I’m leaving for Paris in a little over a week and naturally have all things travel on my mind. I am always incredibly excited to return to Paris because it holds a special place in my heart as it was the first European city I ever visited. I originally traveled to Europe following my high school graduation when my grandparents gifted me with a three-week long tour through France beginning in the City of Light.
At that point in their lives, my grandparents were expert world travelers. Following their retirements the two took it upon themselves to explore just about every inch of the world, most frequently returning to Europe and developing a deep love for the continent. Not only were the two of them a wealth of cultural knowledge, they were also huge proponents of traveling light, smart and absorbing as much as they could from local people and cultures.
Each time I travel I am reminded of the principles they held close to their hearts and, as I broaden my own horizons through global exploration, I do my best to soak up as much knowledge as I can in their honor. A huge part of this for me comes in the form of planning. I LOVE to come up with detailed packing guides, itineraries, and lists upon lists of suggested places to visit and things to do. Today’s post is a tiny glimpse into the preparation that I put into my trips and is a compilation of the very best travel tips I have come across.
1. If you haven’t heard of The Blonde Abroad you need to immediately stop what you’re doing and check her out. Kiersten left her job in corporate finance several years ago to travel the world, giving hope to every 9-5er out there. After spending years on the road, Kiersten has obviously collected a wealth of information that she shares with readers on her incredibly popular blog, The Blonde Abroad.
Kiersten posts detailed city guides as well as general travel tips. My favorite post of hers yet is this roundup of her ultimate resources for travel planning. This post combines years of knowledge all in one place and is so incredibly useful. I’m looking forward to putting these tips to use when planning my next trip.
2. The first travel tip my grandparents taught me was to never travel with more luggage than a carry-on bag. Never. Ever. They drilled this lesson into my head and it has served me well.
I know the thought of taking only a small suitcase full of clothing and accessories on a weeklong or multi-weeklong trip can sound a bit daunting but I promise it isn’t as challenging as you think. All it requires is a little planning and, at the very worst, a visit to the laundromat or a “necessary” shopping trip.
Emily at Coat and Coffee is a woman after my own heart and is a huge proponent of traveling with just a carry-on bag, regardless of how long she will be away. She put together a fabulous post on some unconventional tips she uses when packing for long haul trips that I found incredibly useful.
3. Is it just me or are gorgeously designed packing guides just THE BEST? I can spend hours on Pinterest browsing them and never tire of it. I find it oddly fascinating to see how people make paired down wardrobes work. After all, packing guides were the original capsule wardrobes before capsule wardrobes were trendy!
The below guide is my absolute favorite yet. Not only did Sara of Livelovesara put together this beautiful guide, she also broke down how she would combine the articles of clothing and accessories to create twenty different looks for both day and night. Sara’s shoe selection is a bit more extensive than what I normally take, but everything else in this guide is spot on. Talk about #packinggoals.
4. Once you narrow down exactly what you want to pack all that is left to do is fit it in a very small carry-on suitcase. Easier said than done. Everyone has their own method to their madness when it comes to packing, but there are some helpful hints all of us can benefit from knowing. Carly Cristman’s fabulous video of her very best packing tips and tricks includes expert suggestions that will help make packing for your next trip a breeze.
5. Marianna Hewitt is a global traveler extraordinaire. Seriously though, the woman knows her stuff. Not only did she grow up between Germany and the United States, to this day she spends her time bouncing back and forth across the world. It should come as no surprise that she has picked up a trick or two on how to most effectively use a cell phone when traveling abroad. She put all her best tips together in a very informative blog post that I can not recommend highly enough.
If you’re planning on traveling internationally I can not stress enough how important it is to contact your mobile carrier and discuss your plan options. Your carrier will more often than not allow you to switch international service on during your trip for a very reasonable extra monthly fee. Don’t be the person who skips this step and finds themselves with a massive phone bill full of international charges upon returning home!
There you have it, my favorite tips for planning a trip, packing for a trip and surviving a trip without wracking up surprise charges. I hope there was something in this post that you found helpful and can apply to your own global explorations. What are your very best travel tips? I’d love to hear each and every one of them so I can better prepare for my future travels!