What’s on your 2020 travel horizon, Sunny friends? Hopefully, you’ve been thinking about your adventures for the upcoming year and are doing the necessary research to make your holiday plans meaningful.
If you’re like me, when you choose a destination you think about: your budget, accommodation, things to do, places to eat and transportation. But, do you also take the time to buy some things in advance that will make the travel experience easier? Or even safer?
In 2019 Mr Sunny and I enjoyed a fly drive holiday through Spain and France, train travel around the United Kingdom and flights to Hungary, Italy and Florida. Through these experiences there are several items I recommend that you have to make journeys smoother and safer.
Smart Travel in 2020- Packing Tips
I gave in to the hype about packing cubes two years ago, and it was one of the best travel decisions I made. On our fly drive trip around Spain and France we stayed at a different hotel every other night. Packing our clothes in separate packing cubes made it so much easier to drop our stuff off in the room and jump outside to enjoy the sights and food when we arrived to a new location. Our clothes stayed organised and barely got wrinkled after being in the packing cubes for several days. However, I did put tissue paper in between everything as I folded it.
If you are a travel blogger, you have tons of electronic devices, batteries, external drives, SD cards and cords to transport. I love my electronics accessories organiser bag. In fact, I don’t just use it when travelling. Year round I keep all my things in it and just take them out if I don’t need them for a specific trip.
Another item that works every day but especially for travelling is a credit card protector or blocking sleeves. These card protectors are recommended by UK police. They prevent skimming attacks and are very highly rated. For less than “a fiver” you could save yourself a ton of aggravation.
A headache I have as an American expat living in London is monitoring how much I put in my suitcase when I return to the US for visits. I leave London with a bag that’s nearly empty, but the return luggage isn’t so light and pretty. You can find huge deals shopping in America at places like Macy’s, Kohl’s, Target, and Sephora. These deals mean a fully packed suitcase on the return trip for me.
To avoid spending additional money at the U.S. airport, using a portable luggage scale saves last minute panic at the ticket counter when checking in a bag. And, personal luggage tags that are bright and multi-coloured make grabbing the bag on the baggage claim carousel faster too.
Safe Travel in 2020- Health and Security
For international travel, having a pair of compression socks to help your blood circulation is always a good idea. For several years I have worn them and certainly notice a difference. Although, admittedly they are kind of tricky if you are leaving a tropical location. They generally don’t pair well with cargo pants or shorts!
Chances are you are going to bring a laptop with you on a trip, especially if you are a travel blogger and plan to do some writing, photo editing, or video production. You might be using a hotel’s wifi connection for these activities or maybe even plan on doing FaceTime with relatives or partners.
Have you thought about your own personal security while doing this? Again, just a small investment in a Webcam Cover would be worth it.
Smart and Safe Travel in 2020- Final Thoughts
One item I haven’t listed is a pop socket for a mobile phone. Because I don’t think it’s possible to have a pop socket and use a fast wireless charger for a phone, I haven’t bought one yet. If you have one and love it, please let me know. Is there a specific kind of pop socket you recommend? Any tips for a purchase of one?
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