When you’re about to leave the safety of your familiar home for parts unknown, the last things you need to worry about are causing yourself problems that could have been easily avoided or missing out on opportunities. Check out this collection of tips and become as travel-savvy as you possibly can.
When traveling by air, if you find that you need to check your bags, make sure you that keep at least a change of clothing with you in your carry-on bag. Then if your luggage accidentally gets lost and the airline has to track it down you’ll at the very least have a clean change of clothes. Even if it takes a day or two to find your luggage and get it for you, you can most likely wash your clothing at your hotel.
It is important to write down all key information if you are traveling abroad. Know where your embassy or consulate is and how they can be reached should you need to get into contact with them. This is the place to contact should you run into any issues while traveling. They have a lot of experience with issues travelers face, and they will help.
Shop around for the best deal. Often, a shift in a day or two from your departure or return can amount to a significant savings of several hundred dollars in your transportation cost. Many websites can check this automatically for you. As a general rule, if you can avoid travelling on Fridays or Sundays, you will save a pile of money.
Having earplugs handy while traveling will save your sleep and sanity! Be it on the plane or in your hotel room, the use of earplugs will allow you to shut out at least fifty percent of the noises that will give you a headache, keep you from sleeping, or otherwise highlight travel in a negative way. They are also very cheap so bring plenty.
When traveling with a dog, brush your dog before putting them into the car, particularly if the car is a rental. This will significantly cut down on the amount of fur that flies around in the car during the drive. It will also reduce the amount of time you have to spend removing the hair from the car.
Before booking any vacations, do some comparison shopping. Make sure you’re getting a good deal on your flight and hotel by looking at the prices of several websites. If you don’t need to leave or return from your trip on an exact day, check the price of several days in the same week. One might be cheaper.
Did you know that you can use snow to do a quick cleanup on your vehicle while you are traveling? A car wash would work better but snow works quite well in a pinch. It will remove the mud that got all over your rental vehicle when you ventured onto that back road. It also works well to get grime buildup off of your windshield in an emergency.
When you are traveling overseas, make sure that you know and obey all of the local laws. The embassies and consulates can only help you so much. If you commit a crime on foreign soil, according to foreign law, your government will be unable to override those laws and you must submit to the punishment of that country’s laws.
Following these quick and easy tips means investing energy in having the best travel experiences of your life. Being a more resourceful, more prepared traveler will decrease your worries, increase your happiness, and leave you more energy and time to enjoy all the experiences and opportunities you encounter in your future travels.
