Inspire Uplift
Wanderlust is an unexplained passion, an emotion that is so sacred that only apposite words should represent it, and a practice that helps you grow as a person. Ibn Battuta once historically said, “Traveling – it leaves you speechless, then turns you into a storyteller.”
And we can’t agree more. People who were too shy to discuss topics in gatherings, have been observed to speak fluently and informatively on them after a couple of international tours. Trips bring them closer to various cultures, mentalities, and scenarios from which they gain valuable exposure.
Planning a trip can be an overwhelming task: what to pack, which places to visit, what is the most appropriate mode of transport, how to book a cheap hotel; all these questions are enough to make your heart skip a beat.
But it doesn’t have to be that way, at least not in this world of modern technology where you have access to plenty of travel guides, blogs, hack lists, and online tutorials. But why go looking at multiple resources when you can find everything at a single place?
This in-depth guide will discuss everything you can possibly think about while planning and going on a trip. We have toiled to make this article as organized and sequential as possible.
Things to do before traveling
“By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail,”- said Benjamin Franklin. And this is absolutely true! Planning is critical for ensuring you have a smooth-running and enjoyable trip. But how to go about it? Here is a detailed account of things and practices for your travel planning phase.
We won’t be digging into the question of “where should I travel” because that would sway us away from the original topic.
Plan for your absence from the house
Before traveling abroad and leaving your house, you need to perform these tasks to avoid any mishaps or problems.
1. Ensure that you turn off all taps and lights of the house and lock the front door securely. If your neighborhood is trustworthy, you should inform them of your departure.
2. Regular services or deliveries like newspapers and housecleaning should be halted and informed timely.
3. Check-in with your doctor and have all the necessary vaccinations and prescriptions before leaving,
4. Call your bank and notify them about your trip and the probable repetitive transactions that you will carry out in the foreign country so that they are not confronted by any suspicion.
5. Get in touch with a kennel or house-sitter if you have a pet and work out all the procedures beforehand.
Bookings
1. Buy cheap online tickets:
Purchasing tickets from the right medium at the right moment is a skill that might take ages to master. But luckily enough, you have come across an article that will guide you on getting frugal tickets for your trip easily. Let’s discuss the hacks for air tickets first.
⦁ Always look for tickets for the entire month
Don’t be stubborn about selecting a particular date of departure, instead, look for the schedule of the whole month to find dates when air tickets are the most inexpensive. Search through Google flights, Hopper, and Skyscanner and enter your departure and arrival cities.
First, look for one-way fare, click ‘depart’ and instead of entering a specific date, input the whole month. This way, you will be able to view the day-wise price of the tickets and can easily choose the cheapest one. Now, toggle your locations to look for the most economical return ticket through the same practice. Repeat the same process for round-trip tickets and compare both.
⦁ Turn on the incognito mode
Due to the presence of cookies in the browser, every time you search for a flight rate, the fare successively increases as companies want you to buy tickets immediately. A good practice is to open tabs in secret browsing mode so you won’t see increased tariffs as the previous searches won’t be stored in the browser.
Another method is to clear the cookies or to open the same browser tab from a different operating machine.
⦁ Earn reward points
Just like you get a miles card for a bus travel company, you get them for an airline as well. For those who are planning their first-ever international trip should get the travel card as soon as possible. As for those regular travels who have remained unprivileged by these reward points up until now, should also stop regretting and get one now.
Every journey you make earns you points and you can pay a portion of or full airfare with these. The Chase Sapphire Card gets you 60,000 points, which are worthy of $750 after you spend $4000 in the first three months of issuance. Cool, right?
⦁ Make kiwi.com your friend
Kiwi.com is a great website that works on mixing algorithms to find out the cheapest flight for your destination. It can bring in the factor of connecting flights to your advantage and more often, you would be able to find cost-effective flights and that too, which offers shorter distance.
2. Road travel information
We wouldn’t be discussing the ways of getting a cheaper road vehicle here as it involves variations of all the methods discussed above. CheckMyBus is a helpful website for booking bus services while you can rent a car online from Rentalcars conveniently as it compares all the top car rental companies of the world to present you with the best rates.
3. Score the cheapest hotel
What good would it be if all your tour money is showered on paying for the hotel’s rent? Sure, you should be eying a comfortable hotel with copious amenities but not at high stakes. That’s where smartness will earn you useful points. Here are the helping tips:
⦁ Kayak is a “giver”
Take advantage of this cool platform which provides you with cheap hotel bookings and member deals. The best thing about this website is that it compares other forums like Expedia, TripAdvisor, and Booking.com to quote you the best available price.
