Checklist: What to Do Before You Go
 

Hi --

Detail-oriented frequent traveler here. There's an excellent packing list posted on this forum, adding my list of what to do to prepare for a trip.

Additional information, hyperlinks to resources and a printable pdf available here: http://bit.ly/15Eic8H

11 MONTHS OUT

□ Book international flights, if using frequent flyer miles
□ Claim your seat, if allowed

6 TO 11 MONTHS OUT

□ Book international flights if not using miles
□ Book hotels. The best ones fill quickly

2 TO 6 MONTHS OUT

□ Order your passport and visa, if necessary
□ Obtain vaccinations and medications (some vaccinations are administered in a series and must be initiated months in advance)
□ Book your in-country/in-continent destination-to-destination flights
□ Book a driver, if appropriate
□ Schedule your petsitter or nanny (their schedule may fill-up quickly during holidays)
□ Make restaurant reservations

ONE MONTH OUT

□ Order a hard copy map of your destination at Amazon and/or upload city/country specific apps
□ Confirm flight, ground transportation, accommodation and restaurant arrangements and reservations
□ If you’ve booked through a travel consolidator, verify your reservation directly with your hotel
□ Book tickets to major attractions online
□ Request certificates for hotels booked with points, if necessary

ONE WEEK OUT

□ Purchase trip insurance, if appropriate
□ Ensure you have the correct converter adapter for the country(ies) you’ll visit
□ Scan your vital passport pages and email the file to yourself and one or two contacts. Print a copy to store in your checked bag
□ Organize your itinerary; email the document to yourself and one or two contacts.
□ Buy snacks (I don’t travel anywhere without KIND bars and nuts)
□ Notify your credit card companies that you will be traveling to a foreign country
□ Withdraw cash
□ Confirm arrangements with petsitters, nannies, housesitters, post offices, newspaper delivery, etc.
□ Obtain an international driver’s license if you will be renting a car abroad (go to the American Automobile Association for a list of locations to obtain a license). (By the way, you still need to bring your state-issued driver’s license)
□ Register your trip with the U.S. Department of State Smart Traveler Enrollment Program. Recording information on your trip allows the Department of State to assist you in case of an emergency and provide travel updates
□ Plot places that you want to visit (stores, restaurants, museums, etc.) on your hard-copy map
□ Determine your communication strategyTWO NIGHTS OUT

TWO NIGHTS OUT

□ Pack
□ Notify trusted neighbors of your trip
□ Download plenty of podcasts, books, movies and songs
□ Get a manicure, pedicure, wax, shave, tan, take a laxative, etc.
□ Begin Malarone if you’ll be entering a mosquito zone in the next two days
□ Prepare at work

ONE NIGHT OUT

□ Double-check what you’ve packed against your packing checklist
□ Call your airlines (or look them up online) to confirm the status of your flight(s) and know your departure terminal. If you can book your seat only 24 hours out, claim your seat. Check in
□ Order a taxi to the airport, if appropriate
□ Remove and secure unnecessary items (excess credit cards, bank cards, etc.) from your wallet
□ Lock-up valuables (jewelry, credit cards, checkbooks, keys you don’t need to carry, etc.) if people will enter your premises while you are away
□ Charge your electronics
□ Water plants, fill pet food and water bowls
□ Tag your luggage
□ Set your alarm. Double-check it
□ Leave out instructions and payment for petsitters, housesitters

DAY OF TRAVEL

□ Make mental notes when you turn off your appliances and lock your doors so you don’t drive yourself crazy wondering if you did it later
□ Adjust your thermostat
□ Close blinds, shades, etc.
□ Keep your keys and medications in your carry-on!

If the trip insurance includes cancellation it needs to be taken out when you make your first purchase for the trip.
A week before travel is way too late. Why not buy it months ahead if that is when you are booking things?
Also check if your health insurance covers you abroad so you know if you need that as part of your insurance package. Never travel without health insurance.

Yeah. Thats quite a list :-)

LOL, or there is my usual way.

