Traveling outside your country can be an exciting and fun experience, but it is important to be prepared. You need to be prepared for travel emergencies while abroad.
When making your travel plans, check with the countries that you are traveling to and through to see what the entry requirements are and how to meet those requirements. You will need a valid passport and may need visas and additional immunizations. Check for travel alerts at your destination. If there any such alerts, you may wish to reconsider your plans to travel to that location.
Take a look at your passport. Make sure it is in good condition and is valid. The worst time to find out that you have an expired passport is when you are trying to use it to enter a foreign country or trying to get back home from a foreign country.
Book your plane tickets, and check the weather for the locations where you will be traveling. Be prepared for any weather-related flight delays at your origin, destination, and layover locations. Keep cash handy in case you need to stay at a hotel or buy meals unexpectedly. Make sure you have the right currency before you get on the plane. If, for example, you have a layover in Amsterdam and the plane arrives there after currency exchanges are closed, you will have a tough time getting a hotel room in the event of a weather delay if you don’t already have the right currency to pay for the room.
Call the locations where you plan to stay and make a reservation. Do not expect the motel where you want to stay to have vacancies. There could be a local event that you are not aware of that has the motels booked. Save yourself the trouble of having to find a place to stay at the last minute by making reservations and double-checking the reservations before you leave for the airport. It is a good idea to get written confirmation of the reservation, especially if there are language barriers. Get someone to translate for you, if necessary.
While packing, write down everything that you are packing and where you packed it. This will help you find your shaving cream when you need to shave on your first morning overseas. This also helps you make sure that you repack everything you brought when it is time to go home. Also, if your luggage is lost or stolen, you will know exactly what was packed in that luggage. This helps when you have to make a claim for lost items with the airline or your insurance company. Without an inventory, you can easily forget some of the items that were lost or stolen and cannot be compensated properly.
Traveling overseas can be a lot of fun if you are prepared. If you are not prepared, it can be a nightmare. Follow the tips above to make sure you have a fun vacation!
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