Travel Tips
What to Take
Here is a list of things which we think are important to take on a trip of this length. It may seem very long to you, but putting all of it together takes little room and doesn't add much to the total weight. Even though it is possible to buy some of these things while traveling they could be much more expensive and less accessible. It is much easier to have it just in case... It avoids desperately needing a bathroom on a cross country van trip through an undeveloped part of Thailand and not having Imodium A-D, standing in a long line to get some kind of medicine to get relief from allergies and a cold in Grand Cayman, or desperately needing a laxative in Japan where the pharmacist didn't speak English and our Japanese was not up to par. All of these things happened to us. So live and learn:
Alert 10/2006: Before flying anywhere it is important to check the TSA website to learn what you can take in your carryon and what must be packed in checked luggage, as well as learn what the up to date rules are. Many of the items we mention below may not be applicable since the rules change from day to day and are significantly different from when we made our round-the-world trip in 2000.
A new discovery for us ... The Oil of Olay facial tissues are great for traveling. They are small folded dry sheets that become facial wipes when wetted. They take up very little space, are disposable, and have multiple uses. They can be used for toilet wipes, used in place of wash cloths in hotels where they are not supplied, as well as great for washing your face. You can keep a couple in a small plastic bag in your fanny pack or pocket to use in an emergency. After finding them we will never travel without them!
PERSONAL COMFORT/HEALTH & BEAUTY:
Tissues
toilet paper
bug repellant
moleskin
Band-Aids
safety pins of all sizes
small first aid kit
breath mints
antacids
throat lozenges
wash cloths
Metamucil bars
Imodium AD
Benadryl
eye drops
cough drops
antibiotics
antiseptic cream
miniatures of hand cream, moisturizers, shampoo, etc.
suntan lotion
inhalant or chewing gum
nose spray
inflatable neck rest
small travel iron
travel sized hairdryerCLOTHING ITEMS:
layering clothes
all-weather coat (with zip in liner, depending on seasons traveling)
lightweight jacket that will fold very small
socks that dry easily and quickly
money belt
bra purse
panty linersMISCELLANEOUS:
plenty of film
new $1 US bills - often preferred in countries for small purchases and tips
books to read that you can discard or give away
travel games
Swiss army knife (Note: Since 9/11/2001 this can no longer be put in your carry on!)
snack food for airplane, bus, trains, etc.
envelopes for tip money
maps
flashlight
scissors
batteries that have been checked
clothesline
copies of passports, (kept separate from passports)
coffee, tea, sugar packets, cream packets, etc.
plastic spoons, forks, knives
plastic bags of assorted sizes
coffee cup with heating element
locks for suitcases
straps for luggage
passport holder
proper electrical adapters
travel clock
disposable cameras, in case something goes wrong with other camerasHere are some additional items from a fellow traveler:
A digital camera...
with large memory card/s and an extra rechargeable battery. Invaluable: no
more are you a slave to film, batteries and x-ray machines, but you can
share the images with people while you're on the trip via internet cafes! If
traveling in crime ridden areas it's good to take a portable CD backup
device to archive your images on a daily or weekly basis depending on how
many photos you will be taking. They might steal your camera, but almost no
one wants a blank .25 cent CD-ROM.
A plug adapter...
Not an inverter, but simply a $5 plug adapter. Most battery chargers for
electronics (computers, digital cameras, video cameras, etc) have the dual
120/240 inverter built in. You simply need something to adapt the prongs on
your plug to the outlet in the foreign country.
Small electric razor...
Fast, convenient and takes less space that an can of shaving cream and a
pack of disposable razors. Plus no hassle with the TSA, post 9/11.
A rubber sink stopper...
For washing your clothes in a sink
(and for stopping up the drain of that bathtub doesn't work!)
Copies of your important documents...
(passport, credit cards, phone numbers, email addresses, flight info, etc.)
(including all tickets. And make certain you put them in several different carry-ons so if you lose one you will still have a copy.)
Scanned copies of your important docs in case your backpack is stolen...
Sign up for a free yahoo or hotmail account and email the scans before you
depart. Accessible in an emergency. Most every country has internet access
these days.
(Although sometimes they are difficult to find in undeveloped countries.)
