Avoiding Travel Disasters.
I’ve always found travel—especially international travel—to be stimulating, interesting, and almost addicting. But it’s too easy to relax, ignoring or forgetting what appear to be small details both in the planning and in the doing. Here’s a kind of check list I’ve compiled over the years. The first three are particularly important and can avoid travel disruptions … even disasters.
1— ALWAYS have a back-up credit card when you travel. What if someone back home sees an unfamiliar charge on the current statement and asks your credit card company to check. If that perfectly legitimate phone call triggers a fraud alert, the only credit card in your wallet card could suddenly stop working just as you’re about to check out of your hotel in Paris..
2—ALWAYS check the expiration date on your passport well in advance of your departure. Several foreign countries will not honor a passport if it’s going to expire less than six months in the future. Just imagine someone being prevented from boarding an international flight that was to be the start of a once-in-a-lifetime European vacation … a prepaid vacation. Ouch!
3—NEVER pack either your passport or your prescription medications in checked luggage. If your bag is lost or stolen, you’re screwed.
Here are three more, the consequences of which probably won’t be all that serious, but will certainly be inconvenient.
4—Make sure baggage tags are securely fastened to every piece of luggage and that the information on the tags is up-to-date and complete.
5—Before you leave on a foreign trip, upgrade your smart phone service with an international text, data and voice plan. If you don’t, once you leave the U.S., your smart phone will probably be useless.
6—Bring the right electrical adapters so you can charge your phone, use your computer and other electronics no matter what country you’re in.
Nice to have a card that doesn’t charge those pesky “foreign transaction fees” as well. I use a Bank of America Travel Rewards card.
Yes, most of the better cards are now offering that. It makes a big difference.
Great tips. Also remember to tell your credit card company when and where you are going and make sure your credit and debit card will work overseas. I have found that ATMs give the best exchange rates and debit cards avoid higher charges than a credit card that charges interest immediately for cash withdrawals. Also it is good to get some foreign currency before you go in case the ATM machines are down at your arrival point—that happened to a friend of mine. Most banks can do this for a fee. I also put a copy of my passport and my itinerary I’m my bags in case we get separated or I need to get a replacement passport while out of the US. Happy travels.
Right you are! I should have included notifying the credit card company. (I always do.)
It’s especially useful if your bank blocks your card outside of your region of origin (like many European banks do outside of the European economical area, that’s the EU, Norway, Iceland, Switzerland and the Balkans, but for instance not Russia or the US). As you said, it’s quite unhelpful if your bank card is not working when you need to pay for your rental car or pay the deposit on that apartment you booked… Generally, you can phone your bank (during business hours!) to get it sorted out, but it’s best to do it before.
Having some cash on you is always helpful, but it depends on the country how helpful. If you can’t get the local currency at a decent rate at home, you could try with some of the world’s reserve notes, like USD or EUR. The biggest problem will be in an area where they pay in either, as they will probably refuse the other. I wouldn’t try in EUR in the US, little chance it would work in the EU (you might try in Switzerland, it will cost you, but they aren’t too difficult with money.)
Most important item you should pack is your smile. You’re visiting another country, so enjoy yourself! Even if something might go wrong every now and then, it rarely ends in disaster.