10 things you should know before you go on holiday – part I
I remember when I was leaving om holiday for the first time. I was going to a trip organised by my school and a church then. There was loads of emotion. My mother taught me to wash by hand. I was probably seven years old then. I was leaving for two weeks to the seaside. Together with my friend, we promised ourselves that we would take our Baby Born dolls with us. None of us took hers, we both forgot the most important thing for us. But clothes for dolls and accessories took us a piece of suitcases.
Well, back then I had problems with the organization!
However, since then, a lot has changed. I have a few adventures behind me. Some more pleasant, others less. However, it is on the mistakes that we learn the fastest. That’s why I’ve prepared 10 things for you that you should know before going on vacation. Each of them is inspired by my own experiences.
1. The date of departure
When I was planning a trip to Kefalonia (Greece) I did not pay much attention to the fact that our trip will take place out of season. During researching on the internet, I learned that this island is a new tourist destination, so there is nothing to expect. I was expecting that it would be a peaceful trip. I have not found many information on the subject of Kefalonia on the internet. However, off-season travel is associated with lack of transport from most locations.
Buses run only in larger cities.
Restaurants, shops and attractions are also open at other times than usual. The price is a huge plus, because prices are much lower in low season. It also involves different weather. You can not expect that when going to Greece in April we will get burned. You’d think there were beautiful days, with a transparent sky. However, most of the time it was cloudy and moderately warm. Therefore, it is important to choose a date which will be really good for you. You need to know what you are looking for while on vacation. Do we prefer a 5-star hotel, swimming pool and nice weather, or just chilling out on a countryside?
2. Location
I think this is the most important point. When writing “location”, I mean the place where we will sleep. Sometimes it is better to pay extra 200 euros and have everything near. When you pay less, you will often encounter a place that is distant from the center and shops for a good few kilometers. If you rent a car – this is not a problem. However, if you do not want to spend money on renting, it is better to invest in a location closer to the center. You have then close to supermarkets, markets, attractions, bus stations, and also you have a lot more choice when it comes to optional excursions ?
3. Your accommodation
Most often, when planning trips, I use booking.com. When I first took advantage of renting an apartment from this service, I miscalculated. The price convinced me. It was cheap. However … you should always check reviews. Booking.com offers us the opportunity to read positive and negative opinions about the object, written by previous visitors. I stopped going by positive opinions.
Now the first thing I do is search the negative comments in order to find the shortcomings of the object.
If I see that something may not really fit me, I contact the owner of the object in this matter. If the problem has been eliminated, there are no obstacles to go to a given place. However, let’s also remember that people will do everything to sell their product and they may lie to you about what happened to me. An additional advice I can give you is to check the dates of adding comments. It’s best to start with the newest, because the older ones can be really out of date.
4. Telephone, internet, wi-fi, roaming
I know that at this point, roaming is good enough that no one should have a problem with contacting their home or using the internet outside their country. However, this is not entirely true. Until a few years ago, I had no idea that the moment I turn on the Internet in Egypt, after 15 minutes, I’d get a message asking if I’m sure I still want to use the internet, because my bill is already 300 PLN. Currently, every hotel has free wi-fi. This wi-fi is not good enough for you to move around the internet freely, or even watch the movie in the evening (unless you pay an additional 10 euros per day). I wholeheartedly recommend buying a new phone starter after landing at the airport.
Pay 5 euros and have enough internet and freedom to use your phone abroad.
I do not mean contact with your family here. However, I have many times had a huge problem to contact the owner of the facility where I was supposed to stay, just after landing. I could not get through many times, the phone was going crazy, there was no signal or the number was unreachable. Therefore, save the data of the owner of the object, or the person you should contact with regarding the collection of keys on your phone.
Buy the cheapest starter and freely deal with people without nerves.
There are many mobiles or portable USB devices that are operating as a router, however, they also fail. If you really need the internet, then as a cheaper option, I recommend a starter. Possibly, You can also share the internet from the phone to the computer (which is sometimes blocked by the operators) or more expensive – buy internet at the hotel / facility reception ?
5. Chargers
How many times on the spot it turned out that plugs from your country do not match the outlets of your destination? And how many times did hotels not have any adapters? How many times has it turned out that the cost of the adapter at the nearest store is expensive? Probably everyone has experienced this problem. I’d recommend the purchase of portable chargers, universal adapters and chargers with plugs that fit the outlets of chosen destination. If you travel a lot, it will certainly pay off. And certainly before you go on vacation, take a look at what plugs are in your hotel. I also know that adapters can be obtained at airports or in major chain stores in larger cities. ?
