Traveling
So you’ve decided that you want to go on vacation. Obviously you must decide where you want to go, but you must also decide the HOW. What do I mean? There are a variety of options. The old fashion way to travel was to go to a travel agent. I feel that travel agents are a waste, especially with the internet making things like flights, maps, and other such things readily available. No longer do the travel agents have the best deals. Another more popular way to travel is to take part in a group tour. Asians tend to do this a lot more than Americans or Europeans, but everyone seems to like this method. I find it prevents you from picking all the places you’d really like to see and you’re always time constrained. Most of those I know of who went on such group tours (People to People, etc) were exhausted around the clock. While going to a new place can be exhausting, not having the freedom to choose a break time or to eat when you’d like can be quite stressing. I also find these programs to be ridiculously expensive. A People to People trip costs roughly $7000 for one person, not including things like luggage, passports, souvenirs, etc. To put in into perspective, I was able to go to Japan for 3 weeks (same duration of time as a PtP trip) on about $1800, which included all sorts of souvenirs, my flight, and everything else. Granted, I used frequent flier miles for the flight, which turned out to be a miniscule $78.
So to stop beating around the bush, plan your trip yourself. You don’t need expensive tours or an agent to do this. Get acquainted with my free friends – Lonely Planet and Wikitravel. Figure out when you want to go (spring, summer, winter, fall). Look at the weather stats offered for cities on Wikitravel and Wikipedia. While they cannot always be trusted (the wiki for Sapporo said they get 28 feet of snow a year, which didn’t make sense at all), in general they offer good temperature averages and make mention of rainy seasons. Also, if you’re going to the Southern Hemisphere, keep in mind the seasons are reversed.
Next, look for cheap flights using not only websites like Expedia or Travelocity, but also airline websites (United, Continental, Jetblue, etc). A lot of people make the mistake of using only websites that say they offer “discounted” flights. However, most airlines have seasonal specials to specific places (with blackout dates, of course). I have often found that these specials are considerably cheaper than what other websites offer. Also, a lot of tips say to purchase as far in advance as possible. That is NOT true. Out of all my research, I have found that 1 to 3 months in advance offer the greatest deals. Also, it may be annoying but early morning flights and night flights are often cheaper than day flights. Flying on a Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday or Saturday also seems to be cheaper (but not always). Once you’ve found the best deal (shop around for several days, play around with the dates), make sure you buy on a Tuesday afternoon. It’s said that they offer the lowest prices on a Tuesday.
Plan a budget. This can be tricky, especially if you’ve never done it before, but Microsoft Excel works quite nicely when crunching numbers. If you’re on a tight budget (around or below $4000), use Wikitravel for cheap accommodation. Use as many search words in Google to find cheap places to stay. Hostels are a great way to save and though I’ve never tried it, I hear couch surfing can be a good method as well. Before you start getting uppity about hostels, make sure they include some pictures. If the place looks like a dump, then don’t stay there. If you’re traveling alone as a woman, like myself, then stay in hostels that have private rooms or a women’s only section. Hotels can be cheap, especially during the week days. Shop around. Don’t reserve the first place that seems good. Wikitravel also has information on cheap places to eat, but my family and I have a motto: “Eat where the locals eat.” For instance, if it’s lunch or dinner time and the restaurant is crowded, look at the menu. If it looks cheap, it probably is. Thai restaurants, while not necessarily the local cuisine, seem to be a cheap eat in Europe (I’ve eaten at two, one in London and one in Innsbruck, both of which were deliciously cheap). In Japan, don’t eat at a fancy restaurant. It’ll kill your budget. Saizeriya, ramen shops, and conbini (convenience stores) can be fairly cheap places to eat. I usually spent 1000 yen ($10) or less on a meal and you can save even more by eating a huge lunch and a tiny dinner.
So, in your budget, be sure to include accommodation, food/drinks, travel (public transit, airfare), incidental expenses and entrance fees (to museums, parks, and other tourist attractions). The best way to budget for entrance fees is to get together a list of all the things you would like to see and visit their website or Wikitravel for information. As for incidentals, this is your “buffer”. Usually about $200 or so will do for a trip about 10 days long, but it may be more depending on exchange rates and other factors (accident prone? Compulsive buyer?). For those visiting Japan, website you may be interested in are: Tokyo Metro Transfer Guide, JR website, Japan Rail Pass, Yadoya guest house, Oakhouse, and Khaosan Hostel. Please note that some train lines only allow you to buy tickets X far in advance. I’ve seen it as low as a week in advance.