Get up one day and decide you want to go somewhere. Go online and book a flight to A. Usually no more than a week in advance. Once flight is booked, buy travel insurance online. Total time required, an hour or two.

Day before departure, ask your neighbour to watch the place for a while and pack your bag. Make sure you have 3 things. Passport, e-ticket and credit/debit cards. You're good to go.

If I forget the thermostat, I call my neighbour to go in and set it. If I forget a jacket, I buy one.

Travel can be as complicated or as simple as you choose to make it. I prefer the KISS method.

Should also have mentioned that I have 'sprung' trips on my wife quite a few times. She never complains and in fact when it has been a while since I surprised her, has said to me, 'Don't forget, I only need 2 hours to get ready, so don't let that hold you back'.

For example, a few years ago I told her one evening that we were leaving the following morning for a quick break. All she asked was what weather to pack for (it was in February). I said, 'Switzerland'. A 5 day Valentines break in Geneva with a day trip to Gstaad was what we did.

For a first time or infrequent traveller your list is fine Esme, but after a while, it's no different than saying, 'let's hop in the car and go to a hotel in a city for a few days'. There really is little difference other than needing a valid passport.

My list:

1. Keep passport current.
2. Married a guy who doesn't mind if I travel without him (he hates to travel).
3. Buy trips/tickets/hotel rooms cheap.
4. Hope my leave request goes through at work.
5. Keep a "travel bag" with my essentials- eye mask, vitamin C, magazines, etc.
6. See ya!

Um, not to pry, but what's with the taking a laxative 2 nights prior to traveling? I'm confused.

My guess would be it has to do with all the stress generated by being an anal retentive who needs to go through all this preparation Hobbert. ;-)

My favourite clue to whether someone is anal-retentive or not, is they need to look up 'anal-retentive' to see whether it has a hyphen or not.

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/anal-retentive

I think the bit about taking a laxative is a kind of Easter egg for anyone who read that far.

Just as some people enjoy the planning process as much as the vacation itself (not uncommon on these boards!), some enjoy meticulous preparations in advance, I guess. You're either a packing list person or you're not...

Also stop your mail

Dulciusexasperis, I believe you're on to something!

I consider myself a rather organized person, but compared to this list, I am apparently flying by the seat of my pants :) But then everybody should do what works for them.

Some of the things on the list are actually very good advice. Other items are complete nonsense.

Why would I want to "Get a manicure, pedicure, wax, shave, tan, take a laxative, etc."? It's a trip, not a date.

And I agree with hetismij2 that trip insurance "needs to be taken out when you make your first purchase for the trip".

There are also a few things that are only for people from the US. I can't see any reason for a European travelling in Europe to register with the "U.S. Department of State Smart Traveler Enrollment Program". I doubt they'd let me if I tried, anyway.

I missed the State Department regisration. That's amusing. I suppose it would make sense (if you were an American) if you planned to hike across Iraq or Afghanistan or something.

Come to that, it would maybe make sense if you planned to walk around New York City at night.

How about the item by Hobbert.
"4. Hope my leave request goes through at work."

Kind of a sad commentary on how people perceive who is in control of their life. You have to ask for PERMISSION to go?

Here's how it works Hobbert. You work for money each day. At the end of each day if you have produced enough to satisfy the person paying you, you're even. Neither owes the other anything. YOU decide if you want to work another day and the person decides if they need you to work for another day. If you both agree, that's fine.

If you think anything extends beyond that, just watch how fast someone gets 'laid off' or 'fired' when they are no longer needed.

I never worked for anyone else in my life. I worked for ME and always understood what the contract was. When I wanted to travel, I simply told whoever I was working WITH that I was going.

No offense intended Hobbert, just a comment on how many people MIS-perceive the work contract.

Dulciusexasperis- that's great for you but it doesn't fly in my field, public safety. We have minimum staffing requirements and if a certain number of people are already off, my leave request doesn't get approved. Now, I can shift trade and that's pretty easy to do since I'm on a shift people like. Unless you're planning to pay my mortgage, I'm showing up to work. I don't misunderstand my work contract. It's quite clear. I need them and they need me. In 10 years, I've had leave refused only a handful of times. My requests are reasonable, done as far in advance as possible, and I work hard when I'm there. Nobody's taking advantage of anyone, in my opinion.

