Pre-trip Checklist
 

I'm leaving Tuesday for my next trip (yeah!), which will be a month in France, and since I was typing in my to-do list anyway, I decided to go ahead and add it to the FAQ section of my web site (wilhelmswords.com/faq/index.html). I figured I'd post it here as well in case someone else might find it useful - and so you can point out all the things I left out!

Select guidebook(s) and cut out selected sections. (Or buy and download chapters from Lonely Planet and print selected pages.)
Borrow books on tape from library and load iPod. (Include any podcasts related to the trip.)
Buy international SIM for unlocked quad-band cell phone, or check that old one is still working. (Or plan to buy country SIM on arrival.) Charge battery.
Find camera and charge batteries.

For a trip less than a month, tell post office to hold mail. For longer trips, have mail forwarded to a friend, and write checks so said friend can pay credit card bills. (Can now tell post office on-line, but it costs $1.00.)
Prepay any monthly bill not on bank draft (yard maintenance) or write checks and stamped envelopes and add to credit card checks
Get nice new $100 and $50 bills from bank for emergency stash and move enough money into checking account to cover expected ATM withdrawals
Tell bank and credit union I’ll be using my ATM cards abroad, and confirm non 1-800 contact phone nos.
Call credit card companies to tell them I’ll be using my cards abroad, confirm non 1-800 contact phone nos.
Deal with taxes if I’ll be gone over April 15th

Confirm reservation at first hotel
Check flight reservation and seat selection
Make copies of list of important numbers, passport, ATM, credit and insurance cards (both sides), airline tickets, rail tickets, etc. and put copies in backup money belt

Suspend newspaper delivery
Return Netflix DVDs and put membership on hold
Return library books and put any orders on hold

Give house and car keys to the friend who’s keeping an eye on the house and taking the car out occasionally (to keep the battery charged and the tires from going flat)
Set thermostat
Throw circuit breaker for electric water heater
Turn off water at meter (the town says I’m not allowed to do this myself, but they charge to turn it back it on!)

Check I’m carrying passport, airline ticket, ATM and credit cards...

I have a pet/house sitter, so I don't worry about the mail, water heater, etc.

Don't forget to download camera memory cards to computer and then erase them so you have maximum space.

Instead of tearing up my guidebooks, I write the pertinent information on sheets of note paper and put them in my "Travel Packet", which is really a 6-pocket coupon holder. I just write the name, address, phone number, admission fee, and hours of each "things to do" I'm interested in (or might be interested in). I also write up directions to/from hotel, airport, etc. that I know I'll be driving or walking. I'll write any self "walking tours" down also. I don't need the "description" of the sights as I'll be there to learn about them, so the guidebooks aren't really necessary.

I keep enough cash for airporter and/or taxi fees for my return in my travel packet also. That way I don't have to worry about finding an ATM when I get to my home airport because I didn't have enough cash left.

All my hotel, transportation, and other confirmations are kept in my travel packet as well as any tickets. I also keep a simple "budget breakdown" so I can keep track of what I'm spending as I go (as well as what expenses are still coming up). As I'm on a strict budget as I go, this is a lifesaver for me.

Take out garbage and clean fridge.

Thanks toedtoes - I upload my photos when I get back from a trip - and this time I'm taking a "baby" computer, so I can upload on the road, but otherwise, yes, you'd need to do that.

I don't have a pet, so no house sitter, so I do worry about shutting the house down. I have friends who drive me to and from the airport, and I travel with emergency dollars, plus enough to cover getting stuck in an airport for a while.

I use the maps in my guidebooks, and I usually travel for at least a month, so that would be too much writing for me!

"Take out garbage and clean fridge." Good points! (Plus remind friends to bring garbage can back in after it's been collected.)

I realized that I forgot:

If traveling outside North America and Europe, call travel clinic to check on inoculations and anti-malarials.

Renew medical evacuation insurance if it won’t be valid for the whole trip.

I email myself copies of backup papers and important numbers. (passport,insurance etc) I also inform my neighbors and local police of my trip plans.

Kencolian - where do you live? When I was growing up in England my parents would let the police know they were going away, but I've never heard of anyone doing that in North Carolina.

