***TRAVELTIPS*** I've had a ridiculously busy year of travelling, and on my various trips I've had a lot of different experiences. I'm currently in the last leg of planning my biggest adventure yet: a 12 day solo-trip to Cuba, happening in 6 weeks time! As a part of this I figured I could share some tips I've gathered through my trips and experiences. Hopefully at least some of them will be useful for others, and maybe even get someone to take a trip they otherwise wouldn't have dared to go on? Who knows! 1: GOOGLE IS YOUR FRIEND You can save yourself from a lot of hazzle with some basic searches on google. "Best area to stay in [name of place]" for instance will often lead you to reviews, travelblogs, yahoo answers etc. These are great for travel to places you haven't visited before, because you'll get a much bigger and more honest overview of a place than just reading reviews (which should be your next step, but more specified to hotels/accommodation in the area you found from using this tip). Often people who actually live in the area will tell answer these type posts and give honest feedback on where to stay and which places to avoid. When I was in Lithuania last year, a guy who lived parts of the year in Vilnius told me on the bus to town that the hotel I had picked was in the worst area of the city because of drugs and prostitution. I wasn't rattled though, and even though I stayed out late at night I was perfectly fine, but, I could probably have gotten a hotel in a nicer area for a similar price if I'd done my research first. Speaking of which… 2: RESEARCH AND READ REVIEWS So the "R" word might sound boring, but, it's one of the most essential tips I can give you. Also, if you go about it with the right attitude, researching for a trip can actually be a lot of fun! When you're looking for a place to stay, whether it's a hotel or private accommodation, take your time to read reviews. Specifically, I look at a few of the reviews that give top marks, and more of the ones that give bottom marks. Most places will have a bit of both, and some of the bottom reviews are completely unreasonable. Generally, you want to weed out the places that have many bottom reviews with similar complaints. This would've saved me from a hotel in Brussels, Belgium, where several people had written about rude/unhelpful staff, poor cleaning/maintenance, and theft from the rooms. Unfortunately, I only thought to check the worst reviews when I signed in to tripadvisor to leave my own 1* review… 3: PRIORITIZE Another "boring word", but a great tip for your wallet. Think about what you want from the trip, and what you're willing to sacrifice. If you plan on spending a lot of time shopping, at museums, exploring the city, lounging on the beach etc, then you're probably not gonna do much other than sleep at your hotel. So does the hotel need to be 4*? Not really. Get a cheaper hotel and spend the money saved on shopping instead. Or is your aim to just relax and get a good nights rest, reading a book with a cuppa and use whatever luxury is available at the hotel? Then yes, a good hotel will be worth your while. When in New Orleans with my mum, we stayed at an old historic hotel in the French Quarter. The room was tiny, smelled of damp, and to use my mums words: "the balcony was so slanted it was like a shipwreck". BUT, we pretty much only used the room for sleep, showers, and a few beers in the sun on the sinking balcony. The hotel was in walking distance from everything we wanted to check out, and because we got a cheaper deal we had more cash for beers, shopping, and excursions. (AN: despite the less luxurious feel of the place I'd actually recommend it, just for the location and customer service alone!) 4: STOCK UP ON TRAVEL APPS Do yourself a huge favour and download the travel apps you need before you go. Apps like Tripadvisor can be a major help in finding places to go out for a meal, pubs, sights etc. Downloading these off WiFi at hotels in eastern Europe can be… a major pain. You'll save yourself from a lot of "rage" by just having them ready before you go. Also, when you find something, take screenshots! You never know when the app might glitch, and suddenly that nice pub with local food and a name consisting solely of consonants (I'm looking at you Poland) is long gone. Same goes for maps and directions. Because I'm from Norway I can only really recommend the apps that I myself have used, but I don't know if these will apply/be as useful for everyone. My main recommendations, for what it's worth, are: Tripadvisor, Momondo, Hotels, ETaksi (specifically for use in Lithuania. It's pretty much the same as Uber, and is used by everyone. Unless you're a millionaire or fluent in Lithuanian I think this one is a must-have. Some of the local taxis charge extortionate prices, and the level of English varies a lot), AirBnB, Uber. 5: CHAT IT UP This one might seem a bit scary, but it's so rewarding once you give it a go! If you're in a shop having a browse or buying something, chances are the person at the till is somewhat local. Try out a little smalltalk first. It doesn't have to be good enough to win you a date with Tom Hiddleston, just everyday pleasantries is enough. This is just to get a feel of the person, if they speak English and if they seem like the friendly and helpful type. If they do, this is a perfect opportunity to find some hidden gems. When I was in Israel I discovered a bar I would NEVER have found otherwise. This was just from asking a lovely lady working at a bookshop (!) for tips, and she gave us the name and address. The place is enough to fill a Tumblr post in itself but that's a story for another time. But asking the locals can really give you some unique experiences. 