New Zealand Mirror Travel

Posts Tagged ‘Cruise’

Taking a well deserved vacation is good tonic for almost anyone, but it’s traveling to get to the destination that can be difficult and stressful. However, there are lots of things that you can do to make the trip more pleasurable and successful, and here are some travel packing tips to help you have great family vacations:

* If you are traveling by airline, often it’s a good idea to get luggage that makes transport much easier for you. For instance lots of luggage these days comes with rollers that let you just pull the luggage along behind you very easily instead of having to carry it through the airport. Many luggage makers also design their bags so that they can be easily stacked together and rolled by one person.

* Here are some things that you should always bring with you in a carry-on bag whenever you travel: your driver’s license, wallet, credit cards, traveler’s checks, airline tickets, information on your lodging, insurance cards, and your passport if you are traveling outside the country. If the airline loses your other luggage for any reason this will insure that you have your most important documents with you anyway.

* It’s a good idea to buy film before traveling in order to save money, but film can easily be destroyed by the increased security devices that are in use now, so consider buying a special case made especially for carrying film when you travel. If you are carrying the film on board with you, you can tell the security personnel that you are carrying film and ask for a manual inspection and they will often comply. If you do wind up buying your film at your destination, be sure to develop it before you leave to be sure that don’t lose any valuable reminders of your fun vacation.

* If you are bringing some valuables with you as you travel, be sure to keep them in your carry on bag instead of the checked luggage to prevent loss or theft.

* Bring along some plastic bags to keep your dirty clothes separate from the clean clothes while you are on your trip if you want to keep the clean ones fresh. Also put your shoes in plastic bags to keep them from rubbing against your clothes and making marks while in your luggage.

* If you have medications it’s usually best to take them on board with you to avoid the possibility of being lost along with any checked luggage. It’s also a good idea to keep them in their original bottles to avoid raising any suspicions as you go through security checkpoints. And be sure that all medications that you use in the US are allowed in other countries too, as that is not always the case and you can actually have them confiscated or even worse, land in jail because of them.

Be sure to read the second part of this article series on travel packing tips that can help you have great family vacations for even more valuable information.

Just traveling anywhere presents a certain amount of challenges to make sure that all goes well, but international travel introduces even more variables into the mix that require advance planning to successfully navigate. Of course, traveling in other countries can constitute some of the most memorable times of our life so the rewards are often worth the extra work needed in preparation. Here are some international travel tips that can help you have the best family vacations:

* Find out as much as you can about what paperwork will be required of you to enter and leave the country where you are going. What passports and/or visas will be needed? Will you be required to have a copy of your birth certificate?

* Find out if any vaccinations will be needed before you travel to that country. Also if you use medications, are they considered legal there?

* If a foreign language is used, try to get at least somewhat familiar with the basics of the local language just in case it may come in handy.

* If you plan on driving while in the foreign country, find out if you will need an additional driver’s license to do so. There are international driver’s permits that are accepted in 150 countries that may be what you need, and you can find out about it at the aaa.com website. And be sure that you have adequate auto insurance that applies in that country before driving there too.

* If you plan on using your computer while traveling, check in advance for any necessary equipment such as voltage converters or electrical plugs that will be required in order to plug in and safely use your computer equipment while you are away. Also, how will you connect to the internet while outside the country?

* Will you be covered for any medical emergency that may arise while traveling in that country? Many health insurance policies do not extend beyond the borders of the US, so additional trip insurance may be required to be adequately covered.

* Try to get familiar with metric conversions or at least bring along a metric conversion table with you so you can understand what measurements actually mean as most of the world outside the US actually uses the metric system for measurement and this can be very confusing for Americans traveling abroad if they aren’t prepared.

Be sure to read Part 2 of our article series to get even more international travel tips that can help you have the best family vacations.

Traveling in foreign countries can be a wonderful, uplifting experience that will never be forgotten, but there are also perils and difficulties that can arise on any trip, especially those that are outside your own country. In part 2 of this article series we discussed how to prevent sickness from local foods and water while away, how to carry cash with you safely and how to use credit cards while abroad and much more. Now here are even more international travel tips that can help you have the best family vacations while you are abroad:

* As with any plane trip you take, airlines can lose the luggage that is checked in as baggage on the flight. So to counteract that possibility, be sure to take all important papers that will be needed for the trip including visa, passports, medical and insurance documents, trip schedule, lodging information, driver’s licenses and so forth in your carry-on luggage just in case. That way it never leaves you as you make the trip.

* It is also a good idea to include a few clothing items in your carry-on bags that can get you through a couple of days in case your luggage is lost.

* To cut down on the amount of luggage that you have to carry, consider shipping the larger, more bulky items instead so that you can retrieve them at your first lodging destination and nor risk having them lost or misplaced on the flight.

* It’s always a good idea to have a small first-aid kit along with you on the trip that can be retrieved handily in the case of an emergency.

* White sneakers often brand you as a tourist in foreign countries, so try to use medium brown to black shoes that are also comfortable for the trip as they tend to blend in with almost any kind of foreign attire.

* Be sure that you know what the local taxes are that apply to any purchase made as they vary widely in foreign countries and can sometimes be more expensive than the item itself.

* Become familiar with all customs requirements regarding foods, plants and so on before you travel so you aren’t denied entry for any item that you have purchased while on your trip.

All trips require some advance thought and preparation but vacations outside your own country call for even more diligent research beforehand. By using the international travel tips and suggestions made in this article series, you should be able to be better prepared and have the perfect family vacation.

