10 Things We Do Before We Travel
#1 - Watch a Movie with the Travel Destination as a Theme
To really put us in the mood for our next travel destination is to watch a movie that shows the country/city we’re visiting. It adds to our excitement, but it also provides a little more meaning to where we’re visiting. For example, to prepare for our trip to Krakow, Poland, we watched Schindler’s List. We had already made arrangements to visit the Schindler Factory and Auschwitz, so it enhanced our understanding of what we were seeing. Likewise, we also watched movies like My Life in Ruins (Athens trip), Dracula (Transylvania trip), Mission: Impossible 1 (Prague trip), and so on. It can make the anticipation more fun and exciting leading up to the trip!
#2 - Pack 2 Days in Advance
I used to pack a whole week in advance, but that was a bit overkill! However, we do pack a couple days before the big travel day. The day before, we want to feel rested and relaxed. We don’t want to run around packing everything the night before, as it can be a little stressful. Taking our time a couple of days in advance can make a huge difference in our stress levels before a trip. Just as a side note - we also pack one extra outfit just in case we need it (we usually do).
#3 - Double Check Reservations on Travel Email Address
We get several emails every day on work, research, and… junk mail. To separate our travel reservations, we created a travel-only email to store all our travel information. This keeps us organised with our travel plans. When we need to pull up information on reservations, it’s easily accessible. A few days before the trip, we look at our email and double check we have everything in order. If there’s something we forgot to reserve ahead of time, we book it right away.
#4 - Get $500 Worth in Currency Cash
When we travel around Europe, we like to carry cash on us for markets, restaurants, and transportation. Some countries prefer card over cash (post-Covid era), but most European countries still prefer cash - you’ll want to do your own research on the country’s preferences. We like to have about $500 to cover most attractions, food, and souvenirs. It also helps us to keep within budget, as we can clearly see how much money we’re spending. We don’t usually spend $500, but it never hurts to have extra money just in case. Exchanging currency ahead of time usually has a better rate of return than exchanging at your destination. Think about it: you are likely going to be tired when you arrive - do you really want to go through the hassle of trying to find the best exchange rate before you go out and explore?
#5 - Practice Saying “Hello” and “Goodbye” in the Country’s Language
Nobody is able to speak all the European languages when they visit. Every local will understand that. However, it is always common courtesy to learn the basics, like “hello,” “goodbye,” and “thank you.” We’ve experimented speaking English and then again in their language. The response is always positive when we try to speak their language. For example, in a restaurant, I said “efcharistó” in Greece, which means “thank you.” The waiter was so ecstatic that we were trying, so he gave us a free dessert and an aperitif. In another restaurant nearby, we didn’t try and only spoke English. The waiter was less willing to talk with us or wait on our table.
The only language we feel somewhat confident in is German. On our most recent trip, there were a lot of Americans visiting for a conference. I overheard a German saying to another that he is upset that Americans insist they speak English without the Americans trying to speak German in Germany - it felt arrogant and insulting to him. They know you’re not going to be fluent, but showing you are trying can make a big difference.
#6 - Have Copies of Passport in Carryon
One of my greatest fears when traveling is losing my passport. I am a bit OCD on checking my passport while we travel. However, it makes me feel a little at ease knowing we have copies of our passport just in case. We don’t put our copies with our passport, but rather in our carryon bag. If something were to happen, we know we have at least something to show to border control or the U.S. Embassy. We also carry our driver’s licenses, visas, and ID’s when we travel as well. As a side note, we do not bring our passports when we are walking around the city - we leave them in a safe place in the hotel until we leave. The only exception is if we are visiting an attraction that requires to see our passports before entering.
#7 - Plan a General Itinerary
This one may seem obvious, but you would be surprised how many people don’t plan anything before visiting a country/city. When deciding which city/town to visit, we create a list max of 15 things and places we want to see. We go on google maps and lay out how far all the attractions are within walking distance. We try to tackle all of the places closer together rather than going back and forth between areas - it makes the day smoother and easier. However, it is always different when you actually visit a place for the first time. That’s why we make the plan general in case it takes longer to see items on our list. We also like to dedicate a least one afternoon open in case we find some cool-looking things to do while we’re there that wasn’t on our must-do list.
#8 - Check in to Flight 24 Hours in Advance
We’ve made mistakes before regarding our flights. This is one we’ll never forget again! Many airlines close their flight about 2 hours before boarding. This means you’ll be unable to check in to your flight unless you want to pay a hefty fee. We accidently did this with Ryanair, and we had to spend more than £100 for the fee. Needless to say, we were not off to a great start with our trip. Now, we set an alarm 24 hours in advance to check in to our flight to avoid this issue again. It’s always a good idea to get the airline’s app so you can easily check in and see updated statuses on your flight.
#9 - Arrange Plans with Pet Sitter a Week in Advance… and Have a Backup Plan
We wish we could take our cat with us on our travels, but I don’t think she or the country we’re visiting would like that very much! We arrange a pet sitter about a week in advance and make sure s/he has the keys to the house with instructions on our expectations. If possible, we try to introduce the sitter to our cat since Spookums is afraid of new people. Sometimes, we run into issues with pet sitters having emergencies, so we like to include a backup person in case something were to happen. It makes our trip less stressful in case of emergencies.
#10 - Clean House
There’s nothing quite like coming back to a nice, clean home when you get back from your travels. If you’re anything like us, we like to get home, take a shower, order takeout, and talk about our trip before jumping into bed. If there’s rubbish everywhere, it smells, and we have to clean clutter before sitting down, we’re probably going to be irritable. Taking care of all that in advance makes a huge difference when we get back.
