Going on vacation can be the highlight of the year for most people. Getting away from the stresses of modern life and spending the week
relaxing in luxury somewhere is the perfect way to recharge your batteries. If only it wasn’t such a pain to get there in the first place. Getting to the airport, checking all of your luggage, and getting through airport security is an absolute nightmare. When you get to the other end, you’ll have to do the whole thing again. It’s almost enough to put you off traveling altogether, but it doesn’t have to be that way. Just try these simple tricks to make the whole process a lot smoother.
Ship Luggage
I must admit this has never been something I’ve tried, but I have heard that if you want to take a little more with you when you’re traveling, it’s a great way to save you time and hassle…
Checking in your bags and then waiting for them at the other end takes ages but you can skip all of that if you just ship the bulk of your luggage ahead of time and pick it up when you get to the hotel. Just take one small piece of luggage on the plane with you that has all of the essentials and send the rest separately. You can also cut down the time you spend getting your bag checked if you learn how to use a packing cube to separate all of your toiletries and anything else that needs to be examined. That’ll make it far easier for security to check through your bag and you can get onto the plane a lot quicker.
Book Ahead
Sorting everything out well ahead of time will take the last minute stress out of your trip and it can save you money as well. Experts advise that you book flights at least 6 weeks before you plan to go. It’s also advisable to book any other transport links you’ll need when you get there. Landing in a country that you’ve never been to and trying to find a taxi to take you to the hotel can be a struggle. Most airport transfers have a website where you can book so it’s all sorted as soon as you arrive.
Download Travel Apps
There are so many great travel apps available for download that can take a lot of stresses out of your traveling experience. Citymapper is a great one that can help you to navigate the public transport systems when you’re abroad. It’s likely that it’ll be a completely different system and this great app can help you get to grips with it. Gate Guru is a similar app for navigating airports which is always difficult if you’ve never been there before.
Once you’re there and you’re looking for somewhere great to eat, download The Fork. It lists over 30,000 restaurants with reviews so you should be able to find something on there to suit your tastes.
If you’re looking for a more authentic, local experience when you’re abroad try looking at Spotted By Locals. As the name suggests, it’s a travel guide that’s based on advice from locals that live in the city. They charge a small fee for each guide but it’s definitely worth the money to get good tips from local writers and photographers, updated regularly.
Traveling doesn’t have to be hard if you follow these simple tips to the hassle out of the whole experience.
I don’t know about you, but I definitely live to travel, so anything that can save me time AND stress, I’m all over it! I hope you found this post useful…remember “not all who travel are lost!”