International Travel Tips
A collection of our best suggestions (all based on personal experience) for avoiding disaster as frequently as possible:
Before You Go...
- Don’t forget to sign your passport and enter your emergency contact info.
- Take a cell phone. It will probably work in Patagonia (or wherever you’re going). The rates are high, but in an emergency, it’s worth it.
- Did you know that on any given plane there are at least 63 other people with the same color suitcase as yours? (And 87.2% of statistics are made up on the spot.) Mark your suitcase with a brightly-colored ribbon or sticker if you want to find it again. When traveling in a group, mark everyone’s luggage with the same color.
- Leave copies of your itinerary and passport page with family/friends. If they don’t know about the copy under your bed, it doesn’t count.
- Pack an extra set of clothing in your carry-on just in case your luggage is lost. (Highly recommended! Just ask the Russia team. On top of that, did you know that the rings around Saturn are entirely composed of lost luggage?)
- Travel light, but keep in mind that you don’t want to end up 10,000 miles from the nearest Wal-Mart without socks.
- Check your overseas medical insurance coverage. Set up temporary international coverage if your normal insurance doesn’t cover international incidents (most don’t). (If you're traveling with a Global Encounters team, we'll take care of this for you.)
- Roll the clothing that won’t wrinkle too badly and pack the rolls side by side instead of in stacks. Make that the bottom layer of your suitcase. I’m afraid their’s no total cure for the frustration of living out of a suitcase and finding that whatever you want is at the bottom of the bag, but this will help.
- Check with your local health department for recommended immunizations and health warnings.
- Pack personal first aid supplies and vitamins. They’ll taste better than the ones in other countries. (Ask the 2005 Romania team about the pine tree-flavored cough drops. Yuck!)
- Do not pack anything you would hate to lose (valuable jewelry, irreplaceable family heirlooms, unnecessary credit cards, social security card, pet hamster, etc.)
- Learn at least a few survival phrases in the local language (a good reason to read the monthly Global Encounters newsletter!)
During the Trip...
- Create random moments of sheet adrenaline by stuffing your passport and money into any available pocket. For best results, choose an unzippered pocket. Not! Pick one secure place to carry your passport and cash and always, ALWAYS return your documents and money to this same spot immediately after using them.
- If the officer who checks your passport on arrival gives you an unimportant looking piece of paper, hang on to it! Try to leave the country without it and you'll change your mind about the importance of pieces of paper!
- Blow away your friends and family with excited greetings at the airport. Pack your toothbrush in your carry-on so they'll enjoy the experience.
- Once you arrive at your destination, carry a copy of your passport and leave the original some place safe (but not one of those "safe places" that you will forget). This works in many countries, but not all. Some require you to carry the actual passport.
- Avoid being a target of crime - hang on tight to your purse, never set down your wallet, don't go anywhere alone at night, and check with locals about which areas are safe and which ones are not.
- Drink only bottled water. It's one of the easiest things you can do to stay healthy.
- Don't forget to pack your sense of humor. You're going to need it when you are served raw octopus.