Back to travel! I have one more thing to add- leave my itinerary with a trusted person at home.

Umm, what you do for a living is irrelevant Hobbert. If you worked with any company you could say the same things. You need to fit in with others and have a mortgage to pay. I understand that.

My comments were more about a mindset. Things like, 'the work ethic' were invented by the leisure class to keep the working class in line. It's a philosophical issue.

Taking what you say to it's logical conclusion, you believe if you TOLD your EMPLOYER when you were going to travel, you would lose your job, lose your house, lose your spouse, your kids would starve and you'd turn into an alcoholic and homeless person.

In fact that is hardly likely to happen but the fear of it happening keeps most people right where they are. Subservient.

dulciusexasperis: It's not a philosophical issue if you need that job to survive. Especially if you have other people (children, maybe) who depend on you for food and a place to live.

There has to be limits, of course. I wouldn't stay at a job where I was physically or sexually abused. But I'm a single woman without children or a mortgage. If I absoultely had to, I could move back in with my parents, but I'd hate losing my independence.

I wouldn't risk losing my job over something minor or silly. It's not work ethic. It's the fact that I'm an adult and would hate to live on charity, even if it's my parents' charity.

And now we've really left the original topic.

<<Things like, 'the work ethic' were invented by the leisure class to keep the working class in line. It's a philosophical issue.>>

BS

I have a job. Therefore I have to apply for vacation/ time off in advance. There's nothing philosophical about it.

Why in the world would you "confirm your flight" "one month out"?

Confirming the flight one month out makes sense. We booked seats on an Emirates flight months ago, based on the nominated aircraft. Emirates are now using a different aircraft, with a different seating configuration. We changed our seat selection, taking advantage of the different aircraft.

Maybe this is not so much "confirmation" as just being across what is happening.

Nah, it's pretty simple. I like my job and I understand what I need to do to keep it. Showing up is pretty important. Gosh, I'd love to have a job where I could just say, "hey guys, I'll be out next month, see ya in April!" but it's just not realistic. And, yes, my field does matter. It means that work doesn't wait til I get back- if I'm not there and we don't have minimum staffing, my coworkers have to work harder and that's not cool. Oops, guess that's my pesky work ethic :)

Hiring in my field takes about 9 months- I can't play fast and loose with my mortgage for 9 months but it's great that you can. I hope to pay off my house early and be less tied to a job. Until then, I think I'll play by the rules.

Interestingly, I do register my trip with the State Dept. I don't really care if the government knows where I'm going (I'm not that interesting) and if I die overseas, my family can be notified. Morbid, yes, but stuff happens!

d___sex probably has never worked for anyone. One just taking off w/o pre approval isn't allowed in most industries. Just leaving whenever they want ain't happening. In fact in many companies or government agencies -- all vacation time for the entire year is allocated/assigned in January. If you don't get your request in on time you will be given time off when the boss thinks it fits best for work loads. And in many - all leave is denied during high volume work periods (like CPAs or IRS employees Jan-April)

Now - he'll come back and call us all sheep . . . (BTW -- I personally don't have to ask anyone permission for anything -- but I do know how the real world works)

Janisj- leave in the federal government is rough! I like to plan an international trip each fall but I don't usually get everything in order for that until late spring. I also enjoy taking 4-5 day trips to visit family or just see a new city but I can't imagine having to plan all that in January. And here I thought I'd made a rather banal comment to the OP. That'll show me :)

I think that Dulcie's prior employment may have been a role model for Walter Mitty.

The State Department registration thing may seem over the top, but it's not such an absurd idea, really. Having had friends in the foreign service, I know it's no fun for them when an American tourist ends up in some sort of snafu: low man on the totem pole gets rousted out of bed in the middle of the night to deal with emergencies great and small. Registration doesn't prevent emergencies, of course, but embassy staff like knowing who is in their country and for what reason, especially in volatile areas.

