Hailo & drinkaware Launch “Get Home Safe” University Campaign
To mark the start of the academic year, drinkaware.ie and Hailo are launching a new “Get Home Safe” campaign on university campuses in Dublin, Cork, Limerick and Galway.
Many still go out without giving any thought to how much they will drink or how they will get home. The reality is that 20% of over 18s are not likely to plan transport in advance*, which is why drinkaware.ie and Hailo are encouraging students to plan ahead and make the most of their nights out.
“Get Home Safe” Tips:
Students planning a night out should check out these tips from drinkaware.ie and Hailo; they’ll get you home safely and make sure you don’t miss any vital lectures the next morning!
Eat! We know that your diet mostly consists of instant noodles right now, so it doesn’t have to be anything fancy, but eating before you go out will help to slow down the rate at which your body absorbs alcohol.
Ditch the drinking games: They might seem like a good way to cement your new friendships, but they’re really just a sure-fire way to make sure that you drink too much, too fast.
Avoid Rounds: They don’t just make your euros evaporate; they also tend to make you drink faster than usual. Remember, the best pace to drink at is your own, so just step back and say that you can’t afford it—you are a student, after all, so it’s the perfect excuse.
Pace yourself: The trick is to cut down the amount that you drink and the speed at which you drink it. Have water between drinks, to stay refreshed, hydrated, and ready to face those early-morning lectures!
As part of the campaign to help students get home safely, drinkaware.ie and Hailo will be distributing goodie-bags on university campuses over the coming weeks. Each bag will contain a €5 taxi voucher, a t-shirt and a drinkaware.ie guide to student life. Students should watch out for the Hailo team on campus, then just tweet #SafeHome13 or post it on the Hailo Ireland Facebook page to collect their free goodie-bag.
“This is a really exciting time for students,” said Fionnuala Sheehan, Chief Executive of drinkaware.ie. “And it can be easy to get caught up in the excitement and forget to plan ahead. Pacing your drinking, that is keeping the quantity of alcohol you drink to a moderate level and slowing down the pace at which you drink will help you enjoy your night for longer, and make sure you’re in a good position to get home safely at the end of it. Simple things like alternating your alcoholic drinks with water and eating before you drink, are practical ways to help you pace yourself.
“When it comes to getting home safely, we’ve teamed up with Hailo to make sure that students have easy access to a taxi home. Downloading the Hailo app means that you won’t end up waiting alone or walking around town trying to flag a taxi down by yourself—you can call the driver to your location with the tap of a button, and even pay by card so you don’t have to worry about having cash in your wallet.”
Tim Arnold, General Manager of Hailo Ireland, also added, “As the college year gets started, it’s a safe bet that students won’t just be focusing on the academic side of things. However, it’s important to stay safe and ensure that you have a reliable way of getting home. With Hailo now available in Dublin, Cork, Galway, and Limerick, it’s a really convenient way for students to get access to a safe journey home at the end of a great night out.”