So, your holiday is all booked up and you’re scheduled to fly in the next couple of days. You are ready, aren’t you? Ticked all the boxes, crossed off all items on your to-do list?
If you can’t quite answer that question with any conviction whatsoever, we’re going to hazard a guess that you may need a little help with your holiday preparation. Have a look at the following signs that you’re not quite ready to step into that airplane. Hopefully you still have time to remedy the situation!
Your Only I.D. Is Your Passport
Answer this question: what will you do if you lose your passport? Your nearest embassy isn’t going to find it easy to help you if you have nothing for them to go on. Always, and we mean always, have another type of identification other than your passport.
Sure, your driver’s licence may not let you handle the wheel once you reach your destination, but it will act as a backup I.D. In addition, we always recommend taking a copy of every I.D that you’re taking away with you. It’s always a decent point of reference for the authorities and will definitely help your embassy get a new passport over to you as quickly as is humanly possible.
You Have No Cash
Quick, open your wallet. How much money do you have in there? If you’ve answered a couple of dollars and some change, you’re in big trouble. There’s every chance that your holiday destination will not accept foreign credit or debit cards, rendering them useless.
That’s why you must take extra cash, just in case. Have an amount that sits within a comfortable range. Not too little that you can’t do anything, but not so much that you’ll feel uncomfortable carrying it around in your wallet.
You Haven’t Packed
One of the top travel mistakes you can make is not doing your packing properly. If you leave this step till the very last minute, we can pretty much guarantee that you’re going to be taking way too much. At least you’ll have enough spare clothes if your flight is delayed by a couple of weeks.
Avoid this problem by making yourself a list of essential items early on. Change and adapt this list after every single trip abroad. Over time, you’ll learn which items are indispensible and which never leave the bottom of your suitcase. Traveling light is going to revolutionize how you travel and really make things much easier for you.
No Research
An unforgivable mistake a surprising amount of travellers make is not doing their research. Many people think that planning takes away the spontaneous fun out of a holiday, but nothing could be more wrong. You don’t need to plan every last detail of your day, but you should at least be familiar with your options. Otherwise, you’ll end up eating at McDonalds every day or at some other joint you could easily find down the road in your local hometown.
You’ll also miss out on all of the cute places that are off the beaten track, not visited by most tourist hordes. Remember that finding the sights worth looking at, those that are unique and cater to your tastes require a little bit of research to find.
