- Pack Less
Less is best when it comes to clothing, you should be able to turn 3 shirts and 3 pairs of pants into 9 garments, not 3. Traveling with just hand luggage should be your goal. Do you really need unnecessary stuff like a laptop? When you could have a tablet instead, a hair dryer? Most hotels have them in the rooms, tea bags? No need camera for travel vlogging. Take less and you’ll travel faster, easier and cheaper.
- Plan Your First Day
The very first day of your trip is often lost to logistics and unfamiliar surroundings. But you’ve to plan things like where to go, what to eat. Make a list on apps like Evernote or Wunderlist. So you don’t have to worry about anything in the last minute.
- Don’t Forget Charger Adapters
Take chargers for all of your electronic devices. Many countries have different size plugs and voltage. So in order to use your favorite MP3 Player, make sure you can charge it. It’s also recommended and always a good idea to have power banks or extra batteries just in case of emergency.
- Emergency Phone Numbers
It’s a good to have emergency numbers of both the countries i.e. your own and the country you’re traveling to. Just Google to get the helpful list of numbers so you can be safe at all times. So for example, you’re traveling to New York do a search “New York emergency numbers”.
- Get All Laundry Done
It feels good if you clean up all the clothes and bed sheets before putting the step onto the plane. Nicer hotels offer this option as well, but it’s also quite expensive. Research your options before departing on your trip.
- Cell Phone Plan
You’ll typically be charged much higher rates every time you make a call, send a text or use cellular data because your existing cellular plan may not apply to overseas. Make sure your cell phone plan will adequately cover you while you’re away so you don’t return from vacation to a cell phone bill that is significantly higher than normal. You can also rent phones at airports and from different companies if you like to get rid of this problem.
- Learn a Little Lingo
Memorize some key phrases of the local language, like these.
Do you speak English?
Hello, Goodbye
Please, Thank You, I’m Sorry
Excuse Me
Numbers 1-10
My name is… /I’m from…
Use software to translate them. Have the courage to use them, locals will going to love you if you use their language in order to communicate with them.
- Keep a Good Camera
A camera is a must have for traveling. Why? Because you’ll be having memories saved with you all the time. You don’t need to have a DSLR camera with a big lens when you could take enough good pictures with a digital camera.
