When you want to go for a long trip, then travel planning is essential for you. Such travel plans or tips make your trip a smoother one. Never fail to make prior plans for your travel. Whether you are travelling locally or internationally, travel tips will help you the most. Let us discuss the most useful travel tips for your smoother trip.
Tips For Making Your Travel Easy And Fun
1. Patience is a must
Patience is a must for every traveller, as it will help to plan your trip in a good way. Most experienced travellers consider patience as their top travel tip. Sometimes, you may miss the bus or forget to take money from the ATM. In all such situations, never lose your patience, as you have another option. Remain in your control and wait for another bus. Check the ATM near your place to draw enough money. The only thing is that you need to take a deep breath and think of other possibilities. It may help to sort out your problem easily.
2. Wake up earlier to avoid tourist crowds
Once you reach the tourist spot, take some rest to plan for the next day. Make sure that you wake up earlier to reach the tourist spot. It will help you to avoid large crowds. Also, you can take enough photos without any problem.
The thing is that you need to interact with locals to understand tourist spots. Get some enough details like the opening time of tourist attractions. Now, you can plan to reach the spot earlier. Explore the place in calm and peace with fewer crowds.
3. Slow down to enjoy your trip
Never plan your trip like visiting 6 countries in 6 weeks of continuous travel. You will get good stuff only when you have enough time to explore. This will help to learn local activities and other things. You will also meet people to explore the spots. Most of the time, you will not get the best travel experience in the first few days. After spending more time in places, you will get maximum joy and pleasure.
4. Take lots of epic travel photos
You need to pay more attention to this travel advice. You may explore new places and meet new people once in your lifetime. So, plan to take many photos. Such photos help you to get back memorable moments of your life.
Taking photos don’t cost you much, as they need only memory space. Also, plenty of photos will not make your luggage heavy. So, take photos of yourself in some best places, and also with locals. Soon after you take photos, come out of them and enjoy the view.
5. Never get discouraged
Sometimes, your travel plan has some problems. In such a situation, never lose your hope. It is common to face trouble traveling somewhere. Never give up in all such situations. It means that you didn’t meet the right person to solve your problem. Some discouraging people may demotivate your travel plan. Avoid such people, look for some other way. Don’t listen to discouraging people, and try any other way to solve your problem.
6. Break out of your comfort zone
It is better to do a challenge for yourself to get some anxiety. This means you need to try things in a normal way that gives you anxiety. For instance, you don’t know to hike then go on for more hikes. You have trouble mingling with new people then talk much with people. You don’t like new food then, try more weird food.
All the above things will help you to come out of the uncomfortable zone. When you try different things in a new place, you will get new experiences out of all. It is the right time to reinvent you in a new place.
7. Keep an open mind
When you visit new places, you will see new people following new lifestyles and customs. Never go deeper into their customs and lifestyles. This will avoid making wrong assumptions about people.
Try to welcome different opinions, customs, religions, possibilities, and interests of people. It is better to ask questions to people to explore their customs. It is not like you have to agree with their customs. But you can learn about their different lifestyles of people you meet during your travel journey.
8. Get lost on purpose
If you want to see the locals and their lifestyles, then you need to explore them. The only way is that you can visit them through the walk. Understand the exact way that you are going to meet them. Get the taxi’s help if you can’t walk too long. Also, avoid some places where people are too dangerous. You can get the help of locals about such places. After analyzing all such facts, you can visit them to understand their customs and traditions.
Travel Planning Tips
9. Be flexible to change your plan
Since you are new to the tourist place, you can’t judge the number of days needed to explore new things. You can’t plan like just two days or one week is enough to explore the new places. It may take even a month to explore some places. The best advice is to plan your starting point and ending point along with some must-do activities. This will help you to change your plans as per the situation of the new place. Sometimes, you will find some new things to learn in the new place, for which your plan should be flexible.
10. Learn some foreign words
It is not necessary to learn a foreign language to visit international places. But you can learn a few foreign words or phrases that are helpful in your travel. Some of the phrases that you can learn in a foreign language are hello, hi, nice to meet you, please, thank you, sorry, etc.
Communication is important in your travel. You should not feel frustrated to communicate with locals. Even if you speak English louder, locals can’t understand them. Google translator will help you to get some phrases translation easily. Thus, learning a few phrases in a new language will help handle difficult situations.
11. Take extra credit and ATM card
When you visit a foreign country, there are a lot more chances to miss your ATM card. You don’t know about the locals, as some thieves may steal your ATM card. Sometimes, your ATM card may not work internationally. Some banks may block your card when they see suspicious transactions abroad. It is better to notify them about your international travel.
To handle all such situations, you need to have a 2nd card or backup card separately. Never keep this 2nd card along with your 1st card in the wallet. So, even if someone steals your wallet, you can manage it with another card.
