Thanksgiving is a tradition most exchange students don’t have at home, and most students look forward to eating the famous turkey dinner.

But in addition to the holiday meal, Thanksgiving week is one of exchange students’ few opportunities to travel the rest of the United States.

And a week or more of travel is exactly what Anaïs Dumontier has in mind.

The French student in international business has planned a trip to tour the West Coast.

Dumontier’s trip will include stops in Las Vegas, the Grand Canyon, Death Valley, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Sequoia Park and Alcatraz Island.

“It’s going to be 11 hard and tiring days, but we’re going to have so much fun and see so many different places,” Dumontier said.

Dumontier said it’s going to cost them about $675, which includes expenditures such as gas, food and hotels.

“3,000 miles, 36 hours to go there, the same to come back. Now that’s a real road trip,” Dumontier said.

Distance does not deter many exchange students, and for Benedikt Kaczmar, neither does an injury.

About 10 days ago, the German aerospace engineering graduate student planned to do a 4,100-mile trip to San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon, but broke his ankle playing football.

But that was not enough to discourage him.

“I asked the surgeon if I could still go; he said it was my choice. I said OK, I want to do it,” Kaczmar said.

Kaczmar will return home for Christmas, so Thanksgiving was the longest period for him to travel.

Some students travel plans will keep them in the region over the break.

Isabela Villamizar, a industrial engineering student from Colombia, said she is traveling to Austin and then will go to New Orleans. She chose their locations not only because they heard they were pretty or interesting, but it’s also cheaper than the West Coast.

For Charlotte Réan, a literature student from France, the destination is not what matters most.

“Doing a road trip has always been my dream. With a friend, we made a special road trip playlist — the kind you have to listen to with your windows lowered and your hair floating in the wind,” Réan said. “For me, this is the true American adventure spirit; you don’t really know how long it’s going to take or where you’re going, but you just go.”

Being an exchange student doesn’t necessarily mean they have no previous ties to the United States. Some take advantage of Thanksgiving to travel and see family.

Alejandro Lopez, a electrical engineering student from Mexico, will visit his aunt who lives in Corpus Christi, Texas.

“It’s a good chance to visit her,” Lopez said. “There’s family that I have here that I don’t know yet, and it’s a good opportunity to meet them.”

For Mario Gonzalez, a chemical engineering student from Colombia, it’s not only an occasion to catch up with family, but also to celebrate Thanksgiving together.

“My family moved to Houston back in 2005, and Thanksgiving has become a tradition that my family and I have adopted,” Gonzalez said.

Because the holiday is not celebrated in Colombia, Gonzalez said it was weird to follow a custom they were not used to, but as the time passed, it’s something they adopted into their family.

“We always find a family to invite to share the Thanksgiving dinner with us,” Gonzalez said. “It’s too much food, and it’s always important to have someone to share what we’ve been given in life.”

Most exchange students had the occasion to share an early Thanksgiving dinner at the Grace Life Church last Wednesday, but some are interested in a more traditional approach — sharing Thanksgiving dinner with a real American family.

Tea Risom, a political science graduate student from Denmark, said she was invited by her OU Cousin. Risom said she didn’t have the time or money to travel, and she wanted the Thanksgiving experience.

Not all the exchange students will have the chance to share a true American family Thanksgiving.

“You have to know people to be invited, you can’t just invite yourself,” Risom said.

Risom said she likes that Thanksgiving is not a religious celebration and thinks it should be experienced with nice people.

“I’ve been told by my friend that her mom cooks very, very well. She’s looking forward to it, so am I,” Risom said.