Posts from ‘Travel Tips’
It’s downright horrifying to realize you don’t have your bags when you arrive in a new city. The logistics of traveling is complicated enough than to do it without your luggage, but hey, it happens.
The first thing to remember is not to panic. Take it from me, you’re less likely to make good decisions when you’re freaking out. Fortunately, there are tried and true systems in place to locate lost luggage – the airlines have been losing bags since commercial flight began and usually know just what to do.
The first thing you need to do when you realize your bag isn’t coming down the chute is to visit the airport’s baggage claims office. Every airport should have one located in the baggage claim area.
Credit: SashaW
Without meaning to burden your already huge travel to-do list, today I’ve compiled 101 things to remember to “do” before you leave for your big trip. Read through, see if you’ve forgotten anything, or perhaps add them to your own list. Some of these are purely existential, some are practical, but take it from this traveler—all are important for a happy, healthy, trouble-free trip.
These are listed in no particular order and while they could probably use a sentence or two of explication I’ve left them as they are, open for interpretation and intentionally brief so that you can decide on your own how to use them.
So here they are, 101 important things to do in the months, weeks and days ahead of your travels:
On the Beaten Path or off it? Mostar, Bosnia. Credit: N Crisafulli
We were in Mostar, Bosnia, certainly not a town you’d say was overrun with tourists. My wife and I were walking toward a historically significant site near the center of town (Mostar was torn apart by the Bosnian War in the early 90s) and I of course was looking around for a photo opportunity, camera in hand. She was carrying a guidebook which was opened to the map page directing us to the site. At that moment a young American traveler walked by us, noticed our not-from-around-here aesthetic and muttered too loudly to his friend, “We gotta get off the beaten path, man.”
It was there, in that well-off-the-beaten-path town of Mostar in the middle of Bosnia, that I came to the conclusion that the whole idea of “the Beaten Path” is one of contention, a hypothetical notion that exists purely in the minds of those not satisfied where they are.
If you’re not independently wealthy or a skilled freelancer you’ll likely be forced to sit and watch the slow obliteration of your savings account as you travel around the world. The only real way to combat it and be a successful traveler is to budget your money effectively while on the road. It seems easy on paper – just form a budget and stick to it. Unfortunately, the reality is that a theoretical budget might not cover everything. Unexpected situations are as common as a Bangkok tuk-tuk and as you crunch your daily numbers you’ll find your budget creaking like a leaning tower.
To help illuminate this problem, I’ve listed 10 annoying ways money drains out of your pockets when you’re traveling – and how to stop the bleeding. I do this in hopes that it will extend your trip, or else make your return to normal hometown banking bearable.
Nothing in life is to be feared. It is only to be understood. ~ Marie Curie
The world’s a big and crazy place, no doubt about it. And things happen from time to time that seep into your consciousness (media is, for the most part, everywhere) and if the event occurred in a place you’ll soon be traveling, the knee jerk reaction is of course to fear it, to worry about it and plan around it so you can skirt any potential financial or physical trauma. Don’t worry, it’s natural.
Unfortunately, this natural human tendency also keeps us from doing some of the most rewarding things in life for rather nonsensical reasons. Going out of your way to avoid a danger that comes to you already slanted and sensationalized with little realistic context is, I’m afraid, a little absurd.
While a taxi ride from the airport in a new city may be one of the most exciting parts of your arrival – you’re almost guaranteed a hair-whitening, eye-opening, heart-stopping gallop – unfortunately taxis can be as expensive and potentially dangerous as they are thrilling, depending on where you are.
They can also be an unexpected budget-killer if you’re not careful. Not to mention if any of the drivers decide you’re naïve enough to pay double. And since getting into the city from the airport is something you just need to do, alternatives I’m sure are as welcome as a breath of fresh air.
Below are 10 cities that have great public alternatives that will save you from the inevitable “taxi ride from hell”.
*All prices are in USD.
After 4 days of an almost surreal standstill of the European airport network, things haven’t gotten much better for travelers there. The ash cloud remains settled over much of northern and central Europe and doesn’t appear to be doing much in the way of dissipating. Twenty countries have now closed their airspace with specialists saying there may not be much in the way of improvement until later this week.
However, there is some good news: the rumors of a second volcano erupting in Iceland are purely that and because the density of the cloud appears to be diminishing, British Airways has announced they could be resuming their flights as early as tomorrow local time, with more European airlines likely to follow their lead.
But because volcanic ash is still dangerous for jet engines and since the passenger backup has spread so deeply into airline operations worldwide no one is completely sure how long the situation will take to resolve itself.
To help our customers in affected destinations around the world, I turned to our in-house insurance specialist Jeffrey Fell to answer some questions travelers may have about protecting themselves and their money during this sticky situation.
In order to get to the world’s remote locations or else simply to get the best prices, connecting is an unavoidable inconvenience. The time-consuming nature of landing an airplane, the de-boarding, re-boarding and making sure your bags follow can add up to a ruinous day. Stops may be a necessity but the headaches will usually rise in correlation with the number of times your plane touches down.
Here are the world’s worst places to route through, and why:
Note: These instructions are for American citizens. For those not carrying a US passport please check with your local consulate or Chinese embassy for instructions.
China is one of our “big three” visa destinations, that is, those countries we make sure to remind our travelers to start getting their visas as soon as possible. (The others are India and Russia.) Each place having a lengthy or involved application process.
Disclaimer: AirTreks isn’t in the visa business so the following information will be purely anecdotal. We just want to help.
To enter the People’s Republic of China, a U.S. citizen must have a valid U.S. passport and Chinese visa. For tourism purposes, an L Visa is required to enter China.
Credit: Pseejunkie
You saved for it, bypassed countless social engagements to hoard that money away, made excuses, maybe alienated a few friends along the way.
You also planned for it, spent countless hours, laptop on thighs, scouring travel sites and blogs, organizing, researching, building an itinerary you could feel good about.
You worked up to it, buttressed your decision-making skills, reassured yourself, searched for and found that inspiration you needed when your feet got cold.
You prepared, bought the best bags, jacket, shoes, camera, sunblock and good luck charm.
And then you waited, counting down the days, drumming your fingers on the table.
Finally, the evening before departure and you literally became sick with nerves. But the morning arrived and you got on that plane. And off….you….went.
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