You can sign in to get entitled to fare alerts and email notifications of slash prices. Other coupon sites like Groupon and Living Social are very helpful too.
⦁ Be smart about decisions
While many companies offer low-priced rooms at free cancellation listings, others provide even cheaper rates if you book on a non-refundable pricing scheme. Street smartness will play a vital role in this regard because you have to compare which options will prove more advantageous.
You also need to be wary of excessive cancellations because hotel owners don’t like it that much.
⦁ Collect points
All reputable hotels have reward programs that enable tourists to earn points from every stay. These can be exchanged for reduced prices, upgrades, and even free rooms. Hotels have signed loyalty treaties with bookings websites like Expedia and Hotels.com and when you book those rooms from these platforms, you get points.
It all works in the same way as mile points for traveling. Some of the best examples of booking websites are Expedia+Rewards and Orbitz Rewards. You can get complimentary dinners, internet or a rental car facility with these reward programs.
⦁ Get “cheap” with membership discounts
Subscribing to membership of the International Student Identity Card (ISIC) opens hundreds of ways for getting discounts on hotels, so this is an additional tip for regular travelers. You must be younger than 35 years to earn this though.
Packing
Glue one thing to your mind: portability and utility are the pivotal considerations when you are packing for a trip. There is a complete science of how to pack for a trip expertly and you would find a load of information on this. We scrutinized tens of articles on this topic and used our personal traveling experience to script down a thorough description of this stage of trip planning without making it dull.
Considerations for packing effectively for a trip
⦁ Only pack those outfits that go with everything. You could be persistent on having a backless dress that goes majestically with a pair of gold heels for a formal night party but hold back this tenacity while packing for a trip.
You should choose clothes that can be compatible with every sort of jewelry, shoes, and legwear. A composedly designed blacktop could just be a perfect -go-with-everything outfit. You can wear sneakers, sandals, pants or shorts with it.
Also, be considerate of the weather of your destination and pack accordingly. A dense, woolen overcoat should only suffice for temperatures under 5-8oC otherwise, light sweaters are enough.
Similarly, It would be mindless to pack heavy jackets if visiting Venice in July because simple shirts would suffice. Carry out research on the climate of the place you are touring beforehand and pack your belongings accordingly.
⦁ Get a small bag with plenty of pockets. Getting a larger one will raise the temptation to pack everything you see around the room which will ultimately lead to over-stuffing. Purchase a carry-on which is very high in utility, contains plenty of zipped compartments and pockets and is durable.
For better arranging your possessions, you can shop for organizer packs. These help in keeping your clothes, make-up accessories and toiletries separately.
⦁ Always have a small attachable bag for your “little necessities” along with the carry-on. This would hold your passport, visa, traveling printable coupons, cards, documents, and make-up items for all the ladies.
Neither should you let others wait while you hunt for your passport at the booking queue nor should you be going through the struggle of taking off the purse from the shoulder, placing it on the counter, opening its zip and finding the required piece of information.
⦁ Lay everything on the bed or floor first. This helps a lot with the placement of the contents within the suitcase. We have been following this practice for a long time with significant effect. It packs your stuff in less time because there won’t be any fidgeting to stuff in a new item or pull out some things to make space for a larger item.
⦁ Always roll your clothing instead of folding them. This will save space. You can also put your socks and undergarments inside the pockets of pants for yielding additional space.
Getting bored? We can’t let that happen so, let’s now jump to the traveling essentials you need to pack.
The ultimate travel packing list
Clothes:
⦁ Belts and ties.
⦁ Different socks or stockings
⦁ Swimsuit if necessary
⦁ Legwear including different leggings, jeans, shorts, and skirts.
⦁ Shirts (Some casuals and about two dress shirts if your stay is longer than 10-15 days)
⦁ Shoes packed in a boot bag because you don’t want your carry-on to be dirty and crammed up. Right?
⦁ Undergarments (won’t get into particulars because that might land us in a weird place as people wear all sorts of undergarments :p)
⦁ Travel blanket, if necessary. It can be knitted out of cotton, wool or nylon depending on the weather conditions of the destination.