Establish a basic plan or “frame” for your trip. If you’re like me, I plan each day out carefully to maximize what we see each day. Zig-zagging across a country and doubling back waste precious time when, if you plan out by region, you’ll have much more time to spend exploring rather than on a train. Also, as mentioned above, find places you want to see or visit. Sometimes, a city with a lot of historical sites will offer a day pass for all the sites or maybe a multi-place ticket (for instance, combining the tickets of the Monument and Tower Bridge in London). Also make sure each site will be open on the day or season you plan to visit. Again, research. Your final step in the basic plan is to finalize it into an itinerary.
Now you can purchase the things like airline tickets, accommodations and rail tickets. You should reserve accommodation as far in advance as possible, mainly because you can always cancel it later. This is especially true if you plan to travel during the summer. For things like airline tickets and rail tickets, you should probably wait until about a month before your departure date before purchase. Please refer to the above note that you may have to wait longer due to limitations from the company. Also remember to buy things like plug converters, but we’ll get into what to pack momentarily.
How to Pack Light
For those who plan to go to a foreign country, for any length of time, packing light is a must. The most important thing to keep in mind, when determining how much you should pack, is whether or not you can lift your own baggage. If you cannot lift it all above your head, you’ve packed way too much or you’re exceptionally weak. I’m the weakest person I know and I can successfully lift my own baggage.
The second most important thing is duration. If you’re staying for a week, you should probably pack for a week. But if you’re staying for a month and plan to travel around a lot, you should pack about 5 shirts and 3 pairs of pants. Remember, weather can be a determining factor. If you’re going in the winter or summer, pack accordingly. If you’re going in spring or fall, when the weather is unpredictable, you should probably pack an extra pair of pants and varying degrees of jackets (heavy, medium, light). Why keep clothes to a minimum? Space. Clothes take up the majority of space when packing and you almost always have access to a means of washing your clothes. Even if it means using body soap in a hotel room. You may think it’s gross, but would you rather bring your wardrobe and not have space for things you’d like to buy? Or worse, have to check your bags and then have them lost?
“Do I really need this?” I would heavily advise AGAINST bringing things like a hairdryer, hair straightener, a cell phone, all of your cash, and a massive amount of feminine hygiene products. The last part is the exception – if you’re going to a country where hygiene products are not readily available, please look into alternatives. Sensitive electronics, like a hairdryer, will get fried by foreign currents. If you bring a lot of cash, you’ll have to declare it and the country will take a big bite out of the money you brought through taxes. Bringing your cell phone is dumb. Not only will it cost a phenomenal rate just to keep it on in another country (please research rates if you are set on bringing it, Verizon’s rate for Japan is about $1.50 a minute just for your phone to be on, not including calling charges), but you can probably get a prepaid phone in the country you plan to visit. I would also mention not bringing shampoo, but because the TSA requires every liquid to fit in a quart sized bag, you won’t be able to over pack in this area.
I DO suggest bringing a NETBOOK. A huge bulky laptop will not do. A tiny little netbook will not only be easy to pack, but it will give you internet access. Through the internet, you can then call home via Skype for FREE if your family has a Skype account set up. Google has a similar option. Plus, as long as you have a plug adapter, your netbook will not fry because it has an electric converter box built into the plug. This should probably be the only thing that plugs into a wall that you bring. Bring your camera, but I would avoid bringing one that has a rechargeable battery, unless it has the electric converter box mentioned above. Bring 2 copies of your passport with you, stored in different locations in your bags. Also leave a copy at home with your family. This is in case you lose your passport. Remember to research wall plugs. Europe has a variety, but they sell plug variety packs on Amazon. Japan has the same as the US except without a ground. A plug adapter will still be needed. Other things you may want to bring are a pocket dictionary and a print out of everything you’ve brought with you. This way, you don’t lose anything. Other things you should avoid bringing: boots (unless you plan to go wading), hiking boots (unless you plan to hike), umbrella (buy it there and leave it there),
Condense what you’re packing. Roll your clothes instead of folding them (I usually fold and then roll). Put all the clothes in and then use panties and socks as “crack” stuffers. If you’re staying for a short duration of time, my boyfriend’s mother recommends the “old panty and sock” method. Bring old panties and socks on the verge of death and throw them away as needed. For this method, you’ll need to probably have a set for each day. This way, by the end of the trip, you’ll have freed that much more space up in your suitcase.
I think that’s about it. Questions or concerns?