12. Note down the address of your hotel
Sometimes, your phone’s battery may get dead when you use it continuously. In such a situation, how will you tell the address to a taxi driver? To handle this situation, you need to write down the address in a phone book for an emergency. This may sound ridiculous but happens for many travellers. You may forget to charge your phone or forget to take a battery backup with you. It is better to note down the hotel address to handle difficult situations.
13. Read a book to learn new things about the country
Before you reach a new place, you need to read some new things about the place. Try some history book or local author’s novel to get some view of the place. You will have enough time while travelling. Utilize such a time to read the history and culture of the place that you visit. This may help you to stay smart in a new place, and to communicate with locals. Some locals are hard to communicate, as they don’t like people from other countries. Such stuff, you will get them from reading books.
Sometimes, you know some details of the place that you are visiting. In such a case, learn new stuff about the place to increase your knowledge.
14. Splurge a bit while travelling
Planning your travel budget is essential. When you maintain a budget, you can explore many places. So, never waste your money on shopping for unnecessary things. The thing is that you can spend $50 per day to travel to many places without any issues. Book the hotels, when you get good discounts. You can book hotels earlier but not at a high cost. Find some affordable restaurants to maintain your budget. Try local foods available at a reasonable cost. When you look for a specific cuisine, it may cost you more. So, try to manage your budget with the above things.
Useful Travel Packing Tips
15. Pack all essentials like earplugs, scarf, etc.
Another important travel tip is packing all essentials in your luggage. Take earplugs with you to avoid unnecessary sounds like loud horns, people talks, babies’ cry sounds, etc. One of the best friends for travellers is earplugs. Earplugs provide you with more comfort zones. Also, take an eye mask with you to prevent jet lags. With an eye mask, you can sleep without any disturbance of light.
Take a scarf, sarong, etc. with you. Sarong is another helpful travel accessory that provides many uses. Some places are too cold, to tolerate it, you need a scarf and jerkin coat. Also, pack some first-aid kit with you in case of an emergency. Thus, never forget to pack all the above essentials in your luggage to handle difficult situations.
16. Bring your water bottle
Everyone knows that humans are using many plastics that destroy the planet. It is better to avoid buying water bottles wherever you go. Also, tap water is not good for maintaining good health. So, the thing is you need to save both money and the environment as well. The best advice is to take a filtered water bottle with you. In this way, you can re-use the same water bottle many times. This avoids spending on expensive plastic bottled water again and again.
17. Pack less stuff in your backpack
Avoid packing much stuff in your backpack. You need to carry only the essentials that you require repeatedly. Things like camera, water bottle, mobile phone, earphone, wallet, mobile charger, hand towel, tissues, etc. are essential to carry in your backpack. Avoid other bulky things to reduce the weight of your backpack. You can avoid taking things that you will get at the tourist places. You can buy those things only if they are reasonable. Thus, try to pack less stuff in your backpack.
18. Carry spare Passport Photos
It is difficult to get a visa from certain countries. It is a big problem, as they may ask for passport size photos suddenly. Clearing immigration is a big task, as they check you with many procedures.
Before travelling overseas, take around 10 to 15 passport size photographs of you. Take printed copies of photos in your home country, and then plan your travel. Such photos may save you from a lot of troubles and hassles in a new place.
19. Bring an extra camera battery and good travel shoes
You take many photos throughout the day. But the camera battery goes dead. Most travellers face the same issue and miss to capture some good photos. Thus, carry a spare battery for your camera to avoid such hassle. When you find the battery is dead, you can change it immediately with a new one. Carrying a spare camera battery will help you to take different photography situations like wildlife, natural sceneries, street scenes, historical buildings, etc.
The next one is to get good travel shoes. As you need to walk a lot to explore a new place, you need to get a good pair of shoes. Never try to save money in buying good shoes. Invest some money to buy a good pair of travel shoes having good features. Such features include lightweight, comfortable to wear, multipurpose, easy to wash, slip-resistant, comfort grip, etc.
20. Back up of your files and photos
Most people carry soft copies of important documents and photos. But in a new place, there is more chance to steal your laptop containing all documents. Some people even lose their hard drives containing thousands of travel photos.
In addition to soft copies, it is better to have hard copies of your important documents and photos. Important documents include passport, visa copy, birth certificate, driver’s license, health insurance card, etc. Also, note down important phone numbers in your pocket diary for an emergency. You need to have soft copies of your files and photos in a hard drive, and also hard copies of the same.
Money-Saving Travel Tips
21. Book the cheapest flights
Everyone knows that flight tickets are more expensive than train or bus tickets. When you plan an international trip, you need to book flight tickets. Never book the flight tickets that are too expensive. But plan to book cheap flights to save your money. The best way is to book in advance before 2 to 3 months. Check for discounts on flight tickets and keep an eye on the price of tickets. Once you find a reasonable price of a flight ticket, you can book it.
Sometimes you can use travel credit cards to get some rewards. When you use such credit cards for shopping, you will earn good points. At last, you can redeem those points to book free flights, hotels, etc. This is another way to save money.
