Preparing for your trip

The following tips will help you plan your upcoming trip:

• Inform yourself & stay updated about the most recent safety & security situation of your destination by consulting your government’s travel website.  If your country does not have one, you can always consult the up to date travel advice on the excellent websites of the UK Government, the Australian Government & the USA Department of State.
• Apply for travel documents on time e.g. passports, visas including evisas which many countries do or ESTA (Electronic System for Travel Authorisation) when you travel to or via the USA.or an eTA when you travel to or via Canada & Australia.
• Know the health situation in a country that you want to visit, were applicable visit your doctor any for immunisations (give up to 6 weeks for any vaccinations to be effective) or any other travel related medical treatments. All this information can be found on the world famous Belgian Institute of Tropical Medicine.

• Educate yourself about food safety when travelling to developing/underdeveloped countries. Know what action to take in case you develop food/water borne illnesses like diarrhoea or dysentery.
• Make a suitcase packing list & pack your suitcases on time.
• Have your finances in order making sure that all your credit/debit cards are valid and have enough credit limit or money. Make sure you also check cash exchange rates for the country you are visiting and get some foreign currency cash to cover places that don’t accept cards on your trip.
• Keep the phone number of your bank/credit card company in case you need to get in touch with them during your trip,
• Plan your itinerary in advance, you can use sites such as, Rough Guides, Lonely Planet & Frommer’s guides Alternatively, contact me if you have an itinerary related question.
• Check the weather for your destination, you can use accuweather or my favourite bbcweather
• Book flights & accommodations in advance to avoid extra costs.