10 Biggest Travel Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Biggest Travel Mistakes

Travel Mistakes

Traveling is amazing, but sometimes it may be stressful, especially if it is the first time in a certain country or region. The journey cannot be improved just by following some hacks, there are also some crucial things that you must do before your departure.

We recommend checking this article: “How to Perfectly Plan your Holiday”, because it is structured to help you plan from scratch your next vacation. I’ve put together a Top 10 Travelling Mistakes list, that I invite you to read and try not to do them. Avoiding these things may save your vacation.

The Travel Mistakes List

Not reading reviews
Overpacking
Not paying attention to passport and visa regulations
Connection Time
Packing your carry on
Not checking the plugs
Dinning near important landmarks
Not paying attention to local culture and traditions
Forgetting to check the weather
Not checking your cellphone plan

1. Not paying attention to passport and visa regulations

This is the first and most important thing to do before your vacation out of the country. If your passport or visa does not comply to that specific country’s regulations, you can be denied boarding or sent back home after your arrival. Make sure you check this when you start making plans for your next destination. Only if you have the necessary amount of time to solve every passport or visa issue, then you should book a flight. Everything should be found on your Ministry of Foreign Affairs page or at the consulate’s page of that specific country.

2. Not checking the weather

Another bad mistake is not checking the weather. You should consider researching destination for every season. Maybe you started seeing a lot of cheap offers to the Caribbean in September, that may sound nice, but it is actually the high peak of the hurricane season. You can be lucky to have a week with really nice weather, but you can also be caught in the middle of a hurricane. When you start planning your vacation, one of the first things you should do is checking the seasons and the weather.

3. Connection Time

The airport connection time can give you some really bad headaches. For some important hubs around the world, a two hours connection is not enough. If you are travelling with a visa, you will probably loose some time there. Keep in mind to always check how long it will take to pass through security, to pass passport control. If you are unlucky to be a little delayed, imagine just running through the airport hoping to catch your next flight. For major hubs, we prefer a 3-4 hours connection time. One of the best examples of long security checks is at Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris. Here, we have spent over one hour at security check.

4. Not checking your cellphone plan

Check your cellphone plan before you travel, it is crucial. You can be surprised at home with a phone bill more expensive than your whole trip. If the costs seem ok, then remember to activate your roaming and data roaming, from your phone company, not just from your smart phone. Some companies ask to activate from them. If the costs are very big, then the first thing you should do when you will arrive at your destination, is to buy a SIM card. Usually, they have SIM card for sale at the airport.

5. Not checking the plugs

If you want to be able to use your electronic devices on your next vacation, research what type of plugs are used there. There are 14 different types of plugs around the world. Remember, what you have at home, may not work there. One great idea is to buy an adapter in advance, that way you will save some additional time of adapter shopping and asking for chargers.

6. Overpacking

I perfectly know the eager to put everything in the suitcase, just in case I’ll need it there. Probably, I would end up putting in anyway, but one thing that I always keep in mind is: do not exceed the weight limit. This could be a struggle, especially if you are flying with discount airlines. If you feel the need to pack more, buy extra weight before your travel. The costs you will pay at the airport will be huge.

7. Packing your carry on

Another packing mistake that one could make, is not paying attention to the carry-on packing list. You are not allowed to transport liquids in containers bigger than 100ml, to carry dangerous goods and some specific things for each country. Pay attention to the alcohol and tobacco limits, in order to avoid the confiscation of your products and receiving a fine.

8. Dinning near important landmarks

In general, restaurants and cafés that are located near important landmarks, tend to have huge prices in comparison to the ones that are just one street away. Also, just a few of them are good quality restaurants. In general, they are very touristy, concentrating only in grabbing the attention. Try eating where the locals eat. Make some researches before, don’t just go with the crowds.

9. Not reading reviews – Big Travel Mistakes

This comes perfectly after the previous mistake. Reading reviews on TripAdivsor, Google or the hotel booking websites like Booking, Agoda or Expedia, will help you make the best decision on where to stay, where to eat and what tours to do. Reading them and also leaving a review are some of the best things to do before and after a vacation. This way you will get help and also help others.

10. Not paying attention to local culture and traditions

It is a very important point. If you want to visit a country, try to learn more about it before you travel. Some countries may be totally different of what you are used at home. There are different cultures, religions and traditions around the world. When you visit a country, respect the locals by respecting their culture and religion. Try to follow some rules. If you feel that you cannot follow them, or maybe they seem absurd, then maybe it is a sign not to visit that country.

What travel mistakes have we made?

Thankfully, we did not make any of these. We manage to avoid them by making lots of research before each trip. We love reading other people’s experiences and learn from them. Research is the magic word before travelling. Being prepared before your next vacation is very…Travelicious.

29 Sep, 2022