flat mates together.

Something else you could try is looking at Facebook Marketplace when you arrive at your accommodation. You can often find lots of cheap or even free items people are selling on there, so this could be an alternative for stocking up your supplies. And you can even try to resell them at the end of the year when you're heading home and make some extra cash.

I hope this helps. 🙂
Emily
Student Rep at BCU

Reply 3

McGinger

20

Take one wheelie case and a backpack to begin with. Don't over pack. Don't take anything 'just in case'.
Most Unis will be able to provide a basic duvet-bedding-pack for those in this situation - email the accommodation team and ask. You can buy any other stuff you need in town once you have moved in.
You can always go home and get extra stuff - or swap the staff you've got - on a stray weekend later in the term or at Christmas.

Reply 4

PQ

Universities Forum Helper, Clearing and Applications Advisor

21

Vacuum bags to flatten down your clothes and bedding.

Hold off on books until you know what availability is like in the library (both uni and local libraries).

Don’t worry about any kitchen stuff - it’s heavy, bulky and easy to pick up at charity shops.

Same for most stationery things. But do bring a good coat and bag. And bring photos.

Think about sending shoes through the post to save space.

Liverpool has some fantastic charity shops to pick up bits and bobs for your room and kitchen.

See if you can get someone to travel with you so you can bring and extra big suitcase/rucksack.

(edited 10 months ago)

Reply 5

LancashireRep4

Official Rep

12

Original post

by wolfsky42

Hi there
I am starting at LIPA in September and long story short no one in my family or friends has a car so I will be going by train with all my stuff.
Any tips/thoughts?
I thought this might be most relevant to international students as they would have the same problem as me (not being able to bring the whole kitchen sink!)
Thanks in advance :smile:

Hi @wolfsky42 ,

It's great to see you are about to start university!

As others have said, I highly recommend packing a minimal amount. You could bring a large suitcase and a backpack! Things like kitchen appliances, bedding, etc can be brought when you get to university. If there is anything you cant fit but really need, you could consider shipping it instead as this is a great option! If you send it by a 24 hour service you can get it to you asap!

I hope this helps, please feel free to ask me any questions,
-Sophia (University of Central Lancashire)

Reply 6

hallamstudents

Official Rep

18

Original post

by wolfsky42

Hi there
I am starting at LIPA in September and long story short no one in my family or friends has a car so I will be going by train with all my stuff.
Any tips/thoughts?
I thought this might be most relevant to international students as they would have the same problem as me (not being able to bring the whole kitchen sink!)
Thanks in advance :smile:

Hi,

I think the best piece of advice with this would be to try not to overpack! I am really bad for this, but if you have enough time to pack, you will be able to make your packing quite concise.

One thing you could consider is places that offer student 'moving boxes'. You might want to look properly into this, but places like Unikititout who deliver things like kitchen things straight to your uni. This might work out more expensive (I haven't used them) but it might be more convenient.

It is probably a good idea to buy things when you get there too. I know you still won't have a car, but have a look what shops will be in a short distance of you so you can either walk or get there by public transport and go and buy some things once you have moved in.

You could also just do an online order from any places online that do online delivery. This way you can choose what you have, rather than a website choosing for you, but you don't have to bring it all with you. Most websites will deliver, so this could be a good idea. Just make sure you schedule the delivery for a day after you arrive/the day off, so you will be able to collect it!

With clothes etc, try and just bring enough for the first term. Then, you can swap out any clothes at any time and switch around your clothes. If you can bring a suitcase or two, you should really have enough clothes in there.

Most room decorations can be easy and fairly cheap to find once you are there - go charity shopping or just go to town and see what you like the look of!

I hope some of this helps,

Lucy -SHU student ambassador 🙂

Reply 7

Kingston Eve

Official Rep

13

Original post

by wolfsky42

Hi there
I am starting at LIPA in September and long story short no one in my family or friends has a car so I will be going by train with all my stuff.
Any tips/thoughts?
I thought this might be most relevant to international students as they would have the same problem as me (not being able to bring the whole kitchen sink!)
Thanks in advance :smile:

Hey @wolfsky42,

As mentioned above, only pack what you can feasibly carry - in this case, it will likely be a large suitcase and a rucksack/backpack. Pack for the first term, focusing on clothing and items you'll find difficult to replace; items like bed linens, kitchen equipment and general household items can be purchased once you arrive in local supermarkets/charity shops. 🙂

I had to travel from Belfast to London for university - and as I didn't have a car, I was very limited in what I could pack. In hindsight, I still think I over-packed; I didn't wear half of the clothes I thought I would, and only should have brought three or four pairs of shoes instead of the seven I did.

Best of luck with the moving process!
Eve (Kingston Rep).

Reply 8

De Montfort University

Official Rep

17

Original post

by wolfsky42

Hi there
I am starting at LIPA in September and long story short no one in my family or friends has a car so I will be going by train with all my stuff.
Any tips/thoughts?
I thought this might be most relevant to international students as they would have the same problem as me (not being able to bring the whole kitchen sink!)
Thanks in advance :smile:

Hi there,

I have been in your position when I was moving my things to another city where I did my placement year. Gladly, it was close enough (moving from Leicester to Coventry), so I decided to simply call Uber XL and loaded my 3 big bags into the minivan. However, I was also thinking about another option which was to start moving things by train gradually over a few weekends one bag at a time. But it also has some disadavantages as if you are renting a student accommodation at the moment - you will have to start renting another accommodation earlier than your current booking ends (because you will need a few weeks to carry all your belongings one bag at a time).

I hope that makes sense!
Best regards,
Ilya,
Cyber Security student at DMU :smile:

Reply 9

Matt-WrexhamUni

7

Original post

by wolfsky42

Hi there
I am starting at LIPA in September and long story short no one in my family or friends has a car so I will be going by train with all my stuff.
Any tips/thoughts?
I thought this might be most relevant to international students as they would have the same problem as me (not being able to bring the whole kitchen sink!)
Thanks in advance :smile:

Hi

I think that it is definitely possible, although it is harder than just putting all your possessions in the car and driving up to uni. Like others have said, I think it would be a good idea to just take the essentials you need from home, like clothes, etc, and then other things like food and kitchen equipment can be brought when you have arrived where you will be staying.

It can be costly, but you can keep things you won't need over the summer at the end of the year in storage nearby to your university to save you from bringing these back home.

I hope some of the suggestions help,

Matt
Wrexham Uni Reps

Reply 10

prothzthejack

3

Get them shipped! There's plenty of companies like Any Van or Love space that offer student discounts and can ship items

Reply 11

james_watford

Congrats on getting into LIPA! 🎉 Honestly, the easiest stress-free way is to hire a reliable man and van service: they’ll pick everything up from your door, drive it straight to your halls, and help unload—no juggling suitcases on packed trains. You can ride up light with just a backpack, meet the van at the other end and be moved in within minutes.

Moving to uni without a car

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