Photo: April 15, 2022
(I receive no compensation from anyone for these opinions)
Getting Prepared for Travel
·
Bank Accounts
o
Get a Fidelity or Schwab checking account with
an ATM card
o
Put a few thousand dollars in there strictly for
travel
o
This is NOT your normal day-to-day checking
account that pays your bills!!
·
Credit Cards
o
Carry more than one, from different banks.
o
Premium Travel Cards – these can be expensive!
But, they have some useful perks:
§
No currency exchange fee
§
Rental Car Insurance
§
Airport Lounge access
§
Some form of cancellation insurance
§
Can transfer points to hotel chains and airline
partners
·
Memberships
o
Pick a few of these and create accounts to
accumulate benefits
o
Airline loyalty programs
o
Car Rental loyalty programs
o
Hotel Chain loyalty programs
·
Copies/Photos of Key Documents
o
Passport data page
o
Drivers License
o
Photo of Credit Cards
§
NOTE: I do NOT do this - I GREATLY prefer
keeping credit card data in our encrypted Password Manager program!!!
·
Apps for your phone
o Get
an e-SIM data plan for your phone
§ We
use FlexiRoam
o Password
Manager Program
§ We
use Bitwarden (free)
o WhatsApp
(Free)
§ The
whole world uses WhatsApp (except North America).
o Google
Maps (Free)
o Rome
to Rio (Free)
§ Shows
more local transportation options
o XE
Currency Conversion (Free)
§ Has
the best user interface
o Google
Translate (Free)
§ Lets
you type, talk or take photos for translation
o Splitwise
(Free)
§ Great
for sharing costs with family or friends
o Airline
Apps
o Hotel
Apps
o Rental
Car Agency Apps
o All
Trails
§ Find
hiking and biking trails near your location (free)
§ Paid
version let’s you save the trails offline (for when you have no cellular
signal)
o VPN
§ We
use Nord VPN
o Ride
Hailing Apps (aka Taxi Apps)
§ Uber
works in so many places
·
FreeNow
·
Didi
§ Convenience
of fixed price and paying by credit card
·
Luggage
o
We use 4-wheel spinner type for checked bag and
carry on bag
o
We prefer Softside style (easier to stuff full)
§
I have a Hard Shell carry on I like
o
Apple AirTag hidden inside with duct tape
§
Change the battery yearly
o
Have a small backpack for day trips (snacks,
jacket, water, ect)
·
Passport
o Must
have 6 months or more before expiring
·
Electricity
o
We like “cube -style” plug converters for all
the different plug configurations
§
For charging phones, tablets, camera batteries,
computers
o
Don’t bring devices that have motors or heating
elements to other countries
Planning
· Check whether you need to get a Tourist VISA to
enter the country you’re planning to visit
o
Usually can book online
o
Get familiar with the rules for staying in the
European Schengen Zone
· Use AI to help
o
Chat GPT and other AI sites can help with
initial planning
o
Things like:
§
Plan a circular driving route around Germany,
hit the major tourist attractions, maximum driving time per day is 4 hours,
minimum stay in a town is 2 nights, make the trip a maximum of 20 days, show me
an itinerary.
o
They aren’t perfect, they make mistakes so
doubled check. But it gets your plan started pretty quickly
· Calendar
o
Put EVERYTHING in your Google or Apple Calendar
o
Start and end date and time
o
Reservation or Confirmation number
o
How you booked it (What website, phone number,
app)
o
How much you agreed to pay and what currency
· Google My Maps (this different than Google Maps)
o
This is a little-known tool that allows you to
build and SAVE the routes you have planned
o
It’s not critical, but can be a nice way to
display your vacation’s planned route
Flights
o
Always start with Google Flights to find flights
and prices
o
Beauty of “Travel Points” with airlines or
affiliated Credit Card programs is you can cancel a flight booked with points
and get the points refunded !!
o
We always try to book flights directly thru the
Airline
o If
its an 8 hour cross an ocean flight: look into Premium Economy or Business
Class tickets for comfort and the possibility of sleep.
o
We always try for :
o the
fewest number of connecting flights
o sticking
with the major airlines (this does not mean just USA based carriers). These are
also great:
§ Turkish
Airlines
§ Emirates
§ British
Airways
§ Thai
Airlines
§ Lufthansa
§ Singapore
Airlines
Accommodation
o
Use use AirBnb (and VRBO) as well hotels
o
In general, for 1-2 nights we use hotels, longer
we use Airbnb
o
We’ve seen stories about Airbnb catastrophes –
we have not experienced any.
o
Most Airbnb’s give a discount if you stay a full
week or a full 28 days.
o
For Hotels
o
We usually check the Hotel’s website to see if
booking directly is a better deal
o
We book with Booking.com, Hotels.com
o
Usually, but not always, getting a room that
includes breakfast is a good deal.
