Andy's Profile

Name:Andrew Tipp

Screen Name:Andy

Current Location:England

Travel Status:At home

Favourite Country:South Africa

Why It's My Favourite Country:of the variety of culture and nature on offer is, quite simply, awesome. From lush, green shorelines to inland mist-hugging mountains to dry, open grassland, it's a beautiful and diverse part of the world. Add to that simple, tasty food, renowned wine from areas around Cape Town and National Parks teeming with exotic wildlife all makes South Africa a top destination.

Countries Visited:Argentina, Australia, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, France, Germany, Lesotho, Mozambique, Paraguay, Peru, South Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Swaziland, United Kingdom, United States of America, Uruguay, Zimbabwe

Travel Plans:I've love to do a road trip across America, go InterRailing in Europe, explore South East Asia and see more of South America. Oh, and I'd really like to visit Antarctica. I like penguins.

Countries Planned:Cambodia, Croatia, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Malaysia, Netherlands, Slovakia, Thailand

Top Travel Tips:DO: Pack lightly; get insurance; take local advice; speak a bit of the language and push yourself to do things you think you can't do. DON'T: Jump over geysers; attempt to befriend monkeys; disrespect the sun; completely forget about everyone back home or fall asleep on a bus and wake up past your stop.

More About Me:I'm a travel writer, editor and blogger working for gapyear.com. I publish content produced by the site's editorial team and members of the Gapyear Writers Academy. I'm also active on the gapyear.com social network, and an admin on the site messageboards. I have spent more than a year backpacking and volunteering around the world - including my original gap year, which I spent teaching in South Africa. My longest backpacking trip involved spending several months travelling solo around South America. If you would like to write for gapyear.com just send me a message. Follow me on Twitter @andrewtipp for travel tweets and random life musings.

Best Travel Story:I once traded a guinea pig's head for a bar of chocolate on the streets of Arequipa, Peru. I'm not sure who got the best end of that bargain.