Scan travel brochures and guides and download PDFs to Pocket PC
Scan travel documents (tickets, reservations, contacts) and download PDFs to Pocket PC
Scan credit cards and passports, encrypt and download PDFs to Pocket PC
Rip music CDs and download MP3s to Pocket PC
Decode DVD movies and download MPGs to Pocket PC
Obtain leisure reading material and download LITs to Pocket PC
Cull maps from online sites and brochures and download PDFs to Pocket PC
Cut and paste relevant Fodors columns and download TXTs to Pocket PC
Get latest public transit routing data from nanika.net/metro and download PRCs to Pocket PC
Clip detailed GPS city maps from AutoRoute and download MPSs to Pocket PC

<RED>MAKE BACKUP COPY OF POCKET PC MEMORY, DUMMY!</FONT>

Do I detect a love affair with a Pocket PC? Brand? (I'm taking a Lenovo S10 notepad computer this trip, giving up on internet cafes for the first time.)

"MAKE BACKUP COPY OF POCKET PC MEMORY, DUMMY!" - love it! Is there a story here?

And another one I forgot:
Get hair cut (and colored, if you do that).

Setting up a lamp with timer, so it goes on and off each day.
Set timer on sprinkler system as needed.
Figure out how your indoor plants will survive.
Remember to carry Chapstick or whatever you like for dry lips on long flights.

PPCs I have had:
iPAQ 2215
iPAQ 6510
HTC Wing
Google G1 (not Windows)

Never needed the backup SD.

Have fun with that Lenovo (I expect you will!)

I already love the Lenovo! I've been taking it to the coffee shop, and sitting around the house with it on my lap - the old laptop was really too heavy, and certainly too hot, for that. Between the Lenovo and the iPod, I won't be taking any novels on this trip, so the weight should cancel out a bit.

<i>Get hair cut (and colored, if you do that).</i>

Also in that category - get legs waxed!

thursdaysd - My husband gave me the same mini laptop (Lenovo S10) over Christmas and I LOVE it! May I ask which laptop bag/protective cover did you get for it?

yk - I ordered a protective sleeve from Lenovo, but they weren't going to ship it in time for my trip, so I canceled. I do have a new day pack that has one of those suspended sections for carrying it around. (North Face Borealis) Of course, it's intended for a much larger laptop, we'll see how it works out.

Make sure any papers with personal info, keys and any cc I'm not taking are safely locked away in the file cabinet.

Let neighbors know if anyone is coming over while were gone. Don't want them to call the police on the friend who I told could grab the chainsaw from the shed on Sat.

Try not to pick a fight with my husband, thereby ruining the first few hours of the trip.

No matter how well-organized I am, I can't avoid off-the-chart pre-trip stress levels -- so I need to find somebody else to pick a fight with.
Preferably somebody I'm never going to see again.

LucieV - just don't pick the TSA people at the airport, lol!

Leave the husband at home and take the best friend, to avoid fights on the trip :)

Pack duct tape, you will find a use for it.

I usually end up buying a roll of neon green, or road worker orange and re-rolling a portion onto a small strip of cardboard. It hardly takes up any space or weight, and I've used it on every trip I've been on. Mailing things home, packing large items to take as carryon, fixing ripped butt seams in pants, fixing a suitcase where the zipper tore out just before the flight home. That suitcase was sure easy to spot coming down the conveyor, and everything inside made it home safely.

Check doors and windows, including garage doors and out buildings, to be sure they are secure.

Check other food storage areas in addition to the fridge. A loaf of bread left in the breadbox grows mold quickly.

Turn off and unplug things that use electricity and are not used while you are traveling.

Also, in winter, turn off taps and disconnect hoses that might freeze in your absence.

Freeze a cup of water and put a penny on top in your freezer. If the penny says on top, your freezer has not lost power in your absence and the food is still safe to eat.

Saige--Million thanks for your very helpful tip about freezing a cup of water.
Just this afternoon I was thinking how to be sure whether the power was off while we are on a trip as I have some special food in the freezer. Now I can use your tip.
You are the best!