Many of us follow the lives of celebrities with interest, always thinking just how well-organised and together they must be to keep up with such hectic schedules. But, as these celebrity gap year blunders will prove, those famous folks are not always as perfect as we think they are!

Cheryl’s Malaria Mishap

She may currently be the nation’s favourite celebrity, as well as a role model for all those women going through divorce, but let’s hope that not too many gap year travellers are walking in Cheryl Cole’s shoes, or they might find themselves walking directly into mosquito mayhem. After travelling to Tanzania, despite claiming to have taken the correct medication, the singer was admitted to hospital and diagnosed with malaria. So, what should we learn from Cheryl’s story? It is crucially important to take malaria medication both before and during trips to areas where there is a high risk of contracting the disease. However, more than that, it is important to take extra precautions along the way, so make sure you stock up on insect repellent, mosquito nets and perhaps even fly swats before you go!

Anne’s Incorrect Assumptions

Anne Robinson’s austere and potentially rather alarming manner on The Weakest Link might well have us all thinking that such a woman could never make a faux pas in real life. Think again! Gap year students take note – you should always double check that the luggage you’ve collected from the conveyor belt is in fact yours, no matter how sure you think you are that it is your backpack or suitcase. Anne Robinson assumed that as she was the last one to arrive at the baggage lounge and all luggage had been collected, the case left had to be hers. She got a bit of a shock later however, when she opened the case to find a week’s worth of clothes that she had never seen before. Had she checked her case at the airport, she might have been able to limit both the hassle of getting her own bag back, and the time she had to wait for a change of clothes to arrive!

Lewis Hamilton Left Lacking

There’s one thing that should be done with care and attention when you’re preparing for your gap year and that’s the packing. If you are going to be away for long periods of time, you need to make sure that you have everything you need before you go, particularly if you are travelling to somewhere shopping centres are likely to be limited. So, be sure you don’t do what Lewis Hamilton did one holiday, which was to completely forget to pack his underpants! Lay your belongings out before you pack them into a case, and check then double check that you have everything you need. Then you can go about trying to figure out how to get it all into your suitcase.

So, it turns out that whilst celebrities are great for teaching us about fashion, fitness and many other things we love to read about in magazines, they are also great for reminding us of a few of the very basic mistakes that it is so easy to make both before and during your gap year. Learn from the best blunders and you can be sure that your gap year will go smoothly.

Author Bio: Mark Bottell is the General Manager for Worldwide Experience, an online tour operator offering extended breaks on gap year and other wildlife conservation holidays for adults.

Category: Entertainment
Keywords: gap year