A CHECKLIST OF THINGS YOU SHOULD NOT FORGET BEFORE A TRIP

Travel insurance

To have peace of mind, travel insurance should be purchased as soon as the flight tickets are booked. Most insurance would cover things like cancelled trips, medical emergencies, evacuations, lost bags, delayed trips and particular damaged possessions. This is surely one thing you really do not realise you need until the time actually comes. By then, you would wish you done otherwise. This inexpensive investment is well worth the headache, just like how you insure your car or home.

Itinerary

Having an itinerary of your holiday all planned out saves you the headache and stress from deciding what you are doing, where you will be staying and for how long you should stay in the area. Having a properly planned itinerary lets you decide on making the appropriate bookings and leaving reasonable gaps for travelling, relaxing and spare time so that you are not rushing from A to B to C one after the other. Make sure you do proper research of the destination, culture, places to see, eat and safety, familiarising yourself with the surroundings.

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Passport & Visa

Make sure that your passport is in check, that it has at least 6 months left before expiry. If you need to renew your passport you should allow a few months and get it done in advance.

Most countries are visa-free for up to 90 days, making it an ease for travelers, but some are not. Make sure you check online well before you buy the ticket, to see whether or not you are applicable.

Pet/House Sitter

Going away for a long period can be difficult for those with pets. If you have any type of pet, make sure they are in the right care. Depending on what animal, get someone to check up daily or weekly. Or even leave the pet in their care.

For the house, a couple times a week just to check that everything is in check is ideal.

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Medicals, Health Checks & Immunisations

Any medications that are required to be taken frequently such as those for diabetes should be necessarily packed. For those who require an insulin pump, they should also bring it along likely in a protective case such as these Tandem diabetes supplies in order to store them properly. Along with this, basic medications like aspirin and ibuprofen should also be brought along. It’s also a good idea to keep a copy of the prescriptions with you in case of an emergency.

Apart from this, Health checks and immunisations should definitely be considered, especially in case of international travel as there may be a higher chance of your health being affected. You would not want to spend most of your vacation time in the bathroom.

Also, a small compact first aid kit or bandages is recommended to be added to your luggage, it is better to be safe than sorry.

Getting Around – Car

Car hire is more expensive closer to the date, so try and book this beforehand. If you are using your own car, make sure you check the condition of the car a couple of weeks in advance, making sure that a car inspection has been done, and in working order, giving time to fix any issues if they arise. Make sure that the automotive batteries is in check, fluids are good and tyres have plenty of tread. The last thing you want is to be stuck in a rut, spending the rest of the holidays at a mechanic.

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International Driving Permit

If you plan on driving overseas make sure you carry an international driving permit, otherwise known as an international driver’s license on you at all times. You may need one when renting a vehicle. It is also a great form of photo identification that is valid in over 150 countries. Do this at least a couple of weeks in advance.

Foreign Cash

It is a good idea to have cash at the ready and should be stored in different places just to be extra cautious. Exchanging the currency in advance when the rate is strong can be beneficial and also since the airport may charge a higher rate.

Credit Cards

Certain travel credit cards favour foreign travellers, with low charges and fixed rates this is great when you do not want to carry an abundance of cash everywhere. Letting you withdraw when you need to. You would always rather pay in the local currency than of your home country. Also if you do plan on using your local banks credit card, make sure you have advised them that you are travelling so they do not flag the card and be ready to take action if you do lose it.

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Stop Delivery

Make sure your emails are followed up and that you have an auto-responder. This includes chasing up gym memberships and other monthly fees. Most of which could be paused for the travel time period, saving you further costs.

Copy Documents

Copy all of your travel documents in advance. Such documents are your itinerary, flight tickets, bookings, passport, visa and driver’s license. Either having it in your email or multiple hard copies will suffice.

Electronics

Like most, we are all heavily reliant on these sort of devices, make sure you have the necessary devices, chargers and adapters to suit. With extra memory on hand for those that take a lot of photographs. This definitely includes headphones!

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Turn Off Data Roaming

If travelling internationally, turn off data roaming unless you are ready to come home to an unforgivable phone bill. To tackle this – consider purchasing an international prepaid sim for calls and data usage.

Bathroom Necessities

We are sure you have at least forgotten this at least once. Yes – you can purchase this anywhere, but bringing your own personal kit would definitely save you the cost and hassle of running around late at night, desperately searching for a store.

Glasses & Contacts

This is one tough item to replace when you are travelling! Make sure if you do need this you have brought it along. It is possible to express order some contacts online, but just save the hassle and throw this into your bag and tick this off the list!