Missed your connecting flight and got stuck at the layover? Arrived at the airport only to find out your passport has expired? Found a cheap hotel far from the city center and ended up spending a fortune on taxis and tickets? Here are some useful tips to help you avoid the most common travel pitfalls.
1. Did you calculate the time between flights correctly?
It’s not just the low ticket price that makes a purchase successful. If you’re reaching your destination with a connecting flight, be very careful about the time gap you leave between the two flights, especially if you need to collect your luggage and check-in again at the intermediate station. One and a half to two hours is usually sufficient for the whole process and to avoid stress in case of a minor delay of the first flight. However, if you are flying with the same airline or airlines that share codes, these are usually accounted for. But even long waits at airports are not in your favor. Because if you save 30 euros on the ticket but stay at the layover for five or more hours, you’re still losing: you’ll likely spend something at the expensive airport shops, and you’ll waste your time trapped in a space often far from the city center.
2. When does your passport expire?
A classic mistake even experienced travelers make. You bought tickets, booked a hotel or apartment – most people do this more than a month before the trip – but take a look at your travel documents. If you are traveling outside the EU, the passport is your most valuable paper. And if you don’t have it, you can’t go anywhere. The process of issuing or renewing it is relatively easy and quick, but it doesn’t happen overnight. It also involves a cost that you must consider, as 100 euros is not a small amount these days.
3. How close to the center is your hotel?
Traveling to a big city, and the central hotel costs, for example, 20 euros more per day than a cheaper one in the suburbs. So you book the latter. A nice accommodation at a good price. So far, so good. You arrive at your destination and realize that the lovely hotel you booked is two trains away or half an hour by bus in the morning and a 15-20 euro taxi ride at night from the center. Financial disaster. And a waste of time. Therefore, study carefully, especially if you plan to experience the city’s nightlife. If hotels seem expensive, there is now the widespread solution of cheaper rented apartments. If you are not a night owl, staying a little further away and quieter is not a problem. The choice is yours!
4. Can you see all the city’s sights in one day?
Relax! Traveling abroad is for gaining new images, knowledge, and experiences, but there’s no need to return exhausted. Large cities like London, Rome, and Paris require days if you want to see their countless attractions and museums. If there isn’t enough time, you need a plan. Just as you can’t hold two watermelons in one hand, you can’t see the Vatican, the Colosseum, and the Roman Forum in one day. It’s an exaggeration. And if you try, the exhaustion of that day will likely be your strongest memory. Make a choice of the spots you want to see the most, plan visits to nearby attractions, and give the city a chance. Relax in squares without big names and wander through neighborhoods that belong only to the locals. It’s a great opportunity to see your destination with fresh eyes!
5. Maybe all those museums don’t interest you that much?
It’s not shameful to prefer a “lazy” drink in a café near the Eiffel Tower over waiting in line for hours for a photo of the city’s landmark. Nor is it to stroll through the markets of East London instead of the latest exhibition at the Tate Modern. Perhaps modern art is not your priority, and the “must-see” list of most people in London does not match your interests. Simply, don’t follow it. Think about where you want to go and what you want to see, research what interests you in the city you are visiting, and create your own itinerary. Only then will you truly enjoy your trip.
6. Where can you find good food off the beaten tourist path?
Even in Venice, one of the most popular cities in the world, there is now a way not to fall into the tourist trap. There are so many blogs and websites written by locals that recommend the best places for breakfast or lunch, coffee or drinks, shopping, and entertainment – places they frequent daily and which have good quality and reasonable prices. What’s better than getting to know a place from the inside! Away from queues and overpriced cafes or mediocre meals. Good research, trust in the locals, and tourist traps (both outside and within Greece) can become a thing of the past.
7.Do you choose hotels only from photos?
Big mistake. And in some cases, a fatal one. TripAdvisor.com, the largest platform with reviews and ratings for accommodations and restaurants worldwide, shows the way. Do not book anywhere based solely on nice photos on the hotel’s website. Check TripAdvisor or read previous guest reviews on Booking.com or any other booking site and decide after. All the great truths about the accommodation that caught your eye are there. And they are reliable.
8. Where exactly is the airport you will land at?
Indeed, the small and distant from the city center airports of various major cities are cheaper, but that does not necessarily mean you will benefit from the difference. Because if you ultimately spend time and money to reach your final destination (and if you travel at night, you might miss the last train or bus and get stuck at the remote airport), then you’re probably not winning. Calculate everything in detail because the success of a trip often lies in the details.
And many more mistakes that you don’t need to make…
- Don’t ruin your mood with local vendors at world markets if they don’t knock off another 50 cents from the souvenir you liked. It won’t save you.
- Don’t buy bulky items that you’ll struggle to bring on the plane.
- No matter how reliable travel guides are, they shouldn’t be your gospel. If they were written two or three years ago, various things in your destination might have changed.
- Ensure you tightly close shampoo, shower gel, and cream bottles because they might spill and damage your belongings. And of course, don’t pack wines in your luggage, as you might receive your luggage with your clothes all red from the expensive bottle that broke somewhere along the way.
- No one cares to see 10,000 photos from your trip. Put down the digital camera for a while and enjoy the moment in the new place you’re visiting.
- At airports like London’s Heathrow, you should arrive at least two hours before your flight. It’s so large (some gates take 20-25 minutes to reach on foot) that you can easily miss your flight.
- A second pair of shoes – and especially flip-flops in the summer – is essential for long trips to avoid unpleasant surprises.
- Make sure you’re informed about roaming charges from your mobile phone provider so you don’t face a hefty bill on your return. It’s a pity!
- Be cautious with currency exchange. Do your research beforehand. In London, for instance, withdrawing money from your debit card at a local bank ATM will charge you less commission than the exchange offices at the airport.
- Even if you trust your airline (you go to check-in, give your passport or ID, they find your e-ticket, and issue the boarding pass), it’s good to have a printed confirmation of the purchase with the seat and flight details. You never know what might happen to their system!!