Business or personal info cards...
Great for giving to friends you'll meet on your trip.
(And very important in some countries such as Japan where it is a vital part of the culture to hand out business cards.)
Pocket translator...
Helpful at times, especially if you only know English
Spare high value bill (or two) hidden or sewn into clothing not likely to be
stolen...
Mostly for crime prone areas.
Mini duct tape roll...
Need I say more???
Key ring necklace...
Keep your hotel keys on this. You can even wear it surfing.
Zip-ties for luggage...
(Now that we are not supposed to lock luggage.)
Better than locks these days, as the TSA will probably snip them anyway.
LED headlamp (coal miner style)...
These run forever on AA batteries...something like 30 hours of burn time.
Think: everywhere you look, there's light! Very lightweight and compact as
well.
Ear Plugs...
For that screaming baby, and over-talkative neighbor on the 12 hour plane
ride.
Eye cover thing...
You know, to block light for sleeping during the middle of the day
What Luggage to Take:
(And what to do with it while traveling)
As we traveled, the most frequent question we were asked by fellow travelers was, "How in the world do you pack for such a trip?"
For our trip we had to pack for four seasons. We would be traveling during early spring in some countries and mid to late spring in others. It would be fall and early winter in Australia, and summer would definitely greet us in Hawaii. In addition, we knew that we would need clothes from the very informal to dress-up things. What to do?
We also had to make certain that we stayed within the luggage limit for the flights. For US flights we were limited to 2 pieces, each weighing a maximum of 70 lb., plus one carry on for each of us. However, in Europe luggage is limited to one piece with a maximum of 20 kilos (about 44 pounds). Since we would be traveling on international flights with our origin in the US, other airlines would have to honor the US limits, but might request that we get into the excess baggage line when checking in. Keeping all that in mind, it was best to travel as light as possible.
We decided to take three pieces of luggage, including one large suitcase, one rolling duffel bag, and one carry-on bag. All of these were on wheels for ease of transporting. In addition, we each carried a backpack, which we have found to be essential for traveling, and which served as our one carry-on piece, allowed per person.
WARNING: When purchasing any wheeled luggage check it out thoroughly to make certain it is stable. We have had two pieces of expensive wheeled suitcases that wobbled as we tried to wheel them, making their use impractical.
We knew that we didn't want to drag huge suitcases on trains and buses. Years ago, as we each carried two large pieces of luggage for miles as we walked all over Tokyo from our hotel to the train stations and lugged them onto trains, we learned our lesson! Besides it was in the days before we had wheels on our luggage - another important feature to look for. We can almost feel the muscle pain in our shoulders and aching backs just recalling those memories. We knew we wanted to avoid that.
We also knew that we didn't want to have to carry any more than we needed to or from any one point to another. We decided we wanted to stow things whenever possible and travel as lightly as possible. Thus, we did some homework ahead of time and arranged our hotels and flights with that in mind.
In Rome we would be staying in the same place for our whole visit so we knew that wouldn't be a problem. However, we did stash our large suitcase in a locked first floor closet while we were staying in an upstairs room.
Spain would be a different situation. We would be on a bus for more than 1,000 miles and even if we wanted to take everything with us, we were limited to one piece of luggage each for the bus trip, plus one small carry-on. We would be staying for one night in Madrid at the beginning of the tour and returning to Madrid at the end. However, we would be staying at two different hotels in different parts of town. We decided to check our large suitcase at the first hotel and travel by taxi to retrieve it at the end of our tour when we returned to Madrid. It worked fine, required a low taxi fare (which we shared with a fellow traveler) and a tip for the concierge at the hotel -- about $5 US. Our other options were to keep the luggage on the bus in the luggage compartment throughout the trip or take it with us at an extra expense of $2 per day for handling. If we put it on the bus we were told there were no guarantees that it wouldn't be stolen. If we took it with us it would mean more work for everyone, including ourselves. Our choice worked the best for us.
In London, we knew that we could check it at Heathrow Airport for a reasonable fee. We chose to do that since we were only going to be there for three days and we would be taking the subway into the city from the airport.