Also, Check: Essential Accessories You Need
Toiletries:
⦁ Hairbrush or comb
⦁ Shaving accessories
⦁ Toothpaste and toothbrush
⦁ Make-up accessories packed in a separate pouch
⦁ Sunscreen and moisturizer as per personal requirement
⦁ Hand sanitizer because carrying a soap would be a blunder provided the mess it will create in the bag. After all, there are soaps at restrooms, hotels, and restaurants you would visit
Tech gadgets:
⦁ Smart Adapter
Purchase a smart adapter for use in the majority of the countries. These types of adaptors contain UK/US/AUS/EY plugs so that it can be plugged in sockets all around the globe. With multiple USB slots, you can charge your smartphone, tablet, iPod, handsets, and other rechargeable gadgets all at once.
Carrying separate chargers for each of your devices is mere stupidity in this age of cutting-edge technology. Look for equipment worthy of executing numerous tasks.
⦁ High-quality camera
Take a camera integrated with video capability for breathtaking photos and memorable videos. While smartphones are suitable for taking selfies and general pictures, cameras take scene-capturing to the next level. It’s because of high-resolution DSLRs and mirrorless cameras that traveling blogs and documentaries are so alluring and captivating.
⦁ Wireless headphones
Wireless headphones are a necessary tool if you are a music freak. Whether you want to rock out to your favorite songs while traveling on a local bus or watch a Marvels movie on your flight, this is the gadget that will let you enjoy to the fullest without disturbing people around you.
⦁ Power bank
And how can we forget the savior of off your electronic devices; the power bank – a re-energizer for your iPhone and a “reinvogarator” for your noise cancellation headphones. They retain your connection to the digital world and helps you stay connected to the family back even if the smartphone has signaled low battery.
If you are a tech-driven person who is traveling with a lot of electronic equipment, it is better to place them all in a separate bag so you don’t have to search through all the pockets of your suitcase to find a specific item.
Exchange the currency
You can’t use your local currency in foreign countries, so you have to exchange them. It’s better if you do that at home from the stock exchange store because that would save high conversion fees you would be forced to pay in a foreign country.
Also, it would save precious time that you can invest in exploring the city/country. You can also exchange the currency through the ATMs of your destination at low fees of 1-3%.
Types of traveling
People get to have various traveling experiences because they go around for different reasons. Some engage themselves in group travel with friends for starting their summer break with a high while others go with their newlywed wives for their intimate honeymoons. Here are the top 6 types of travel.
1. Adventure travel
This is the most common type of travel because it doesn’t involve any restrictions or, more suitably, conditions. You don’t need to have any qualification and you shouldn’t be related to a specific age group, university or institution.
This type of travel includes luxury travel or a private tour (with the help of a travel agent). You can go anywhere you like, get stupid as many times you like, and spend as much as you like on anything you desire.
Surfing, sight-seeing, outdoor dining, and mountain climbing; you can do everything. In simple words, it is the most basic type of traveling that we and the majority of other people do.
2. Visiting friends and relatives
What’s cheaper than staying at the house of a friend or family member who is living abroad? Think about all the money you will save on hotel rents. And the excessive cultural interactions due to the presence of a local friend is an added benefit.
Visiting a foreign friend is the best way for us to celebrate a long holiday. You can explore the destination more intently and purposefully because there will be a local helping you at all times, you can engage in cultural norms more openly and utilize your time to stay more effectively.
3. Group travel
You would have seen in some movies that a group of foreigners is strolling through the city, headed by a tour guide. That is a group tour. It can include anyone from a 22-year drinker to a 70-year man ambling with the help of a walking stick.
The biggest advantage of a group tour is that you will be freed from the troubles of travel planning. People from different ethnicities are part of a group so there is a great probability that you will be exposed to diverse cultures and values. Some of your group tour members end up being your best friends.
On the negative side though, you become bound to follow the schedule set by the tour guide and are left with little flexibility.
4. Business tour
The most exciting thing about a business trip is that your company will be defraying all the expenses. You won’t be allowed to wander around and have to work most of the time, but isn’t that better than staying in the same workplace you have been adhered to for months?
Traveling to another country is always good and when it’s on someone else’s expenses, it feels great!
5. Event travel
These are the trips attended for a specific event like a football or basketball match, Olympics, Burj Al Khalifa fireworks or the festival of tomatoes in Spain.