22. Avoid expensive hotels and resorts
Avoid booking expensive hotels and resorts for staying. Look for some budget-friendly accommodation to save more than thousands of dollars. If you are a solo traveller, you can book a backpacker’s hostel, which is cheap and best. If you are travelling with your family, you can look for some good hotels at a reasonable price.
As already said, solo-travellers can stay in a backpacker’s hostel, which costs them $30 per day. But if they choose resorts, then they need to spend more than $100 per day. See the huge amount that you can save in booking cheap hotels. Use travel credit cards for paying bills and other expenses to earn good rewards. Later, you can redeem those rewards to book free hotels.
23. Try local food frequently
Some people search for hotels, where they will get their cuisines. You will get many cuisines in an expensive hotel, where everything costs much. So, try to eat local food to get a new taste. Ask locals to know about the best local food items, and where you will get them. In most foreign countries, you can find hygienic street food, which you can try. You will not get sick until you stay hydrated.
Some hostels or rented apartments have a kitchen which you can use to cook your meals. Just visit the nearby supermarket, and buy some cooking essentials. Prepare your meal, and enjoy the food. This will also save a lot of money.
If you want to try the food at restaurants, avoid restaurants that are near to tourist attractions. Restaurants near tourist attractions are always expensive. Walk a few miles away from the tourist attractions, and try the food there.
Helpful Travel Safety Tips
24. Don’t be afraid of other countries
Some people feel afraid of travelling to other countries. Because for them, they find many new things in other places such as locals, culture, lifestyle, language, food, etc. You can stay free and bold, as most foreign people are friendly to newbies.
Sometimes, you may get sick or hurt suddenly. In such a situation, having travel insurance may help you to handle huge hospital bills. It is better to take a travel insurance policy for trips ranging from weeks to a month.
To manage any emergency, you need to have extra cash amounts. When you don’t have a wallet or can’t withdraw money from an ATM, the extra cash will help you. Never keep extra cash in your wallet, but keep them in other places.
25. Treat your body well and get Vaccinations
During travel, taking care of your body is essential. You need to have control over oily food or other heavy food items like cupcakes. You need to eat healthy food like veggies and fruit salads. Also, you need to drink a lot of water to stay hydrated. To handle hot weather, use sunscreen lotions on the face and body. Thus, you need to eat healthy food, drink more water, get enough sleep, do regular exercise, and use sunscreen, etc.
It is usual to fall sick in a foreign country. To solve this hassle, you need to carry some travel vaccinations for the areas that you visit. Get the vaccination shots before you travel to a new place. Taking care of your health is one of the best travel safety tips.
Solo Travel Tips
26. Travel by yourself
Travelling with friends gives you a lot of fun. Solo travel provides you with a new experience for you. Travelling solo will help you to learn new things, meet new people, and handle unfamiliar things. You feel free to indulge in various activities and experiences in a new place. As you are a solo traveller, there are no limitations and objections that you get from others coming with you.
27. Stay in touch with loved ones and make new friends
Once you reach the destination, inform your family members and friends. Also, try to have a touch with them throughout your trip. When you maintain a good touch with your loved ones, you can feel free to share things and never feel lonely in a new place.
If you can make friends in a new place, this is also an advantage. If you know to interact in a local language, you can start conversations with locals. One of the best travel tips is to have eye contact while speaking with strangers. This will help you to understand their character. You can talk with them about asking routes, the best restaurants, etc.
Travel Tips For Flying
28. Get a comfortable travel pillow
You will face a hard time while sleeping on planes. To solve this hassle, you can get a comfortable travel pillow. One of the best international travel tips is carrying a travel pillow. Use the pillow to rest comfortably on your seat. Also, pack a pair of earplugs and an eye mask for better sleep. To avoid surrounding noises, use earplugs to get a good sleep. Light is another issue for some people to sleep on planes. Wearing an eye mask will give you relief from light, and thus, you can sleep nicely.
29. Follow Business Travelers
Sometimes, you need to stand longer in a security line at the airport. To avoid this, follow the business travellers. Business travellers often travel for their business needs. They know to get faster immigration, so follow them. Families took a long time to unpack their things, so stay away from them. Carry necessary documents like passport, visa, and other stuff with you. Don’t search for those files after reaching the checking point of immigration.
30. Stay Hydrated
Staying hydrated is one such best travel advice, which everyone has to follow. Travelling in a plan causes dehydration issues easily. Your body becomes dry with the cold air conditioner inside the plane. If you don’t drink enough water, you will face health issues for sure. It leads to jet lag problems. Before you get into the flight, drink a litre of water. You can also drink water containing re-hydration salts.
These were the top useful travel tips and advice to make your trip a smoother one. All the above tips will help both the solo travellers and group travellers. Since you are visiting a new place or a new country you may need certain helpful travel tips. Hope this article will help you to get some useful travel tips and advice.