In Korea we would be met by a friend at the airport. He would take us to our first hotel in Seoul and then we would be traveling on our own, by bus, to the ancient capital of Kyongju. We knew we couldn't handle all of our luggage with ease. So we asked our friend to keep our large piece at his home while we did the other traveling. Perhaps we could have checked it at the airport but, due to our special circumstances, it was not necessary to investigate the possibilities.
Japan and Australia would be different. We were planning more extensive traveling for longer periods of time. In Japan we knew that we could check our luggage at Narita Airport where we would be entering and leaving the country. However, there were several problems with that. One was that the price would be prohibitive. Another was that we would need to shuffle clothes from one suitcase to another during the trip and couldn't leave one large suitcase for that period of time. We settled on having our luggage shipped from Narita to our friend's home in Kofu. That way we had access to our things the whole time we were in Kofu, could repack for the other parts of our trip, and it could be shipped back to the airport where we could claim it as we were leaving for our next destination. That also worked well for us. The fee for shipping two pieces of luggage to Kofu (about 3 hours by train) was $32 US. It would have been $17 US for one piece. This is one the few bargains in Japan! It worked well for us.
In Australia we decided to stay at the Sydney Sheraton at the airport so that we would be able to regroup for the tour of Australia, stay in a place that we knew would be nice and where we could check our large suitcase without concern for its safety. That worked well also. In fact we would recommend that it might be a good idea to stay in an upper level hotel on the first and last day of your visit to a country when you are touring for a time. It may cost a little more but is worth it for convenience, regrouping, freshening up for rest of the trip, convenience to transportation, and laundry facilities that may be available.
Backpacks
Even though we take our backpacks with us even on short trips and sometimes just to go to the grocery store, we considered leaving them behind this time. People warned us that they could be slit or stolen while in Europe. However, we decided to take the risk because we consider backpacks to be vital. It is nice to have your hands free for picture taking, they are easier to carry than bags or purses and you can carry more weight more comfortably than any other way. It is also much easier for getting on and off buses and trains. (We always use our backpacks as carry-on luggage. However, make certain that your backpack fits within the size restriction for carry ons.)
Uses of backpacks while traveling:
grocery shopping
carrying all tickets and travel papers, maps, etc.
carrying camera equipment
change of clothes when necessary
books, games, and food for airplanes, buses, etc.
jackets, in case it gets cooler
folding walking stick or cane
umbrellas
food and water, and food for picnics
unexpected purchases
you can even use it as a pillow in an emergency!
Packing
Here are some general suggestions for packing to make your trip a little easier and safer:
Pack layering clothes
Roll clothes whenever possible to prevent wrinkles
Keep one complete change of clothes in backpacks just in case
Keep all necessities with you at all times, including passports and all medications.In backpacks keep:
Change of underwear, socks, toiletries, games, magazines, books, snacks, camera equipment, pencil and paper, calculator, address book, and all vital papers and valuables.Small suitcase:
Change of clothes for 1 or 2 nights for shorter stays, including a couple of changes of underwear, sleepwear, etc.Rolling duffel:
Shoes, jeans, sweatsuits, underwear, all the things you don't have to worry about wrinkling.Large suitcase:
Everything else, including any dressy things, putting least needed things on the bottom. This will minimize unpacking and repacking time, and wrinkling.Misc.:
Distribute Metamucil bars, panty liners, extra disposable razors, packaged snacks (crackers not a good idea as it is too easy for them to end up as crumbs) among the various pieces of luggage.
Lock all pieces of luggage including carry-on and backpacks. Combination locks are best. (UPDATE: CAN'T LOCK LUGGAGE SINCE THE LATEST SECURITY MEASURES HAVE BEEN TAKEN.)
Put something on each of your checked pieces of luggage to make them easier to identify. (Red ribbon, colorful belt, etc.)Passport holder:
All tickets, passports, all travel papers. We kept our passport holder with us at all times. It was easily concealed under our clothes and more secure than leaving it in a hotel safe.Money belt:
Keep most money except for little bit of cash that you might need.Bra purse:
A very secure way to keep money or other small valuables.
Happy traveling. We hope that you found our meanderings useful and that you have many adventures and unexpected surprises along the road in your own journeys.
Godspeed !
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