<I can't see any reason for a European travelling in Europe to register with the "U.S. Department of State Smart Traveler Enrollment Program".>
Really, you can't? That's because it's for Americans. Ahem. But that was terribly witty.

<sigh> I know I'm going to regret responding to these comments, but some sort of ridiculous, masochistic impulse compels me.

Regarding trip insurance: I don't take out trip insurance. I'm not booking cruises -- I book my travel independently and if I cancel the penalties are low. However, I do travel to a lot of third-world countries, and for those I take out evacuation insurance. It's in the full blog post.

november_moon: you get it. I am extremely detail-oriented, and I recognize the humor in this fact, which is why I admitted to it in my opening introduction.

Dulciusexperlis: There's a distinction between overly detail-oriented (guilty) and anal-retentive. I pack every single thing I will need; however, I do not pack everything in alphabetical order, or arrange my cosmetics according to size, or ensure that all my shoes point in the same direction. See the difference?

Sondrali: Good point. I don't stop my mail because I have a petsitter pick it up (full post). I didn't mention that here.

Hobbert: You and Dulciusexperlis deserve each other.

anyegr: Am assuming you're a guy, not single. As a single woman, I do want to look my best before a trip (or when I'm not traveling). For solo travelers, trips are opportunities to meet new people.

Peeter_S_Aus: Thank you. Part of my confirming is picking a good seat. I reference Seatguru in the full post.

Dulciusexperlis (again): I register with the State Department because I do travel to countries where there are wars, riots, terrrorist attacks. You're not going to need to do that with your adventurous, spontaneous trips to Switzerland.

I mostly agree with Hobbert re: taking/requesting time off work. My work is cyclical. My company is generous with vacation time. In return, I show my appreciation for their generosity by taking vacations only during the slow times.

Esme_Travels- I'd still like to know your reasoning behind taking a laxative before traveling. I had a bit of fun with dulciusexpaseris (or whatever his name is) but I can't fathom why someone would do this. And, yes, I travel to odd places with food I can't identify and water that's undrinkable. It's not something I'll personally engage in but I'd like to understand the motivation behind your suggestion. Otherwise, I think your list seems quite reasonable. A bit more detailed oriented than I am, but there's nothing negative about that.

"It's not a philosophical issue if you need that job to survive. Especially if you have other people (children, maybe) who depend on you for food and a place to live."

Everyone is free to choose how they live their lives anyegr. Most people however do not realize they can actually choose.

You can be the victim of change or the architect of change, it's your choice. What is inevitable is that change will occur. Most people do not make a conscious choice, they simply go with the flow and do what everyone else does. That 'non-choice' is in fact having made a choice. They choose to be a victim.

Anyone telling me they 'need THAT job' is a victim. I used to 'work' for a living before figuring out that I had a choice. You don't NEED to work, in fact most people would obviously prefer not to. What you NEED is to have enough money to live the life you want to live. The assumption is that you have to work to earn that money. It's an assumption, not a fact. You do not NEED THAT job, you NEED money.

We do have to live within society as it exists and that means we need money to do so comfortably but how we get that money and how much we need are things we can control.

There are two kinds of people in the world (in terms of this issue). Those who work for money and those who do not need to do so. Otherwise known as the working class and the leisure class.

Anyone who is retired for example no longer needs to work, they have moved into the leisure class. In times past, no such move was possible. You worked until you were no longer able and then depended on family to support you until you had the good grace to die and relieve them of the burden of having to look after you. The invention of pensions changed that obviously.

So why not ask yourselves, why don't I retire NOW instead of continuing to work for my money? Wouldn't it be better to not have to work?

That leads you to asking yourself, how can I do that? People retire every day at ages far younger than 65. How do they do that? Luck? Or have they decided to be the architect of change and to make the change they want, happen?