Rental Cars
o
Check the majors
o
Budget
o
Avis
o
Enterprise/National
o
Sixt
o
EuropCar
o
In general, we do NOT book with local “Mom and
Pop” rental car agencies
o
Look at booking sites Travelocity, Priceline
o
I have had great success with Car Rental
Aggregator called QEEQ (there are others)
o
Think about whether you need an vehicle with Automatic
Transmission
o
If you have a fancy Travel Credit Card DECLINE
car company liability insurance
Transportation
o
Local buses and subways are usually VERY
economical
o Google
Maps and Rome to Rio will give info on what route number to take and track your
location on the route
o
Taxis
o In
many European locations paying with a credit card is OK, many other places will
expect CASH.
o In
some places taxis use meters
o Many,
many more places expect you to negotiate a price to go to your destination
o
Google Maps
o Learn
how to save “Offline Data” in Google Maps when on Wi-Fi.
§ Allows
you to keep navigating without using your phone data or when you can’t get a
cellular signal
Communication
o
Get a data plan for your phone, activate it just
before you leave.
o
We find you do NOT need a foreign phone number
with a voice line – DATA ONLY.
o
We use E-SIM data only plans. Paired with
WhatsApp you can make WhatsApp to WhatsApp phone calls or video calls.
o
Every hotel, car rental agency, tour operator,
Tour Guide in the world has a WhatsApp account (ask for it or check their
website)
o
E-SIM plans are offered by dozens of companies.
Some are:
o
Saily
o
Airalo
o
Holafly
o
Nomad
o
FlexiRoam (this is the one we use, buy when they
have a sale)
Paying for Things
·
Use your “no transaction fee” travel credit card
o Always
pay in the local currency!!
o If
they ask to convert to $USA it’s a ploy to make more money
o Make
sure you have your credit card set up to ALWAYS send you an email when there is
a charge
·
Getting local Cash in the Local Currency
o Use
your ATM card attached to your Schwab or Fidelity Checking account
o Schwab and Fidelity refund any local ATM machine fees
o ALWAYS
“Decline” any option on the ATM that shows you a fixed conversion rate
§ This
will be a BAD deal
·
Emergency Cash
o
Some people say carrying Emergency Cash is no
longer necessary
o
We always have $200 USD (Euros make sense too) in
“new, crisp” $20 bills with no marks or tears
§
Many foreign currency exchanges will REJECT any
marked or damaged bills
When you arrive
o
We find it’s most convenient to take a taxi or
Uber from the airport to your accommodation
o
You’re tired, its takes you directly to your
destination
o
We usually arrange for a “free” walking tour the
first or second day in a location
o
They aren’t free, you give a good tip for a well
presented and well-organized walking tour.
o
Look at GetYourGuide.com or GuruWalks.com
o
Going on a Hop-On/Hop-Off bus tour around town
can also help you get oriented to the town
Miscellaneous Musings
o
Travel while you can!!
o
None of us are getting younger
o
We all have an expiration date
o
Don’t be paranoid – the whole world is not out
to get you
o However, if people approach you in the street “with a great deal”, keep walking.
o Pickpockets are real - just be sensible
o We go to ATMs only in daylight hours
o
Take Photos of tickets or reservations so they
are readily available (even when you don’t have a cellular signal)
o
Try the local food
o
Walk!
o
Don’t try to see everything, you’ll run yourself
ragged
o
Plan for some free time
o
Don’t trust the opinions of Travel Influencers!
o
“Everything is FANTASTIC”, “every restaurant
serves gourmet food”
o
I will drive a rental car in most countries
o But
not in places where driving is an exercise in Russian Roulette.
o It’s
not that they are bad drivers, the unofficial rules of the road are just
so different
o I’m
thinking places like:
§ Bangkok
§ Hong
Kong
§ All
of Vietnam
§ Probably
all of India
§ Morocco
§ And
many more…
o
If all of this data is overwhelming – SIGN UP A
TOUR
o Try
for small group size (8-16 people)
o Is
there a Guide with you for the whole trip?
o Look
at how the tour moves you around
§ Is
it by a private coach or bus?
§ Is
it using public transportation (bus, Train)?
o Are
you seeing the types of things you enjoy?
§ Architecture,
or history, or beautiful scenery
o Activity
Level – is it a go-go tour or a more relaxed pace
Photo: April 15, 2026
1 comment:
Fantastic. Some great tips, contacts and experiences that I haven't thought about. You both are looking great. Go WhatsApp.
Thank you
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