Before You Go: 5 Exclusive Travel Preparation Tips

Whether you’re travelling for a weekend or a year, I've leared there are a few small things you can do to prepare that will save you lots of time and energy. Follow these, and you can use your time and energy on pure-bliss travel!

These are 100% PROTIPS! you won't find anywhere else (unless you do, in which case tell me so I can threaten to sue them and/or leave assertive but respectful comments on their blog for stealing my tips).

1. Buy Skype* Credit. With Skype, it’s possible to pay a small amount to get credit to pay for international calls. You can also text numbers, but there are apps for that, so let's focus on the calls you can get.

Related: 7 Must-Have Travel Apps

I recommend paying in $10 increments. As you go, small deductions will be made at something like 2 cents a minute. In my experience of occasional calling, the $10 credit lasts a pretty long time. This allows you to call or text any number, as long as you have internet or wifi.

If you are reading this and work for Skype, payment can sent here

This tip is necessary for those of you travelling for long periods or working abroad.

Visiting friends abroad? Call them to meetup, you international social butterfly! Want to call your grandparents who don’t quite understand Whatsapp? Go for it, sweetie pie! Want to make a reservation at a restaurant in a new country you’re visiting? Okay, big spender! Need to call your bank because you forgot to tell them you’re abroad and now they’ve frozen your card? Okay, you need to do that ASAP… and this is the cheapest way to do it.

Which brings me to my next point...

2. You need to tell your bank or credit card company that you’re going abroad. You probably know this. Call your dough-holder up, and tell them your destination and how long you’ll be gone. But if you don't plan to take my first tip, you should also tell them any destination you’re even considering going to. This will save the hassle so you don't end up holding the line when your card gets declined while buying a quick coffee at Starbucks (Why are you going to Starbucks anyway?! Just kidding, I'm literally writing this in a Starbucks).

This tip is fairly obvious, as like your mom, your bank needs to be updated on your life and what you're doing. You can't just neglect someone who's been with you this long! Obviously, if you don't, your bank will suspect your identity’s been stolen by someone abroad. They know you love Starbucks, but they won't expect to see a charge at one in London. They'll freeze your card so the crook won't get this fix, or any more fixes (that cost more than £4).

Why am I at Starbucks again?

This is also important for a less obvious reason, and that is to protect you from suspicious spending back at home while you’re gone. What? Let me explain with a personal anecdote...

When I left for England in July, someone was using my card information locally in the US, on a card I didn't plan to use abroad (and therefore wasn't really tracking spending on). Had I not told that bank I was going abroad, they would have assumed that was just me spending normally, with charges of hundreds of dollars at Walmart, as I do.** You see, you need to tell all your banks, in case even the card you barely touch gets used.

3. Pause your cell phone contract. Did you know you can pause the contract on your phone so you aren’t charged while you’re away? You can do this for just a week, or up to a few months! This is less helpful for mini vacations, but if you’re studying, working or just travelling for a period of at least a month, this is vital so you don't spend precious money on a service you don't plan to use. Research this online or talk to your provider to get more details on how to make this work for you.

4. Get a card with a chip. For some reason, (see: metric system) the US does not do the same things that lots of other countries all unanimously decided to do. One of these things, is to use chip credit cards. What is this? The chip credit card is simply a card with a chip in it. It's used to quickly identify and store your information, and many countries (especially the UK) are making this transition away from credit cards that are swiped. Here in the UK, if I use my American swipe card, my transaction takes much longer and I am immediately identified as American (the latter is fine, the former less so). The cashier will also weirdly scrutinize your signature to make sure it matches the signature on your card, whereas in the US, people don't really care about it. Point: find out your international card options, and make sure your card has a chip before you travel.

And speaking of credit cards...

Colorful money is cool, but did you also notice my awesome nail polish color?

5. Not everywhere accepts credit cards. That credit card tip aside, it's more important that you carry cash. The assumption that any and every bar, store, or restaurant will accept your Visa or Mastercard is an incredibly American expectation. Having a machine that processes cards is costly, so many places do not have them. Some places may have them, but will charge you more to pay with a card. Additionally, my assumption is the we Americans simply use our credit cards more, and are less accustomed to paying in cash generally.

You should be okay assuming your credit card is enough in the UK, but just about anywhere else in the world, cash is king. This is true all over the world, not just the "poor" ones that come to mind. Expect strange reactions to paying with a credit card even in "developed" places such as Berlin or Paris.

Do your research before you go. Check your international ATM withdrawal fees and apply for a new account if the one you have has expensive transaction fees.

Do all these before your trip, and you should be ready to tackle challenges your fellow travelers might forget to consider. Check out some more of my general travel tips that should help you, wherever you decide to go.

Did this help you? Have any additional tips for people to consider before they leave? Leave a comment!

*No, unfortunately, Skype has not paid me to write this. Speaking of which... are you interested in paying me to write something? Contact Me and I'd be happy to discuss to what lengths I'll compromise my writing values for your dough.

**I don’t do that. Someone stole my card info and did that.

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