General Travel Tips
Tip number one - always use a travel agent, preferably me!
Packing:
- If you are travelling on a big journey with lots of flights and maybe train or bus travel it is very wise to keep your packing to one small to medium size trolley suitcase, weighing around 20 kilos or less.
- Lumping heavy bags up stairs at some smaller hotels or at railway stations is no fun. Leave some room for buying a few things along the way and ladies you don’t have to take all your shoes.
- Most travel does not need to be a fashion parade and it doesn’t hurt to be seen in the same outfit more than once!
- Some airlines will also charge heavily for extra bags so please be careful if you don’t want to pay excess.
Travel Money:
Travellers cheques are now a thing of the past. I use pre-loaded Travel cards purchased from a bank or Travelex with different currencies and a locked in rate at which I bought it. There are always fees associated with a transaction at an ATM so it’s best to make slightly larger withdrawals to avoid the fees.
Getting Around:
Getting around most large major cities is best done by public transport preferable by underground or rapid rail. Where you can, pre-buy on the first day a pre-paid travel card for ease of use.
In London it’s the Oyster card which you can buy at a tube station and pre-load with funds. You will get a refund for any unused monies.
In Paris you buy a book of pre-paid Metro tickets.
The New York subway also sells special low cost passes for extended days of travel.
Pre-paid cards avoid queuing and figuring out how to use the ticket machine.
If you are not used to underground rail it can be a bit daunting at first with the deep tunnels and escalators to the bottom with everyone in hurry, but you do get used to it. Unless you have to – avoid rush hours and join the tourist hour.
Most airports have rapid rail connections into the city which are fast and convenient and possibly cheaper than taxis unless there a lot of you. Talking of taxis, never ever take a taxi from an airport unless they are licensed and are queued up outside the arrivals area in what would look an orderly fashion. A lot of private operators vie for business at major airports and it can be a bit confusing and confronting when arriving somewhere for the first time. Always point to the meter and make sure it is on. It also a good idea to have your address written down in the local language as not all taxi drivers will admit to speaking English.