6: USE YOUR HANDLUGGAGE WISELY So you've arrived in Oslo, but your luggage hasn't. You're wearing skinny jeans, a tee, and a thin jumper. It's -11 degrees Celsius outside, and you have to scrape the ice off the windows of your car that's been left in freezing temperatures for two weeks, while shivering like a penguin and swearing like a sailor. That was me and my mum when we returned from New Orleans and were told that one of our bags got left behind at Atlanta, with all our winter clothes in it… A good story now, not so much at the time. After this frosty mishap, I learned to make better use of my handluggage than just magazines and empty space. Now I always pack the following in my handluggage (I use a mini suitcase that is cabin approved): - Toiletries (just the bare essentials, i.e toothbrush, mini toothpaste, mouthwash tabs from Lush, wetwipes, hairties and of course tampons etc) - Underwear and socks (if I'm going to a "summer destination" I also put a swimsuit in my handluggage) - 2 sets of clean clothes that can be combined (for instance two tanktops, a pair of jeans, and a skirt. This is in case I get stuck with no luggage for more than 1 day and I don't have time to "waste" on needless shopping or I don't want to. I'll then have something nice for everyday and something "dressy" for evening or at worst just a clean set of clothes in case I spill something etc). - A pair of shoes that can be worn with anything (worn for everyday or dressed up) - Chargers for my phone (with adapters!) - Printed receipts of plane tickets, payment for accommodation, and addresses 7: USE LOCAL TOUR OPERATORS Using the tour operator you know from home can seem convenient and easy, but in my experience you can make some really big misfires with this tactic. When I was younger we always used a big tour operator in Norway to book our little daytrips on holiday. Some were decent, others were either wilfully misadvertised or just plain bad. We booked a day trip to see Knossos (ancient city ruins) in Greece once, with the promise of a Norwegian guide to show us around the site and the museum. The "guide" was a "yolo-girl" in her late teens/early twenties who read robotically off a sheet she had printed off Wikipedia, and subsequently couldn't answer any questions we had other than questions about the schedule. Unfortunately, this is often how the big tour operators work. They can rest on their laurels because of their big brand name, and don't need to care about good service. Also, the teens that they use as "guides" are often extremely overworked and get zero training. I'd advise you to give the locals a go instead. They can take a bit more effort to seek out, but in my experience and opinion they're worth the work. They are more dependent on quality and positive word of mouth to survive, and weed out the tours that offer experiences like the one I had above. 8: AVOID THE SAFE This tip might seem a bit weird, but as someone who meets crooks at work pretty much every day of the week, take my advice on this one. Most people and travelblogs will tell you to use the hotel safe. This is just a candybox for "unfaithful servants" at your hotel. For emergencies/mishaps they'll have a spare universal key. So, when you leave your passport and mastercard there and the maid "takes you to the cleaners", you'll have no defense. There's no log anywhere of what you actually put in your safe, so when you complain the shady a** hotel you booked by accident will just give a standard apology and tell you that they'll "look into it". What I normally do is to hide my passport folder in my suitcase among my laundry/undies or under the suitcase lining (under the undies). I also spread my valuables so that they're not all in the exact same place. Chances are even if you get unlucky and they get to your valuables, they'll stop and take what they have found and not keep on ransacking you for the rest. 9: STAY COOL No, I don't mean in the #fashionista sense, I mean more in the "keep calm" way. Even if you feel a little nervous, try to give off the vibe that you're a local who knows your way around. Don't look like my mum at the London Tube, clutching her handbag for dear life and glancing nervously from side to side like a startled guineapig. If there ever is a look that screams "lost tourist with cash", it's that look. I walked down the streets of both Vilnius, Lithuania and Riga, Latvia, by myself, at night, in a mini skirt, and never did I feel unsafe. I dressed "like the locals", walked at a normal, calm pace, and carried my handbag normally. You'll draw a lot less unnecessary attention to yourself, and avoid making yourself an obvious target. 10: USE COMMON SENSE Common sense isn't as common as you'd think, and we all do things that later make us go "what the ¤#&£ was I thinking?" and sometimes even "I'm lucky that didn't turn dangerous for me". If something seems iffy and too good to be true, there's usually a reason for it. Check your governments general advice for the particular country you're travelling to. Avoid getting drunk as a lord (especially if you travel alone). Check the news and stay alert. If there's a mass demonstration about to happen, LEAVE. Don't take insane risks and generally, think of what advice you'd give your best friend. Would you tell them to get in that unmarked cab with a driver with a thirsty eye? I hope not, so don't do that yourself! 11: GO OUT THERE AND HAVE FUN! :)
