This is a post about travel tips and tricks.
I must admit, even though I’ve been living abroad and travelling on my own for so long, there’s so much about travel planning that I only recently learned. Over the years I’ve learned a number of travel tips and tricks. And I have to say, one of the people I should credit for that is my brother. He’s also a great travel buddy too! He’ll do an enormous amount of research, put together optmised itineraries, find the best places to eat and be up for seeing as much as we can. Not to mention the beautiful photos he takes (often going out at 5am for the best light!). On our last road trip together we ended up tag-teaming: he provided the perfect itinerary and I chose the food spots. Word on the street is that I chose really well but, I must say, that’s an acquired skill with tips and tricks of its own. Maybe subject for the next post.
My brother has a travel blog of his own but, unfortunately for you, it’s in Portuguese. However, I was doing some browsing over there and came across these travel tips and tricks he put together. So I asked him if I could translate them and share them here and he gave me permission so we’re back to being fortunate!
I’m not translating verbatim as I’m adding a bit of my own opinion too but we’re mostly in agreement! Without further ado, here’s a list of 7 travel tips and tricks you should know and pass forward:
Have an Open Day in Each City
If you’ve got time, leave a travel day free from any commitments. It allows you to do any of the things you scheduled for different days but ended up running out of time or even discover things you ended up finding out about only when in town. Maybe you met other travellers or locals and they gave you a hot tip. Now you’ve got time to follow it! Or even repeat an experience you really enjoyed before!
Always Have Rainy Day Options
Some events or spots might be impossible to visit or just plain unpleasant on a rainy day. Have a backup plan for rainy days/moments, even if it’s to visit places you weren’t that interested in in the first place. It might be your only option at some point! Basically, have a plan B just in case you need it.
Consider Getting Around on a Bike
I’m personally a walker. I LOVE walking everywhere and walkable cities. That’s something I developed all these years living in Europe so I find really difficult to enjoy the US outside of places like NYC and Seattle. My brother, however, highly recommends biking all over and I agree even if it’s not what I’m going to do.
In many cities – like Berlin and Amsterdam! – biking is a great option! The main thing is to avoid public transport, especially cabs and underground trains. You’ll probably save some money and also see a lot more of the city than just the hot spots where you get off.
Understand You’re In a Different Place
This is a bit of a 2-in-1. First of all, we find it a bit pointless travelling only for shopping and eating McDonald’s, or moving abroad to only hang out with your own culture. But to each their own! The other point is, keep your judgements to yourself. Or, better yet, don’t judge at all! Of course everywhere will be different and people will have different ways of living and that’s one of the best parts of travelling! Seeing all this diversity. When you travel to another country, you are the outsider! You need to adapt to that country, not the other way around. Respect people and their homes and cultures.
Don’t Be a Jerk
This is pretty simple and straightforward. You shouldn’t be a jerk anywhere, really. Not at home, nor abroad. But especially abroad! Again, you’re in someone else’s home. Respect it!
Choose Where to Eat Wisely
Both my brother and I like to eat well. Mind you, eating well for us doesn’t mean expensive. Sometimes you might pay a lot for food and get something pretty average. Or like now, days of Instagram, where often you pay for the aesthetic but there’s not much more than that. Anyway! Eating at restaurants requires extra time and extra money so you might want to think of quick eats. Nowadays so many places have food markets! I personally LOVE a food market! You get to try different cuisines and often contribute to independent businesses.
Always Check Opening Times and Availability
Very important tip! Whenever you plan your trip, if you’re researching on travel blogs like this one or others and we’re giving you tips on where to go, check for yourself whether the place is open/in business during your travel dates. Things change all the time, especially now after these crazy years of pandemic we had! I was writing a post about UK cities to live in that aren’t London and was sad to find out this incredible bakery in York that had been in business for 27 years or so had closed down! My brother was saying once he got to a country where he planned to go to a beach for one day only. He got there and found the beach had been devastated by a hurricane!
Opening times, places closed for refurbishment… or even whether you need to book in advance which is the case with Sky Garden, for example. I’ve been there a few times and it was totally fine to book on the day, now it’s pretty impossible as it’s so popular!
Check prices too – lately, especially, things have been getting more expensive so much quicker! (at least it feels like it…)
Tip the Locals
This is one for a select group of travellers. If you earn money in a strong currency, have the budget and you’re travelling to poorer countries, why not tip what you would in your own country? This is very personal but I wanted to add as a suggestion.
Being from Brazil, I know how hard a lot of people work there for little money and how expensive life is for locals. I’m nowhere near rich! but I earn in British pounds. When I visit my country, I’m well aware of how much stronger my currency is so I try to tip more than the standard 12.5%. Same when I visit other countries with weaker currencies. Especially since the digital nomad boom of the post-pandemic life! So many of these cheaper places have become more expensive because of people like me earning money in stronger currencies moving there to have a cheaper lifestyle. It’s cheaper for us earning in pounds/euros/dollars but our being there makes life more and more expensive for locals. I’m not saying giving extra money will offset. This is such a complex subject involving so many factors! This is a way of slightly helping out. Or maybe I’m just fooling myself or trying to make myself feel better… if you’ve got tips for more ethical travelling, I’d love to hear!
This was a post about travel tips and tricks.