6. Traveling around the world for a living
This refers to travel blogging. These people tour different parts of the world and express their accounts through words that are paid heavily by online websites. Apart from this explicit mode of earning, travel bloggers create their own websites to generate passive income through affiliate marketing, sponsored ads and selling stock photos online.
Travel blogging and vlogging have, in fact, become one of the hottest new online profession. It has attracted millions of travel enthusiasts who were previously visiting places for the sake of fun, to earn money out of it now.
Ways to travel after you reach your destination
Hurrah! You have reached the meat of the article.
Now that you have landed at your destination, it’s time to enlighten you about the best ways of traveling within it. Should it be a taxi, a rental car, train, bus, cycle, walking, or if you have planned a 1-month retirement tour to the whole of France, a plane?
Transport sucks up a significant portion of your budget and therefore, it’s absolutely critical to deciding the most affordable yet comfortable way of touring the destination.
Get acquainted with local transport beforehand
It’s always better to be knowledgeable about the types of conveyance of the city or country you are visiting before you actually reach there. There is no point in running towards a subway station with your backpack when you can easily utilize the free shuttle on your International Student Card, parked nearby.
Often it happens to us that we spend $10 on a cab for a short commute, only to realize later that the same distance could have been covered for $2 by the bus.
Spend a day before your flight, to download the digital maps of the city, reading blogs about the cheapest transport available or contacting your friend who visited the place earlier to have a trustworthy insight.
Transportation modes
Car:
Road trips are always a more fun way of local traveling than trips done by a train or plane. You can pull over any time and sightsee a cascading waterfall or a sprawling garden of oranges.
Also, you get ample space for all of your suitcases, children, or even pets. If you come across a place midway the journey which is more striking than the destination itself, you can always alter the course of your tour and plan a stay here instead.
Cabs are an affordable and flexible way of exploring a destination. You get round-the-clock service from them. Be it the chilly midnight of Venice or the early morning of New York, these 4-wheelers will drive past you after every few minutes.
Taxi services like Uber and Careem have taken the taxi service to the next level. You can search the driver nearby through your smartphone’s GPS and order a car from different categories like UberX, UberSUV, and CareemBusiness.
Another advantage of using cabs is the proficiency of the drivers. As they are usually locals, they can take you to any place you like. They will arrive at your doorstep as opposed to public transport where you have to reach specified locations.
Bus:
Buses are probably the cheapest method of surveying a tourist place. If you are on a strict budget, this is the way to go for you. Get some know-how of the city routes and bus stations before you reach. New York, for example, has an extensive network of 6000 buses which covers 322 routes.
You have to wait for buses at specific stops, which are located three to four blocks apart. The fare can be paid in cash or by MetroCard if you are traveling in New York. We prefer the MetroCard as it needs to be recharged once and payment is executed on a single swipe.
The disadvantage of traveling by bus is that it doesn’t provide any flexibility. You are restricted to follow set timings and routes and there is little privacy to enjoy. You can’t let out your hidden singer inside you or talk informally with your friend on call in a loud, casual tone although some people do that courageously :p. We are not judging but it certainly doesn’t look civilized.
Stockholm, Berlin, London, and Hong Kong have the world’s most extensive and used bus networks. Here are some links to visit if you are interested to travel by bus.
Eurolines: Info about all major cities of Europe
12Go: Most informative website for booking in regions of Asia
Greyhound USA: the Most detailed network of buses in the USA
Subway or Metro:
Want to avoid traffic? Simple, travel via subway. These might not be as cheap as the bus but is surely faster. Shangai has a metro network of 548km while London has an underground network subway extending to 402km so while you are in any of these cities, it’s convenient to travel through the metro.
Subway is usually cheaper than a taxi but mind it; they can’t take you anywhere. The map of routes and the places subway can take you are depicted on their stations. And you can always ask for guidance from the locals traveling alongside.
Also, you cannot travel with a lot of luggage so if you have just landed at your destination, it’s reasonable to reach the hotel by taxi and leave this mode of transport for the next day’s exploration of the city.
Ferry or boats:
Seems odd? But it isn’t. There are some tourist attractions in the world that should be preferred to be traveled via ferries. The top of the list are Amsterdam and Venice. Both of these cities lay miraculously between a sprawling network of canals and whether you travel at day or night through them, it is as soothing and magical.
At day, you can contemplate the buildings, docks and small houses lining the canal banks while at night, you get the advantage of illuminated bridges and the fresh, cool gales of wind kissing your cheeks every now and then.
