Being in another place can be an eye-opening and invigorating experience. You might notice that some of your favourite travel memories include early-morning runs in a park near your lodging, touring humble museums, and having late-night drinks at a local bar. Of course, you also remember the hitches you encountered – being lost, high credit card fees, getting sick. Not good.
If you’re flying soon and still looking for a few quick tips that you’ll actually use, then you’re in the right place. Aside from taking advantage of great overseas travel insurance to protect yourself from the most common travel snags, these tips will give you more peace of mind. Read on!
Get hotel business cards. The first thing you should do when arriving at a hotel overseas is to take a business card from the hotel’s front desk. This way, if you ever get lost while travelling, you have the name and address of the hotel neatly displayed in the local language. Large populations around the world can speak and read English, and having something in a local language that you can show locals and cab drivers will give you an extra assurance.
Withdraw money from airport ATM. The way to get cash when abroad is usually through an ATM, but many banks charge high fees for using an ATM of different networks. You can take out a big amount of cash at the airport ATM to take advantage of paying the fee only once, but it’s never advisable to carry big sums of cash, so take only what you need.
Limit credit card use. The best exchange rates can be leveraged using your credit card. Still, many credit cards charge a foreign transaction fee, even as high as 3 percent. It’s a senseless fee that you (or any traveller) should ever pay. As said above, withdraw as much money from the airport as possible and keep credit card use to a minimum.
Alert your credit card company before flying. Notify your credit card company’s fraud department before you leave for another country. Tell them which countries you will be visiting and the inclusive dates. This way, the bank won’t think your card is stolen and disable it.
Take medicines with you. Yes, even the most remote European neighbourhood will have a drugstore. But do you want to be going around a city late at night, trying to buy a medicine and translate “diarrhoea”? If you’re heading to developing countries, bringing the right drugs is even more crucial. Many travellers fill a prescription in advance and get the antibiotic ciprofloxacin and bring it with them just in case.
Travel alerts. Keep in mind to check the State Department’s travel alerts and warnings. Go online to search and print out the address and contact information of the local embassy in a particular country you’re visiting.
Data roaming. Set up your phone and turn off international data roaming. Some business travellers make use of an international calling and data plan – infrequent travellers don’t. You can incur a big cost from transmitting data overseas.
End Note
These tips should keep you out of some tight spot when travelling abroad. However, there’s no substitute for good old insurance. Thankfully, there are reliable travel insurances available these days. Check out your local provider and get one before heading out. Have fun and enjoy a hitch-free international travel!
