No matter where you go, planning a trip is always a fun experience. Especially, if the destination is international, the joy and excitement are elevated further. But this enthusiasm often makes you forget things that are important for your international trip. Five such important aspects of your trip are discussed in this post.
It is rightly said that meticulous planning is the only way to ensure good travel. Especially, when it is an international trip, it is very easy for some of the most valuable aspects of your trip to just slip out of your mind. A lot of times, this can lead to a number of unexpected outcomes.
While planning for an international trip is one of the biggest joys for most of the people, it is very important to make sure that you prepare for it in the best way possible. Five of the most important aspects that you should never forget when preparing for an international trip are mentioned below-
- Check the Passport and Visa Requirements
While you don’t really need to memorise the expiration date of your passport, it is highly recommended that you check it once at least before making any plans. Most of the international destinations require you to have a passport with at least 6 months validity.
Many of the popular tourist destinations all over the world require travellers to have a valid visa too. The application process of visa can significantly vary between countries. Also, some of the destinations do offer visa on arrival. Check the visa requirements of the place you are visiting beforehand to make the necessary arrangements.
- Have Copies of all the Travel Documents
It is highly recommended that you carry a colour copy of the ID page of your passport and do not store this with your passport. Similarly, carry copies of flight tickets and visas if required.
While you can also save a digital copy of these documents in your mobile phone, do make sure that you save them locally. This will enable you to access them even without an internet connection. Also, if you’ll be storing sensitive information on your phone, secure it with a strong password.
- Sort your Finances
Preparing your finance is one of the most important aspects of any international destination. Check the exchange rate of the place where you’ll be going and know the cost of things in general to get an idea of how much money you’ll need.
Also, before leaving for an international trip, make sure that you do inform the same to your credit card provider and bank. If they do not know that you are travelling abroad, there is a possibility that they might block your credit card or bank account if they notice international transactions.
- Double check the Hotel Booking
If you are travelling to a popular tourist destination during the peak season, it makes sense to book a hotel room in advance. In a lot of popular places like Dubai, Bali, Singapore, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, etc. it can be difficult to find rooms or affordable rooms once you arrive at the destination.
Also, make sure that you confirm your booking of Dubai hotels, or any other location you are heading to, before catching the flight to avoid any kind of inconvenience after reaching the hotel.
- Book the Flight Ticket in Advance
It is usually better to book flights tickets as soon as you make a solid international travel plan. The farther the departure date is, the better are the chances of getting the best fare. Make use of online travel portals when booking flight tickets to avail the cheapest fare.
Online portals such as Cleartrip allow you to compare flights of different air carriers, and filter the flights on the basis of prices, duration, etc. to find you the best options.
While it is definitely tempting to start fantasising about the international trip, you need to remember that there are some very important things to be taken care of. If at all the important things mentioned above are not given their due importance, they can significantly hamper your experience and can also make you cancel the plan altogether.