Traveling through water opens up the city’s whole perspective to you because there are no tall buildings to obstruct your vision. You can capture great photos too.
Motorhome:
If you are traveling with your family, this is the most suitable transport for you provided you are ready for excitement and thrill. These are motor vehicles that include all the amenities of the house, including a kitchenette, washroom, air conditioner, sitting, and bedding space.
It provides you with the freedom to have a picnic anywhere you want: in the middle of a grassy highland, along the highway, or beside a falling waterfall. These are available at different rates and in various sizes. We highly recommend this transport if you are visiting the outskirts of a particular city.
The in-built features of a motorhome allow you to sleep in the open air without being affected by the weather, it lets you furnish a barbeque anywhere, and it allows you to watch your favorite TV show, sitting on a couch while your father is driving the vehicle.
Cycle:
That’s another exciting way of touring the city. There are several cycling services in different cities of the world that provide you with rental bikes on an hourly basis or for a whole day. Cycling from Kalieci to Konyalti Beach in Antalya, Turkey, is one of the most soul-refreshing things you can do while you stay in the city.
Walking:
Or simply turn towards walking. Especially if you want to visit busy places like Lombard Street in San Francisco, La Rambla street of Barcelona or Khao San Road in Bangkok, it is better to amble through them.
Not only will you be able to explore every shop located on the sides but you would also never get stuck in the traffic.
How to get the most out of your trip
It takes months to immerse in the true essence of a particular culture and tradition but most of us don’t carry that luxury. We usually plan a trip comprising a week or so, thus we have to be smart to make the most of it.
You will be spending a large amount of money to reach a destination and it would be mere foolishness to walk around aimlessly without any research. Don’t worry about the research part because we have got you covered.
1. Learn the basic language
We once went to a souvenir shop in France and greeted the local shopkeeper with “Salut Monsieur” (Hello Sir). He was so elated that he gave us a free token of remembrance in the form of a plastic model of the Eifel Tower along with our purchased stuff.
Leaning a foreign language is a difficult process but we are only talking about memorizing useful, most-used phrases and words like “Hello”, “Thank you”, “Where is the washroom”, “Is there a bus station/restaurant nearby?”. Voice Translator is a handy tool to have in this regard.
It can be carried anywhere and is operated through a simple operation.
2. Get the local SIM as soon as possible
Although you can activate roaming charges on your existing SIM, it would be exceedingly expensive therefore you should immediately get a local SIM after landing at the new place.
Local SIMs are available at the airport, although a bit on higher rates. The staff is helpful enough to provide you with packages that suit your stay at the destination. For example, if you are staying in New York for a week, they will give you a local SIM package spanning 7 days with a specific number of calls, messages, and mobile data.
Never call on the phone back home, rather use internet services like WhatsApp, Messenger. Calls should only be limited for local use and they are cheap ranging from $10-30 depending on the area.
3. Research on the places to visit
Would it be any good if you miss visiting the Eiffel Tower, Louvre Museum, Palace of Versailles, and the Arc of Triumph while you are in Paris? It would be pathetic. Anyone who hears you visited Paris would first ask for the pictures of the above locations and do the rest of the conversation afterward.
Therefore, having prior research on the places to visit is extremely important. It would be better if you can gather info about how to reach there inexpensively and things to purchase from there. For example, getting a slice of Goude cheese from Amsterdam is a must.
TripAdvisor is your best friend here. This platform contains extensive information on everything you need to know about a country including things to do, hotel bookings, top shopping malls to visit and transport you can use.
4. Taste as much local food as you can
How lame a person has to be to skip Sushi (“Sashimi”) and order a Pasta instead, on his first day of visit to Japan? That would be a clear cut blow to their cultural integrity.
Renowned buildings and local food are two of the most prominent features of a tourist attraction. Countries take pride in the preparation and presentation of their local dishes which is depicted now and then, through the popular episodes of Masterchef season.
Travel enthusiasts taste the regional dishes to get a sense of that region because the nature of spices, the amount of saltiness, the time of preheating and the amount of garnishing is different in every other part of the world.
Denying the local food is like denying the traditional essence of a place that doesn’t suit a good tourist.
5. Meet the locals
Communicate with the people of the city to get a greater insight into their culture and history. They will narrate the true values of the place in a way no Google blog can, they will help you visit the lesser-known places which are more thrilling and help you plan the rest of your tour much effectively.
