If you love to travel, you've probably heard all sorts of travel tips to make your journeys better. Well, I'm here to share some travel tips you should ignore.
I love to travel and have been lucky enough to visit many places. My experiences have made me quite travel savvy and I have picked up good tips I don’t mind passing on to friends and family. They often browse for travel tips when they’re taking a trip, but there are some things I would always advise them against. Obviously. It’s different strokes for different folks but these are some general travel tips you should ignore.
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1. Bring a Blanket
Bringing a blanket is one of the travel tips you should ignore. It’s true, you will never be able to gauge the temperature of a plane, and no not all airlines provide blankets, but that is no reason to fill up precious luggage space with a blanket. What is wrong with wearing a pashmina, or a cuddly sweatshirt? That will do the job just fine without wasting valuable space.
2. Wear a Fanny Pack or Bumbag
I have a memory of my dad rocking around tourist attractions wearing a fanny pack in the '90s. He is a fan, claiming them to be much safer and letting you keep your hands free, which I guess they do. I think however, that a cross over bag is just as safe and let’s face it, much more stylish! A fanny pack screams tourist. A crossover bag doesn’t. Keep your wallet in your front pocket, along with any other valuables to avoid pick pockets too.
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3. Don't Eat Street Food
This is a travel tip you should ignore when you are exploring. Street food can be some of the best and most authentic food that you’ll find on your travels. Just make sure you avoid food stalls, which sometimes have bug infestations or look unclean. Try the ones which are surrounded by the locals - then you know it’ll be fine.
4. Don’t Overbook Yourself
Yes, it is great to relax on your travels and not exert yourself too much. However, if you are on a short vacation this can really be poor travel advice. This might be the only time you ever get to go to this location and you don’t want to miss anything because you were resting, something which can be done at home. Just don’t book so much that you feel so rushed and busy that you hardly see what you have signed up for.
5. Don’t Talk to People You Don’t Know
Good advice in many circumstances, however if you follow this advice on your travels, how are you going to meet new and interesting people or get recommendations from locals? Keep the advice in mind though in some respects. Don’t go alone to talk to people down dark alleys. Be selective and trust your instincts.
6. Don’t Book in Advance
Spontaneity can be great, but then again it can also add a whole heap of stress to your break. What happens if there is an event on and nowhere to stay in the area? Book up in advance and avoid wandering the streets worrying that you’ve got nowhere to rest your head. By booking in advance you can usually get a better deal and check out reviews too.
7. Skip the Tourism
It is true that the touristy places are crowded and expensive and don’t always provide a true picture of a place, but at the same time we are tourists. You don’t want to miss out on seeing the sights because you are too busy sticking to the back streets. It is good to find a happy medium. Visit the landmarks and sneak off and have lunch in a quirky local café.
8. Stay outside the City and save Money
This isn’t such poor travel advice as some of the other points, as it is great to save money. However, while you are saving money you are wasting valuable time travelling to the city. Also, you may even find that after you have racked up the transport costs it might have been more cost effective to stay closer in.
9. Confirm Your Booking
It’s a waste of time now, with email conformation and online check-ins. All you need to do is print out your proof. If you are staying at a hotel that is a little stuck in the past and only accepts bookings via the telephone or by post, then you should confirm, but otherwise with all of your reference numbers and print outs you should be good to go.