Even if the ONLY change you wanted to make was being able to take a vacation whenever YOU wanted to, not when someone else ALLOWED you to, deciding you were going to be the architect of that change would set your mind on a far different path than saying, 'I need to have that job'. There are all kinds of jobs you could choose to do that allow you that freedom.

So no anyegr, you don't have to give up your independence, you already have anyway. What you need to do is gain the independence that you do not currently have.

Most people live and work 'in the system' and the system is in charge. There is no law saying you cannot decide to change the rules and USE the system to suit yourself.

I decided in my mid-30s to move to the leisure class. I did so by my early 40s. As for having enough money to feed the kids and pay the mortgage along with being able to take a vacation whenever I chose to do so, I had that by my late 20s.

We all make choices whether we know we are doing so or not. If you choose to stay in a job that means someone else tells you when you can vacation or not, that's YOUR CHOICE.

well lah di dah -- Aren't you special.

Like I warned - he is now telling everyone they are sheep because they actually have real jobs and navigate in the real world. Not some fantasy (and yes, Peter - very Walter Mitty-esque)

moron

Oops sorry that just slipped out.

To answer the question <<why don't I retire NOW instead of continuing to work for my money?>>

Happily I'm too young for that :-)

It's too bad that after all these years, some of you can't recognize a troll when you see one. Or perhaps you just can't resist replying. Anyway, it's too bad because I actually thought a discussion of pre-travel preparations could be fun, funny, and helpful. Unlike a discussion of Who Has Life Figured Out Best.
Me!
Me!
Me!
Yawn.

But this isn't a "troll" NewbE. It's an advertisement for her travel blog.

"they actually have real jobs and navigate in the real world. Not some fantasy"

Umm, last time I checked, I live in the same world as everyone else. The only difference is I don't need to work for a living.

I wasn't born into that (no such luck unfortunately), I simply chose to put myself into that position. I 'navigated' myself to there janisj.

I will however freely admit that not everyone is capable of doing the same. That's their problem though, not mine and my pointing out there is an alternative that some people might consider is hardly a troll NewbE.

Then there's suze, who can't even figure out who a comment is directed at. Not likely to move to the leisure class any time soon.

To quote Dulcie "There are two kinds of people in the world (in terms of this issue). Those who work for money and those who do not need to do so. Otherwise known as the working class and the leisure class."

That's rubbish. There are also people who choose to work because of the satisfaction that their work gives them. Maybe it is the connection to co-workers, the satisfaction of a job well done, making a contribution to society, healing a sick person, the list is endless.

Sure, they get paid for doing a job, but the pay is not the main thing in every case. Dulcie bleats endlessly about his life style, heading off travelling at the drop of a hat, giving up work when he was aged 45 (and he is aged 67 now), whatever.

Fortunately the world is not overpopulated with people such as he.

<<Not likely to move to the leisure class any time soon.>>

I don't know why you're so proud of yourself for being a mean and nasty person. Hardly a huge accomplishment.

Dulcie, using UPPER CASE on a forum is generally considered SHOUTING. Give it a rest please.

Or maybe you are intending to SHOUT.

Many thanks to you :)

Assuming Dulcie's lifestyle is not a fabrication-- or even if it is--I'd guess most people would like it; after all, being a complete twat about it is not a prerequisite of early retirement. The notion that reading his posts might get you to nirvana is a bigger leap, given the fabrication issue and the twattiness.

But slagging with a person who hijacks a thread to stir up class resentment--aka, a troll--is the height of lunacy, which is saying a lot in a thread that recommends laxatives for pre-travel prep.

Esme_Travels wrote: "anyegr: Am assuming you're a guy, not single. As a single woman, I do want to look my best before a trip (or when I'm not traveling). For solo travelers, trips are opportunities to meet new people." - end quote

Actually, I am female. And single. But I'm not travelling to meet new people. I'm travelling to see different places and have some fun.

FWIW, I usually get a haircut and my nails done before a trip, although it does depend on the type of trip. For a beach vacation, I might get a wax; TMI perhaps! But my point is that this doesn't sound so bizarre to me. Kind of like packing one's favorite clothes--it all contributes to having some fun, no?