I struggle to pack light… but I have gotten better. However, some things are NOT easily replaced. I learned the hard way that contact lens solution can be one of those items. So, for anything longer than 3-4 days I need to pack more than a 3 oz bottle of the stuff. And that puts me past carry-on size.
In regards to TSA 3-1-1 rules, you can always pack two or three 3oz sizes of whatever toiletries you need most and plan to buy the other less ‘difficult to find’ toiletries at your destination.
Also in regards to toiletries, buying a specific toiletries bag like this one gives you a bit more room than the quart size ziplock does.
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Actually you can bring 7-9 100ml bottles of gels, creams, liquids. Bar shampoo or hard deodorant can be thrown in your bag. I don’t take anything out anymore for inspection and have never been asked. It’s really up to the TSA agent. I’d worry more about not having my checked bag when I arrived. Not much good if the big bottle you needed never arrives.
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Yes! I’m not an early riser at home, but I try to be when I’m vacation.
I agree. I always say, don’t travel to Europe during the summer if you can avoid it. If you don’t mind the cold, you can always travel then…much less crowded.
This! Especially in a country that is known for good cuisine.
I traveled to Hong Kong and Beijing with my Dad about 15 years ago. I had never been but he did business there and knew the cities. We met with several of his friends and they and my Dad were so pleased that I ate all of the food. Which was delicious! Apparently my Dad had previously traveled with a few American business colleagues who refused to eat anything but McDonalds and other American fast food. I was like “Are you kidding?”.
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Love local food but it certainly helps to have it vetted for you by seasoned travelers.
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I did laugh at my son though. He and his group went to Taiwan for a project during MBA studies at Georgetown and he said he just had to have something American at one point and found a KFC. Yuk. LOL. Desperation.
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The chicken salad from KFC in France was pretty tasty. The hotel staff pointed to a sushi place in Marseille, but we preferred KFC.
Yes! We always try to eat local food. We also try to avoid the places that declare: WE TAKE ALL MAJOR CREDIT CARDS, ENGLISH MENUS, NO FROZEN FOOD
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One big tip: try not to see too much in too little time. And if you want a full day in a town: you need to spend two nights in a town. You won’t get a full day in Copenhagen if you arrive on Monday at 1PM and leave Tuesday at noon. You need to get there at 1 PM Monday and leave noon Wednesday.
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Remember to notify the company of the credit cards that you are taking that you are going out of the country and what countries you are visiting.
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Don’t schedule anything (tours, etc.) for the first day. If your flight is delayed, you might miss out. Best anyway to have a day to settle in, adjust to any time zone differences and walk/drive around to get oriented.
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Great advice - we were just traveling from island to island in Hawaii, and scheduled a “fancy” tour of Pearl Harbor. Well, our plane landed in Kauai instead of Oahu, bc of the wind, and we missed our tour. Funny thing is, we were only going to Oahu to do that tour, or we would have gone right to Kauai anyway. Oh well…
I just bought tickets at Pearl Harbor, no fancy tour. My husband and I enjoyed that visit, but we were there a whole month.
I’ve always informed the CC company but recently told by them it was no longer necessary. Every time we charged something abroad we got immediate message what/where/how much charged.
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My cc usually sends me an email whenever I buy a plane ticket with a message to the effect of “we see you’re traveling so no need to tell us”. Both a little bit creepy and nice to know my card won’t get declined when I get to my destination.
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I’ve informed all of them and I still had problem.
I got my plane ticket refused and had to call them to buy one to Europe.
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So true! My stepbrother and his wife had a bike tour on their first day in Italy. It was fun, but they were so exhausted and it was hard to get up at 7 AM on their first day to meet for the tour. They wished they had done it the next day when they were more rested. They had gotten into Rome at 5 PM the day before and wished they had used their first full day to sleep in and get used to the time change.
Another travel tip, especially these days: be flexible and be willing to go with the flow, and allow enough time. Travel is crazy these days. Even if you’re irritated, it helps you and everyone else if you try to stay calm. I notice that by staying calm and friendly, people are lot more willing to help you and bend over backwards for you. Also, allow a lot of time at the airport…
Also, don’t be afraid to ask for help/directions. H hates doing that, but I don’t mind. If you refuse to ask for help/directions, you could end up wasting time.
In Europe, remember that the whole train is NOT necessarily going where you are going. Always check, so that you don’t end up in Munich when you meant to go to Berlin.
Consider the time changes when booking flights. Our most recent trip we took the 8pm flight from home and arrived (after time change) at 10 am the next morning. We were tired but powering through the time changes makes a difference and if the daylight is similar to what it should be it’s that much easier.
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