Doing these 7 things before leaving on a trip will save you time and money…
- Make sure that your passport will be valid for the required period of time after your trip. Many countries require a validity of 6 months. Also, verify that your passport has enough empty pages for visas as well as entry or exit stamps. If not, you could be denied entry into a country!
- Be sure to bring all your important travel documents (passports, visas, tickets, vaccination booklet) along with your accommodations and car rental confirmations, that are required for your trip. Bring photocopies of all these documents. Don’t count on having access to Internet everywhere—a paper copy in a handy place can save you some headaches. Keep these in your carryon.
- Take pictures with your mobile phone or tablet of plane tickets, hotel reservations, car rental confirmation, train tickets, travel itinerary, tourist maps and all other pertinent information. This will ensure that you have all your important travel information on hand. However, bring all original documents.
- Make sure that your vaccinations are up to date, especially if you’re traveling to remote locations. Look on government sites for requirements or suggestions. These may change over time, so look a month or two before you leave and again as the date approaches.
- Secure your suitcase with a TSA approved lock and identify your bag with your name, address, phone number. Put a copy of your personal information and itinerary inside your suitcase in case your luggage gets lost!
- If you’re flying, weigh your luggage before leaving home to avoid having to pay extra fees or having to remove stuff from your suitcase at the check-in counter! Bring a little portable scale for the way back.
- As your travel date approaches, check you car rental rates and see if prices have come down. Most car companies allow you to cancel up to the last minute, so making a new reservation and cancelling the old one is a quick and painless process. While prices may go up when availability is limited on busy travel dates, off season prices a week or two before departure can save you 50-100$ or more on a weekly rental. Many companies also offer additional discounts when you pre-pay. While we don’t like to do that far in advance, as the date approaches we often switch our reservation for a pre-paid one to save even more. Alternatively, you may choose to upgrade your vehicle instead of saving money or perhaps both! Just make sure to keep the old reservation until the new one is confirmed!
For more on this last tip, check out: Sweetening up Your Ride!