We asked our Mobal traveler community members to email us with their favourite travel tips that other Mobal customers might find useful. One member Bruce Leman from Corona, CA created a whole list of travel tips that he recommends before traveling, check them out and then if you think something is missing add it in the comments section below.
(Please not these tips are from Bruce and are not endorsed by Mobal)
Check Out Bruce’s Check List of Things to Take and Do Before a Trip:
- Order all your prescription medicines for travel to arrive before you leave on your trip
- Consider carrying a broad spectrum anti-biotic if your Dr. will give it to you
- Carry over the counter medicines that work best for you that you may not be able to pick up locally (i.e. Tylenol, Aleve, Enteric Coded Aspirin, anti-diarrhea medicine, motion patch(s), Dramamine, antacids and cough drops)
- Medical equipment (back brace, orthotics, breathing mask, fingernail clippers & file)
- International Cell phone & charger
- Charge laptop & all electrical items
- Laptop & charger
- Kindle Fire, ear buds & Kindle Fire charger
- Kindle
- iPad, ear buds & iPad charger
- iPod, ear buds & iPod charger
- Noise canceling headphones (i.e. Bose or ear plugs)
- External power charger
- Camera & accessories
- Travel tripod
- Small power strip to charge multiple items at once
- Trip itinerary
- Phone number & addresses of people you may want to contact or send a card to
- Currency &/or Traveler’s checks
- Passport & only credit cards you plan to use
- Make extra copy of passport (first 2 pages) & any credit cards with contact numbers & keep in separate place from your actual passport & Credit cards (get non 800 number as 800 numbers do not always work outside U.S.)
- Extra passport size picture
- Copy of travel insurance and contact numbers (get non 800 number as 800 numbers do not always work outside U.S.)
- Airline tickets/itinerary and/ or confirmation number with contact number for airlines
- Travel adapters/converters and plugs for countries visiting
- Security pouch to carry money and passports
- Cancel deliveries to home (i.e. newspapers) or have someone pick up for you
- Contact Post Office to hold mail or have someone pick up for you
- Cancel home deliveries (i.e. water, milk, etc)
- Contact credit card companies to let them know you will be traveling overseas (not all credit card companies require this anymore)
- Pack extra glasses and/or contacts
- Carry anything you do not want lost in your luggage (i.e. drugs, electronics, tickets, money, extra change of clothes, sleep mask, tooth brush/paste) in your carry-on
- Rain gear/Umbrella
- GPS, compass & calculator for exchange rate math (computer apps can do all this)
- Sun glasses
- Hand wipes or sanitizer
- Take some zip lock bags with you in case something leaks or you need to protect something or want to keep some food in your room or with you during the day
- Binoculars
- Corkscrew
- Travel alarm clock
- Water bottle sling/ring carrier that hooks around the cap
Last Minute Things to do:
- Take stuff out of wallet that are not needed
- If you have someone picking up your mail & they need a key give that person mail box key
- Arrange for garbage cans to be taken out & mow lawn
- Set thermostat to hold at correct temperature
- Only take keys that are needed
- Take all garbage out
TIPS
- Turn batteries around in flash and MP3 so it doesn’t turn on accidently
- Pack extra duffel bag for dirty clothes. At end of trip, check it & use extra room in suit case for souvenirs
- Turn off ice maker in refrigerator and throw away ice in tray, so water won’t be everywhere if refrigerator breaks or electricity goes off
- Put a copy of itinerary inside suitcase so it can catch up to you if lost.
- Email itinerary to family and YOURSELVES – accessible from web!
- When you see a map or transportation schedule, take a picture. Use it to figure out where you’re going
If you have any tips of your own, then please feel free to add them to the bottom of this article in the commments.
Add decongestants and/or cold medicines. I developed a terrible cold while traveling in Ireland and you can’t get those types of meds everywhere especially out of the big cities or towns
Take a picture of your parking row number and then take a picture of your room number.
Great list. I would add electric toothbrush to list of things to turn the batteries around. I have arrived at my destination and wondered what the buzzing was. I’m glad security didn’t hear it
I make address labels for people we are going to send post cards to
We have business card size travel cards with our pictures and home address on them for our new friends
I create an email to myself of important things I might need to know during the trip and have lost the original
I have a cheap empty wallet in my back pocket to make a bulge in case a pickpocket needs to practice
Throw away underwear and sleep t-shirts. As underwear and t-shirts get worn out, stained, etc. , save them for travel. Wear and throw.
“Just making a copy of your passport and pack it in a separate place”. Good idea. In addition to that, why not take a photo of all passports with a cell phone and in addition to that email photos to yourself and a trusted family member/best friend?
Whenever possible, you should carry the paper copy of your passport and lock your passport in the room safe or your luggage. If someone insists on the actual passport, you can get it from your room, but if your passport is lost or stolen, you have to go to a city with an American Embassy to get it replaced. Even then, it’s only replaced by a temporary, good for 60 days.