The Cruise vacation you have been planning for a year is now a reality. You’ve packed your bags with the appropriate clothes for cruise travel. You have filled out all of the cruise documentation, do this at home, don’t wait to get to your cruise ship, and now you are ready for this highly anticipated cruise. There are a few cruises tips about embarkation day that you should know before you head for your cruise vacation.

Keep all of your documents with you, that includes tickets for the cruise, any vouchers, passport and any immigration forms that the cruise line has sent you. That includes bus vouchers from the cruise line that will deliver you to the ship from the airport. In is wise to pack a change of clothes in your carry on in case your baggage gets delayed. If you have purchased the vouchers from the cruise line, a cruise line representative will meet you at baggage claim and take you to the bus or van that will transport you to your cruise ship.

If you decided to handle the transfer on your own, check ahead of time to find out how much a taxi will cost from the airport to the pier. It is good to know how long it will take to make the transfer so you have timed your flights accordingly. Make sure you have attached your cruise line tags with ship name, cruising date, and stateroom number. When you arrive at the pier a porter will relieve of your bags. He will expect to be tipped. The going fare is one dollar per bag.

Cruise tips are always helpful so pay attention to this one. Let the cruise line make your airline reservations. The reason for this is that if your flight is delayed the cruise line will handle it. If there are several other passengers on the same flight the cruise line will delay the departure of the ship. If it’s just you and your traveling companion they will probably put you up in a hotel in the town of your embarkation and get you on the ship at the next port of call. If you opted to do it on your own, you will have to make all those arrangements. So, for safety and peace of mind let the cruise lines do it.

If you have decided to go to the town of embarkation a few days before the cruise, that will not be a problem, so make your own reservations. Some travel insurance companies will pick up these expenses but make sure you read the fine print on the policy BEFORE your cruise vacation.

When you get to your cruise ship, embarkation could be a little chaotic. There will be lines, especially early in the check in process. There will be a lot of stressed out people so just relax and take it in stride. After you have gone through the check in process you will be aboard and your cruise vacations begins. Here is where it pays to have all of your documentation completely filled out. Many of the cruise lines have loyalty programs so if you are a repeat cruiser many times they have preferred check in areas. Many of the cruise lines will have preferred check in for cruisers who have booked suites or mini suites. Check this out with your cruise travel agent.

This is a little off topic but it’s one of the best cruise tips you will hear. Use a cruise travel agent for all of your cruise travel. It is important to deal with an agent that has sailed on many different cruise lines so they can give you an honest opinion on the difference between cruise lines. Check and see if they are CLIA certified cruise lines organization. Be careful they don’t push you onto cruise ships where they have preferred status which means they get a higher commission. Scour the internet for cruise reviews on cruise travel to back up what your travel agent is telling you.

Now back to the pier. While you are checking in you will have to give the cruise line a credit card for any on board charges. Most times your room card is also your credit card and identification for getting on and off at ports while on the cruise ship. If you can get on the ship early in the process you get two benefits. One you get to have lunch and two you get the first shot at spa and beauty appointments. It will also give you time to peruse your cruise ship and then head for the pool. Having been a savvy cruise traveler you knew to bag a bathing suit into your carry on luggage.

Just before you get to the gangway you will be stopped by the ships photographer and a picture will be taken to commemorate your cruise vacation. It will be on display in the ships photo gallery but you are under no obligation to purchase it. Check in procedures will be different from ship to ship even within the same cruise lines. It depends on the experience of the staff and the cooperation of the passengers. Remember that these folks that are checking you in have been working since seven o’clock in the morning off loading the people from last weeks cruise vacation. Then they turn around and start putting on a whole new set of passengers for the next cruise.

The most important advice is to try to keep a cool head. You are headed for the best thing you can imagine, a cruise forum.

Vacations should be fun, relaxing interludes that give us a break from our normal routine so that we can recharge and feel refreshed. All too often it’s the travel to our vacation destination that is most stressful though. So in Part 1 of this article we discussed ways to have the right kind of luggage for the trip, what to carry on board with you when you fly, how to keep your clothes clean in your luggage, and how to carry medications with you as you travel. Here are even more travel packing tips for great family vacations:

* If you are one of those folks that gets motion sickness easily, be proactive and carry some medication on board with you as you fly or take it with you in the car if you travel by auto. In fact, it may even be best to take it before you leave to be sure that you don’t have a rough time while the trip is underway.

* Always have ID tags on your luggage that can help having them returned to you as soon as possible in the case of their loss by the airline.

* Don’t overpack your bags in order to keep from wrinkling your clothes on the trip. Lots of people try to cram as much as they can into every bag only to find that their clothing looks awful upon arrival at their destination. Buttoning all the buttons on your shirts can help keep them wrinkle-free too. Once you get to your destination unpack as soon as you can to avoid wrinkles as much as possible.

* Try to arrange your lodging arrangements so that you have access to laundry facilities. That way you don’t have to carry as many clothes with you, especially for a long vacation. This will dramatically cut down on the amount of luggage needed for the trip and help you manage them much easier too.

* Make sure that you bring enough luggage to handle any new items that you may buy while on the trip. All too often folks only bring enough luggage to get them where they want to go and then have trouble coming up with a way to handle the extra souvenirs and mementos that they buy while on the trip. Just planning ahead can solve this problem.

* Packing clothes that have similar color schemes can help you mix and match for each day’s affairs. This can help save luggage space that could be taken up by having unique ensembles for every occasion. Most people find that they pack more clothes than they need for the trip anyway.

If you give some advance thought to packing your luggage, it can go a long way toward making your trip easier and more trouble-free, and hopefully you can make good use of our travel packing tips for great family vacations.