If you are a travel blogger, these are the people who will make your blogs and vlogs more interactive, witty, and informative. Talking with them enhances your exposure, and you get to see the place and people with a new perspective.
Talking with strangers and letting them share their thoughts with you makes you realize how little of a life you were spending previously. You are enlightened with new life dimensions, values, and concepts.
6. Take as many travel photos as you can
The camera lens is your biggest helper in capturing the memories and travel experiences digitally. Try taking as many pictures as you can with all the renowned landmarks and locals because these will be the foundations for your blogs and discussions with friends when you come back.
“My trip to Mexico was memorable in every regard,” you say, and what do you hear in return? “ Show me the pictures.” Isn’t it? Remember to upload every photo you capture on Google drive or save it elsewhere. In case the camera gets stolen or lost, these will be your backups.
But how to take better travel photos? Photos of yourself that will enthrall your readers, photos of the sceneries that will spellbind your friends, photos that will enhance the beauty of the place itself.
We wouldn’t bore you with the techniques of capturing timeless photos by changing the angles, adjusting the aperture and playing with camera settings because you would have probably known that already. We would discuss the secrets of taking better trip photos here.
⦁ Ensure that you include localness in your photos by targeting a regional building, person or an idea. For example, if you are capturing the beach of Turkey, include some people wearing a Turkish cap or a vendor cart displaying any logo of a Turkish company.
This is apart from the specifically “local” pictures you should take of Turkish attractions like Aya Sofya, Ephesus, Mount Nmerut, and Aspendos.
⦁ Try capturing from unique angles. It’s okay, even preferred, to lie down flat on your stomach or stand on top of a metal post to take specific snaps. Underwater photography is also one of the most popular travel photo genres but that requires expertise and talent.
Look at this ravishing picture of Mexico’s Baji California peninsula which highlights a swamp of ray fish heading speedily towards their resting area.
⦁ Don’t forget yourself in all the hassle of capturing the destination’s most profound places. Include tripod or smartphone selfies in the photos gallery and represent yourself magnificently in the shot. It could be drying your hair in front of a waterfall, eating sushi with the help of chopsticks, or rowing in River Thames, London.
⦁ Include an uncommon perspective in your pictures. This can be done by adding a motion blur, capturing pictures in white and black or high aperture mode or using a crystal ball to add a focal point in the photo.
⦁ Ask locals about the places that deserve to be captured. Google would only tell you the places which are fed into its system by the travelers but local people may guide you towards the previously unexplored sceneries and sights.
7. Slow down
You wouldn’t be able to do everything of the above if you have stuffed your itinerary with a whole lot of tasks. This would end up being regretful because you would miss out on many major opportunities.
“Slow travel” is a mean of spending more time on selected destinations so that you ‘take in’ the culture and traditions of that place efficaciously.
Do you need to pee or have a craving for a snack right now? Don’t worry, do that and continue with the article afterward.
Taking care of your health during the trip
Nobody wants to get sick even at home, let alone on the tours. But the changes in the atmosphere and air quality enhances the probability of happening so.
We don’t want you to fall ill on trips because we are just so considerate! Let’s precisely script down some of the ways of staying healthy and paying attention to our health during the tours.
⦁ Travel insurance is a must.
No matter how cheap the medical facilities are at your destination, staying at the hospital for a day or two would incur high costs, which are totally unacceptable.
Travel insurance covers you in such instances and there’s not a lot you have to give in exchange. It’s usually a few hundred bucks yearly.
⦁ How to look after your stomach?
Diarrhea and stomach upsets are the most occurring health problem in new surroundings. Your digestive system is not equipped to handle new spices, temperatures, and dietary components. You should pack with generic medication for cases like headaches, stomachaches, nausea, and diarrhea.
Always eat from a clean looking place, wash hands after every activity you do, and avoid drinking tap water or use of ice cubes.
⦁ How to look after your skin?
What’s the biggest organ of your body? It would be surprising for some to know it is the skin. Doesn’t that make it worthy of being taken excessive care of?
Sure – especially when you are flying or traversing through multiple climates. The first thing is the keep hydrated and drink at least 6-8 glasses of water every day. Then, you need to apply compatible moisturizers and creams which you can portably carry in a travel bottle.
Always apply sunscreen while roaming around on beaches or tropical countries like Brazil, Colombia, and Peru. Some travelers love to tan but they should expose their skins to the sun only after 2 PM because, before that, it would scorch their body and form unwanted freckles.
