We love traveling which can force us to temporarily disconnect from our normal routine, and help us experience plenty of new funny things by exploring different places, including gaining new friends, new experiences, and new stories.
It is a thrilling experience to plan a new trip, especially your first one. There are so many travel inspirations on Pinterest and Instagram waiting for you to get, such as where to play? how to play? where do you live? what to eat...you can't wait to travel, right?
Unfortunately, it is also common to make a few mistakes when traveling in unknown places, which will turn your trip into a disappointing and money-wasting experience. So, in this article, we will talk about 10 Common travel mistakes & How to avoid them.
1. HAVE AN OVERAMBITIOUS ITINERARY
Wanting to go to too many places or do too many activities in one trip is one of the most common mistakes. It will make you tired, anxious, and make the trip become worse if you don’t leave enough time between their connecting flights, trains, or other transportation. It is wise to stay flexible thinking. Only put these places you most want to go on your list and the other ones as optional.
2. SPEND OVER BUDGET
It is common for us to spend more money on food and entertainment or any other things in a relaxed and happy trip, thus exceeding our budget. That will make your days after returning from travel are really hard. So always keep your budget in mind when traveling.
3. OVERPACKING
It is natural for us to bring more luggage to make us more comfortable during a long period of time travel. In fact, the golden rule is to pack only essentials and medication for pre-existing medical conditions. After all, who would travel happily must travel light.
4. FORGOT TO BUY INSURANCE
Not buying insurance or forgetting to buy insurance is not wise. Lost baggage, trip delay or cancellation, medical emergency...in case these things happen, you will be compensated. Spending those extra few dollars will give you the benefit of feeling more secure, why not do that?
5. ARRIVING AT THE WRONG DESTINATION
Arriving at the wrong destination, such as the wrong airport, the wrong hotel... this mistake could cost you a lot, and waste your time. So, double-check reservations for everything from hotels, flights, trains, buses, etc before setting off.
6. FORGET OR NOT BACKING UP IMPORTANT DOCUMENTS
One of the more common mistakes is forgetting to pack passports, and another is forgetting to back up important documents, such as IDs, passports, travel insurance policy, and visas information. You can save them to Google Drive in order to access the digital version from abroad should it get lost or stolen.
7. NOT DOING RESEARCH AHEAD
We will feel bored and lack of expectation when we don’t know anything about our destination. So, we can do a Google search to get information about guide books and interesting history of the place.
8. NOT LISTENING TO LOCAL’S ADVICE
When we arrive at a completely unfamiliar place, we will most likely arrange the journey exactly according to the guide book. But this is someone else’s itinerary, not yours, right? So, try to ask the suggestion of locals, they will help you save a couple of dollars here and there, or recommend to you some beautiful places that only local people know.
9. REFUSE THE LOCAL CULTURE
Try to understand the different cultures; this is a goal of travel, isn't it?
10. TOO NERVOUS
No matter how young or old you are, traveling is always a relaxing and fun time. So relax, break free from the norm.
Do you ready for your wonderful traveling? Let’s hope these tips can help you enjoy a fun trip instead of becoming the victim.