- Photo Credit: Chris Lawton
Here’s a roundup of our top ten travel tips from this past year that may make your travels a little smoother in 2019!
1. Mobile Passport
The Mobile Passport app speeds you through U.S. Customs and Border Protection at 3 cruise ports and 25 airports.
2. STEP
The Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) is a free service to allow U.S. citizens and nationals traveling and living abroad to enroll their trip with the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate.
- Receive important information from the Embassy about safety conditions in your destination country, helping you make informed decisions about your travel plans.
- Help the U.S. Embassy contact you in an emergency, whether natural disaster, civil unrest, or family emergency.
- Help family and friends get in touch with you in an emergency.
3. Real I.D. Act
As of October 2020, all U.S. citizens will be required to have a Real I.D. or another approved alternate form of identification to fly domestically within the United States. Half of the states in the U.S. are already compliant with this change as of Jan 2018.
State compliance & extensions: Department of Homeland Security
Accepted Alternate ID info: Transportation Security Administration
Instructions on obtaining a Real I.D.: Visit your local DMV site
4. How far in advance should you book travel?
- Cruises: Rates & space are available 1 1/2-2 years in advance but if you want a specific cabin book sooner rather than later.
- Land vacation to popular destinations or places with limited space like Italy in summer, a safari or a boutique hotel: Book at least a year in advance
- Traveling during shoulder season (Fall or Spring) you can find deals 6 months in advance.
- Air can only be booked 11 months in advance. You’ll find the most options as soon as the flights become available when all the seats are open for purchase.
5. FLIO
FLIO app covers all important air passenger needs from parking, security, lounge access, charging stations, food and shopping discounts, flight status plus guidance on more than 5000 airports around the world.
6. Flight Tracker
Flight Tracker allows you to track flights around the world in real time. Create trips for multiple flights and watch for delays or changes.
7. Mini Medicine Cabinet
I always pack these 5 multi-use items as my mini medicine cabinet when I travel.
- Ibuprofen: Pain reliever & anti-inflammatory
- Antibiotic ointment & band aids: for scrapes, cuts, blisters, etc.
- Tea Tree Oil: for blemishes, cold sores, athlete’s foot
- Pepto Bismol pills: upset stomach, nausea, diarrhea, protective coating for stomach
- Vaseline: for chapped lips, skin, cracked heels, chafing
8. PackPoint
PackPoint is a free packing list organizer for serious travel pros. PackPoint will help you organize what you need to pack in your luggage and suitcase based on length of travel, weather at your destination, and any activities planned during your trip.
9. Getting additional pages in your passport
For U.S. citizens, the State Dept. no longer offers the service of adding pages to your existing passport so the only time to get extra pages in your passport is to request them at the time of renewing or applying for a new passport. Simply request a 52 page passport on your application and the additional pages are free.
10. Trip Journal via Postcards
Not big into writing and don’t want to spend your vacation documenting it all? Buy postcards from the cities or country you are in and each day, write a few sentences about what you saw, ate, experienced. Address them to yourself and mail them. Once you are home, put them in chronological order, hole punch them and tie together with a string. You’ll have an instant mini journal to remember your trip by.
If you found these tips helpful be sure to follow IAMSHEGLOBAL on Instagram or Facebook where new travel tips are posted every Tuesday. Ready to plan your next getaway? Contact us today to get started!
iamsheglobal.com 