12 Travel Tips People Don’t Usually Know of
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Everyone is looking to take a trip with spring break right around the corner! Whether you’re jumping on a plane to a tropical island, backpacking through Europe, or just road-tripping across the United States.
People love to give travel advice. Some words of wisdom are better than others. If you want to get away this spring break, here is some travel advice people often do not know!
1. Tell Your Family Plans
A Redditor started the thread by commenting, “Let your family back home know your travel itinerary.”
Another added, “just letting someone know or even sharing your phone’s location with friends/family will help in the event of an emergency. Either way, just be safe.”
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2. Use The Countries Orignal Language When Booking
One user suggested, “Try searching for flights in the airline’s original language. I once saved $700 booking tickets in Peru by using Spanish rather than English.”
A second Redditor said, “Yep, flying out of the country is insanely expensive for Americans for no reason. And people wonder why we don’t travel as much. It’s less than half the price to fly from Europe to the US round trip than it is to leave from here. It sucks so much.”
A third commented, “Did the same for a road trip in the US, got a 3 week rental for 1/5 the price by using the Norwegian site compared to the US one, and on top of that insurance was included instead of having additional hidden costs added.”
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3. Don’t Ask For Paid Opinions
A user replied, “If you’re asking for an opinion, don’t ask the opinion of someone who’s being paid to provide it. Want to know where the best meal near your hotel is? The cleaner isn’t getting a kickback from the nearest steakhouse, but the concierge probably is.
Want to know the easiest way to get to the airport? The front desk clerk is going to tell you to hire the hotel preferred transfer, but the barman will probably tell you what train to catch for 1/20th of the price.”
Another Redditor continued, “Can confirm. I worked the desk at a hotel and got lots of kickbacks. Dominoes gave us free pizza every time we sent ten people. A brewery gave us a token for a free beer per customer sent. Lots of places send you food to remind you they exist. So many random free pizzas and burgers.”
4. Use Google (offline)
A great suggestion read, “Download the entire city map on google maps for offline use.”
A second user suggested, “Same with the local language on Google translate.”
5. “Stupid and Cheerful”
A Redditor had this piece of advice, “stupid and Cheerful. A cop stops you in a foreign country? Stupid and cheerful. Never be belligerent. A border guard says your papers aren’t in order? Stupid and cheerful. The airline says you are too late to board? Stupid and cheerful. Cheerful always works better than aggressive.”
A second Redditor replied, “This is good advice that has served me well several times.”
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6. Organize Before Leaving
One user suggested, “Roll everything, fold nothing.”
Another added, “Packing cubes are your best friends!”
A third Redditor said, “Also, have organizers in your bag. There are super lightweight pouches that will save you rifling through all your clothes to find the one shirt you’re looking for.”
7. Choose Your Travel Partners Wisely
A Redditor replied, “Who you go with is way more important than where you go.”
A second user added, “I’ve had some bad vacations cause I went with the wrong people!”
To which a third suggested, “Avoid that problem and go alone.”
8. Book Cheaper Hotel Suites
One great piece of advice read, “The best room in a cheaper hotel is often better than a standard room in a more expensive hotel. When looking for luxury on a budget, don’t overlook the cheaper hotels – they often have fantastic suites for what you’d pay for a standard room somewhere pricier.”
Another said, “Location beats a luxury room. If i can walk to get midnight munchies and to a few points of interest and to public transport, I’ll put up with a lot; provided it’s kept clean.”
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9. Rise With The Sun
One user commented, “Nobody wakes up early. Like you can wake up before dawn and get fantastic golden hour pics when the city is empty, then go back for breakfast and a nap before heading out for lunch. Like the best city for this is Rome. No one is around and you can get wide shots that would never happen during the day and the lighting is better.”
Another added this, “My best friend and I got great pics with no one else in the background at Trevi fountain, Spanish Steps, Coliseum, etc. by getting up super early. It’s also a great way to maximize time if you aren’t staying many days in a city. Not maneuvering through crowds really allows for better time efficiency.”
A third user said, “When I was in Paris a few years ago, my flight arrived at an ungodly hour of the morning, and I couldn’t check into the hotel for hours, so there was nothing to do but stroll around central Paris at the crack of dawn. All the obnoxiously touristy areas are so much nicer when no one else is around. At that time you could just walk right into Notre Dame.”
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10. Call Agent For Cancelled Flights
A great piece of advice read, “When flights get canceled, don’t stand in line to talk to an agent. Call the airline.”
Another Redditor suggested, “Or use the app. My sister was able to rebook our connecting flight through the app in like 10 minutes after it was canceled, while other passengers stood on line waiting to talk to an agent.”
11. Sleep Opposite the Sun
One Redditor replied, “f you like to sleep on an airplane. Figure out what side of the plane the sun will be shining on and sit on the other side. – Not my best travel tip, but something I’ve appreciated after a long week of travel.”
Another said, Or just being an eye mask if it’s gonna be an issue. Usually, on longer flights, the shades will be closed cuz most ppl wanna sleep through as much of the flight as possible anyway.”
12. Throw Out/Donate Clothes
A Redditor suggested, “I bring old underwear, socks, clothes the kids are about to outgrow, etc, and then throw them out before we leave to make room for souvenirs.”
Redditors gave some great travel tips that are often overlooked. What travel advice do you have that many people don’t know?
This article is inspired by the internet and does not necessarily reflect the views or opinions of Motherhood Life Balance.
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