In previous weeks the staff at Skycap News™ has published articles about How to Spot a Winning Vacation Destination and places one can visit via Air, Road Trips, and even Cruise Getaways. The focus of this article is things you always need to keep in mind when you are traveling abroad. With increased security around airports, hotels, and transportation terminals, it is important to be alert to possible dangers while still focusing on having a good time. These 5 tips should help you get started and help you to avoid some of the pitfalls while traveling abroad.
Traveling Abroad “Must Do’s”
- Plan carefully where you will go. While you can never be sure where there might be a problem these days, if you know exactly where you are going and plan out your trip as succinctly as possible. Transportation should be considered, in terms of how you will get to your destination and you should make sure that everyone in your group understands what to do if they get separated and something should happen.
- Have plenty of money and make sure you have the correct currency. Some countries accept American dollars, but not all do. Check ahead of time if you are not sure if they honor your particular type of currency in your country of destination before you go. Many countries do take the standard types of debit and credit cards, such as Amex, Discover, Visa and Mastercard, but it would be to your advantage to call ahead if in doubt, or visit the websites of the places you intend to go. For additional money saving travel tips, please refer to our previous articles; Great Ways to Save for that Memorable Vacation and 5 Vacation Tips to Save You Time and Money.
- Have a backup plan. Even the best of plans traveling sometimes get mislaid. What if the hotel you are booked for has water damage from a nearby flood or your rental car is not ready when you get there? The last thing you want to do is to be stranded with no place to go in a foreign country. So have a plan B that you can resort to if you encounter any of these things on vacation. Suffice it to say that “sometimes your Plan B while traveling becomes your Plan A!”
- Don’t try to do everything. Just as we’ve often talked about when traveling to destinations within Canada and the USA, you don’t want to bite off more than you can chew. Plan out what you want to do and visit before going, but be flexible and open to change. Choose the top 3 or 4 places you want to make a priority and don’t sweat it if you don’t get to see them all. Remember that people often end up needing a vacation to get over their vacation, and that is often why.
- Stick with a small crowd of tourists and tourist guides who seem to know their way around. If you are a loner like me, this part may be hard to do. Admittedly, I like to venture out on my own, or with my small family and friend group and do our own thing. But when you are traveling in a foreign country, you may need more guidance than you do at home in terms of what is considered OK (safety tips) to do, how you will pay for various things, and help in communicating with people of other nationalities. If you find a tour guide you trust, you are usually safe if you keep them within sight.
Traveling Abroad Conclusion
Finally, have fun while traveling! The world is a scary place but most people in foreign countries like to show hospitality to Americans, Canadians, and other “foreigners” traveling abroad. Just be careful when approaching strangers, stay alert, use your common sense, and make sure and take lots of pictures!