Having travelled to over 30 countries (and counting) I feel like I have some experience and authority in speaking on travel. If you have any travel gems you want to share feel free to leave them in the comments field at the bottom of this post or email them to me and I will add them on for you.
- Invest in a Tupperware screw top drink bottle. This is not a plug for Tupperware! Their screw top drink bottles do not leak which means you can have it in your bag with all your valuables (aka your passport because almost everything else will be easily replaceable) and not have any spillages (unless you don’t put the top on properly)!
- When choosing your seats if there by some miracle happens to be two rows spare, one behind the other, I suggest choosing the back of the two rows. Why? With no one in front of you there’ll be no one to put their seat back, cutting into your space.
- If you have the row to yourself don’t put your feet on the seats next to you. This is rude regardless of who is or isn’t there. However, feet on a blanket or something of yours like a jersey I think is okay.
- No matter how tall you are don’t use the wall as a place to put your feet.
- Blow up neck pillows are great for your neck or to put behind your back. This is great for one flights when the head rest doesn’t have fold out bits to hold your head in place. The blow up ones fold down to next to nothing space wise.
- Not watching a movie, playing games or listening to the inflight entertainment then put it on the air show option if there is one. It’s interesting to look at especially if you are flying over somewhere that looks very interesting and you are wondering where you are. I found this on a recent flight from Abu Dhabi to Melbourne. We were flying over somewhere with random bright lights below that looked like random balls of fire. We were flying over Baghdad, which lead me to wonder if the lights were part of military or Al Qaeda compound.
- Ear plugs are great for on an aeroplane. You will still hear the rumble of the engine but it dulls the noise down considerably.
- Don’t fear flying. It can actually be quite relaxing not having much to do and having to sit still. Embrace it. I used to be afraid of flying but on my most recent trip to Europe I decided that I was not going to come under the spirit of fear. When we hit bumps instead of having my body tense up and my breathing shallow I took deep breaths, gave God thanks for the awesome pilots and thanked him for how awesome technology is that such a massive thing of metal can soar high in the sky. It worked a treat and I actually found myself enjoying the flights. My favourite part of the flight is the start of the descent when it feels as though the engines have been turned off and the plan soars like an eagle high above the land.
- Always carry a plastic spoon or fork with you (apart from on-board a plane as they may confiscate it). You never know when you might use it. Like when you’re doing breakfast on the cheap wandering around New York or on a long train trip across Vietnam and need something to eat your snacks/meals with.
- Print out maps and directions to your hostel/hotel, especially if you’re not catching a taxi there. Don’t rely on Wi-Fi or extremely expensive roaming to get you out of your lost spot.
- Travel comfy – enjoy wearing your active. But I encourage you to take a flight in some dressy clothes at least once. You feel incredibly grown up and responsibly flying dressed to kill!
- When leaving your hostel/hotel grab one of their business cards if they have one. Sometimes they have maps on them if you get lost. Even if there is no map on it you can always jump in a taxi and get back to your hostel/hotel without any hassles with the hostel/hotel name and address.
- Take a photo with your eye before taking a photo with your camera! We can miss soaking in the moment and creating incredible memories when our first response to something is to take a photo of it! Check out my blog “A Life Half Lived” for more about this.