Being Prepared Can Make All the Difference!

No recreational activity in the world can surpass the thrill and excitement of travelling. Not that I want to kill the romanticised aspect of it, there are certain things that one needs to know before starting a trip. I have a lot of travelling experience and I keep learning new things, which help me in my prospective travel plans. My first foreign trip was a completely spontaneous plan, and was flawed to the core since it lacked planning. From catching flights to arranging itinerates, I was unfamiliar with a number of important aspects of travelling. These planning flaws cost me a lot of money, time and energy. I’m highlighting these factors below so you could learn and benefit from my experiences:

Deciding on what to carry luggage in

I have travelled more than six months in one go, and I really would have liked if somebody could have told me whether a suitcase or a backpack is a better option for me. In my experience, a backpack is much easier to get around with when I’m travelling for more than six months. It zips open easily and provides the kind of access that no suitcase can. However, when I’m travelling for just a month or two or perhaps even less, it is better to opt for the suitcase with wheels. Nonetheless, carrying an additional item itself feels like a burden to a lot of people, including myself, which is why my first priority is always a backpack.

Making health-related preparations

After my first travelling experience, I made a habit to check for travel health tips on Foreign and Commonwealth Office website since it provides a wealth of knowledge. I learned to get adequate travel insurance in order to avoid a huge medical bill in case I needed a treatment. I was eligible for a European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) of which I had no idea the first time I travelled. Using this card, I am entitled to get discounts or free healthcare services as long as I’m travelling to a European country.

Once I travelled to India during the summers, and caught malaria because of the great number of mosquitoes hovering around me in the evenings. I hadn’t had any vaccinations or preventive measures against any such disease so I could only thank God that it was just malaria. It very easily could have been dengue as well!

Every time I have to travel now, I visit my GP who updates me on all the diseases that are unfamiliar in the UK but are prevalent in other parts of the world. He then lets me know whether I need vaccinations or follow other preventive measures.

Doing Plenty of Research

It helps a huge deal when I do research on the do’s and don’ts of the particular place I am planning to visit. I explore the transportation options in advance as well as the culture and weather so I could pack my outfits accordingly. If I have to visit a slightly conservative country, I make sure I’m familiar with the local customs so I don’t offend the native people. I remember when I visited the Middle East once was frowned upon since I was not dressed appropriately according to the customs. You don’t want that happening to you!

Checking ATM Cards

The first time I booked a inexpensive flight abroad, I only took cash along, which I ran out of very quickly. I hadn’t planned well so I had to have my friend transfer me some money through a money transfer service, which was very expensive. Learning from this mistake, I always call my bank before leaving and let them know that I’m going to be travelling overseas for a certain period of time. The bank then advises me on which credit or debit card will work whilst I’m abroad. I usually take a mixture of money now including debit card, credit card as well as cash.

James Sampson wrote this post on behalf of cheap flights. For deals on flights from UK airports we recommend visiting cheap airline deal site cheapflights.co.uk

This entry was posted on Wednesday, June 20th, 2012 at 2:05 am and is filed under Travel Tips. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.