Now that we have thrown light on almost all of the dimensions of the trip, how about getting knowledged about some of the best travel hacks that are ingeniously practical. These include everything from saving money to packing efficiently and handling tricky situations.
Traveling hacks you should certainly know
1. Email your traveling requirements to yourself. If you are encountered with an unfortunate incident of theft, this will probably protect you from being deported.
2. Have an inflatable travel pillow on the top of your suitcase. You don’t want to open up your packed suitcase at the airport to take out your sleeping partner. All the ladies who are very particular about their looks must have a make-up pen in their pocket or purse.
3. Take advantage of the offline feature of Google Maps by landing on the desired map, clicking on “ok map” and pressing download.
4. No liquids are allowed through the security check, so there is absolutely no point in purchasing expensive water at the airport.
5. If you can’t get a voice translator, use Google Translate in offline mode by downloading the app, sneaking in the settings and selecting “offline translation” which prompts you to download different languages.
6. Carry your favorite perfumes and body sprays in atomizer bottles. These are tiny, portable containers that can hold a suitable amount of your favorite scent while you are traveling.
7. Always keep a pen in your pocket because you never know when you would need one.
8. Browse hotel and flight bookings in private mode because websites keep track of you and increase their rates if you have visited before.
9. Roll your clothes instead of folding to save space.
10. If you are keeping your shaving razors openly in the bag, cover their heads with binder clips to avoid scratching or slicing of other contents.
11. Book the window and aisle seats when booking a total of two seats. In that case, if there is no one between you, you can have the whole row to yourself, and if there is, you can request the person to switch seats so you can sit with your partner.
12. Put your rechargeable batteries in a fridge as it helps them maintain their charge.
13. On the last day of your trip, gather all the loose change and give it to a beggar on the street.
Congrats! You have reached the last heading of the article. We have worked hard to make sure you don’t get bored on the way and are hopeful for good results.
Traveling benefits
You are back from your trip but how has it benefited you? Below are the main advantages of traveling which you can mark with a tick if it matches with what you have achieved.
Health benefits:
⦁ Visiting tourist attractions is one of, if not the most effective ways of alleviating stress and tensions of your work or social life. That’s probably the most anticipated reason for traveling. Getting fresh air and examining rich foreign cultures sucks away the anxiety and depression boiling inside your body.
⦁ It imparts a highly positive effect on your mental growth because you are finding some time off your obsolete routine. New ideas and concepts creep in your brain which makes it fresh.
⦁ Allowing the body to respond to multiple atmospheres furnishes strength to the immune system because the human body has antibodies and defense mechanisms that will continue to evolve if encountered with foreign environments every now and then. Otherwise, they will become accustomed to behaving in one particular method.
Social benefits:
⦁ You may be a great conversationalist, but it wouldn’t hurt to make your discussions even more gripping and impactful. Right? Traveling to different parts of the world augments your knowledge about cultures, identities, history, food, festivals and a lot more.
You will have the guts and information to talk on multiple topics and that too, in a pleasing manner. We have travelers that can tell stories for hours without sounding monotonous or exaggerated.
⦁ Every area has a unique ethic and moral value that must be followed. Chinese, for example, are exceptionally hardworking while the Germans are highly punctual and efficient.
The integration of these personality traits in you would make you grow as a person and increase both your worth and respect in society.
Psychological benefits:
⦁ You might have heard travel vloggers presenting their thoughtful point-of-views on various topics like politics, social stigmas, and ways of survival. It’s the knowledge and broad-mindedness shaped after years of traveling that’s talking. They become more considerate, tolerant and start respecting the ideas of every single person.
⦁ Touring also enhances the creativity quotient of the human brain. Adhering to new traditions, customs, lifestyles, and art enables the person to view a concept from multiple dimensions ad perspectives and he can ultimately merge all of them to present something uniquely creative.
⦁ Tourism makes you more determined and independent. You gather the belief that handling tough and unexpected situations is not very arduous. You learn to solve your problems with minimal help and find new ways of reaching a solution.
Whew! That was a lot, we know. But it was necessary, wasn’t it? We hope you can plan a full-fledge trip with this travel guide now without much hiccups or unexpected events, although those are bound to come.
Saint Augustine said – “The world is a book and those who do not travel, read only one page.”
Happy vacationing!