Some handy tips to make travel safer, and some items to pack to keep you safe no matter where you are. Remember – Poor Preparation Leads to Poor Performance. Make sure you are prepared for your overseas travel as much as you can be with the tips and tricks below.
- Make sure your vaccines are up to date. If you can’t afford vaccines, you can’t afford to travel, it’s as simple as that.
- Make sure you have travel insurance AND THE TRAVEL INSURANCE IS PURCHASED BEFORE YOU LEAVE YOUR HOME COUNTRY, AND IT COVERS ALL COUNTRIES ON YOUR TRIP. Again, if you can’t afford the insurance, you can’t afford to travel. I met a Danish guy on my trip at the Bali Yoga Retreat that I went to – and he has been sailing around the world for 4 years. He bought the travel insurance again online when it expired – but he was overseas. The insurance then refused to cover his trip to the doctor. If you need to buy new/additional insurance when overseas, book through a provider that will cover you if you book after leaving.
- Check the travel warnings for the country you are travelling to as well when you book insurance – for instance Bali has a High Degree of Caution listed due to a high threat of Terrorist Attack on SmartTraveller.gov.au. Look for am insurance policy that covers you should an attack occur. You may be safe, but you may be prevented from taking your flight onwards. Your travel insurance may not cover you if the policy excludes terror related delays.
- Take some Gastrolyte/Hydrolite capsules for the inevitable gastro in Asian countries. I backpack, to meet other solo travellers, so this is more likely to happen to me as I eat street food and stay in hostels on most occasions, but sometimes your belly simply doesn’t agree with the food. Staying hydrated is key to a swift recovery.
- For all you Aussies, I also pack Vegemite for every trip! Also helps retain Hydration, and if you are sick (or hungover), Vegemite is great for your stomach.
- A Door Stop. Bali is one of the cheapest places in the world to get great accommodation at the price of a hostel room, so most of my trip in Bali I stayed in a lovely room with a pool for $13 AUD per day. Bargain. And the Door Stop prevents people from getting in when you are in the room. If there is an incident outside, and someone is trying to break in, they will skip your door, then come back, giving you valuable time to escape.
Don’t mind the tag – mind the safety! Doorstop for peace of mind and extra safety. Light and small to take in a backpack/suitcase. - A spare card for the hotel room key. This nifty tip is that when you get a programmed hotel card that requires you to put the card in the wall, you can simply use any other card you have available. This is handy when you need to charge your devices. Don’t use a bank card though or anything that people can use to take your identity – I used my public transport card, which is the same size as a hotel room key.
Using my transport card to keep the power on in the room without using my hotel card. Perfect if you need to charge your phone. - A lock. At some hostels, they hand them out. However, the key usually opens the other locks in the room, making the lock useless. Bring your own, and if it doesn’t fit, buy a new one.
- Bonus comfort tip: For comfort and for it to feel like home, I also pack a pillowcase. I got this idea from my cousin -I was driving across from Queensland to South Australia with my cousins, and she brings her own pillow. As the trip is over 2 days, with 20 hours driving time, the pillow helps her sleep for the drive ahead. As a backpacker, I can’t take the whole pillow, but I can take the pillowcase! I have a silk one, and I just love it. I just slip it over the pillow at every place I stay at, and it really helps me feel good. I also can get quite bad skin, so it also helps prevent any harsh detergent getting on my face, which has led to breakouts in the past.
Do you have any more tips/experiences you’d like to share?
Let me know below!
Thanks for reading, Emma x
Criminologist 