If you can dream it, you can do it on your gap year program in the United Kingdom: everything from trekking through the less populated areas of the country like Bill Bryson out for a briny seaside walk, to temporary work as a sports coach in an athletics-focused town or city. While you can find many options available to you, here are two of the more popular ways to spend your gap year.

Au Pair. Gappers can affordably spend a gap year in the United Kingdom by serving as an au pair, a caretaker for children, for a family. You get to know a group of locals while helping children practice language skills and improving your own English, if you are interested in that. More importantly, many au pairs get a chance to vacation with the family they work for, so there is some free or extremely inexpensive travelling involved.

Internships. One of the best ways to ensure you pursue a course of study you like is to intern in that field first, and the United Kingdom provides ample opportunity to intern during your gap year. While gaining valuable business skills and an understanding of the way your industry really works, you can also get to know global English usage through the many dialects spoken in the United Kingdom, and get an understanding of what globalization really is.

Music. The music of the UK isn’t all bagpipes, fiddles, and harps. Warm up your windpipes and learn about some of the most classical—and special—music styles in the world today. If you don’t just want to make the music, consider dancing to it, too. Traditional dances, like waltzes, reels, strathspeys, and jigs, are all on your music gap year in the UK menu too. Or tackle something more modern and do an in-depth study of the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, the Who, Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, The Clash, Oasis, Blur, or Queen. Wow!

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