How To Prepare for International Travel

There is nothing like experiencing different cultures, seeing amazing sights, and indulging in delicious food in a country you have never been to before. My husband and I don’t get to travel internationally as often as we would like, but when we do we absolutely love it. But, it can be daunting traveling to a whole different country if you have never been abroad before. Below is a step by step plan for how to prepare for international travel and make your trip easier.

Hot Tip: If planning a big international trip seems overwhelming to you, enlist the help of a travel agent – like me! Fill out the general travel inquiry today for a FREE, no obligation quote. Using a travel agent when booking your trip is at no extra cost to you!

1. Get a Passport

First things first, you can’t go anywhere internationally without a passport. If your passport is expired or will expire in the next six months, renew your passport as soon as possible. You can apply for a new passport online by downloading the appropriate form and paying a fee. Just make sure you double check that you are filling out the appropriate form. There is a separate form for minors and you will need to fill out an additional form if you are divorced with a custody order.

In the United States, you will need to submit a picture with your application that meets very strict guidelines. The last passport picture I took, I wasn’t even allowed to have a hint of a smile (hence making my passport photo absolutely horrible). For this reason, I recommend going to your local postal service or CVS pharmacy that offer passport services.

Hot Tip: Once you have your passport, apply for Global Entry, which allows you to skip the lines at customs. This can save you a significant amount of time on your return trip.

2. Check Country Requirements

When deciding where you want to travel, check the country requirements for entry. Some countries will require a travel VISA that you need prior to traveling whereas some countries allow you to get a VISA on arrival or don’t need one at all.

Additionally, in these modern times, double check the COVID regulations and requirements for entry and exit. When we traveled to Dominican Republic for our honeymoon a couple years ago, we almost got ourselves stuck there because we had to take a COVID test in order to fly home. Fortunately, our resort provided these tests, which made it easy to get the required paperwork for our return trip.

Lastly, look into any recommended or required vaccines for traveling to specific countries. These are most typical when traveling to Africa, so just make sure you are up to date on vaccines before traveling by talking to your doctor.

3. Set a Budget

The best way to set a budget is to consider the different factors that will shape the vacation you want to have. Do you want to stay at luxurious hotels, or backpack across Europe staying in hostels, or relax at an all-inclusive resort? Flights will likely always be one of your biggest expenses, so I always recommend looking at general prices of flights to give you a sense of where you should first set your budget.

Next big budget item will be accommodations. Your budget will be shaped by if you choose to stay in hotels or take a cheaper route like staying at hostels. Places like all-inclusive resorts can also save you money when it comes to meals and drinks being included. Other items that will influence your budget are if you plan to rent a car or whether you plan to get around using public transportation. Most people love to eat out while traveling abroad, but you can save money if you plan to cook your own meals.

Consider all these factors when making your budget. You can also use online resources like Budget Your Trip to help you get a general sense of what you can expect to pay in different countries.

4. Research

When it comes to international travel, research, research, and do more research! I am pretty old school so I like to take a trip to my local bookstore and find a guidebook for the country I am looking to travel to.

This will help you decide what are the best areas to stay in so you can narrow down your search. Ask yourself questions like do you want to be in a lively town center with lots to do or are you looking for a quieter experience in a rural area? Guidebooks can help inform on what areas to avoid and which ones you cannot miss.

Travel bloggers, like The Blonde Abroad, are also a great resource for finding those hidden gems in your favorite spots. You might want to go off the beaten path and explore new things, but don’t discount some of the iconic tourist areas too. I read somewhere once, you don’t want to travel all the way to Rome and not see the Colosseum, and for that I couldn’t agree more.

5. Book Flights

Once you know when and where you want to go, it is time to book your flights. It is recommended to book international flights about 10 months in advance. You can also use sites like Expedia or Kayak to find cheap flights, but it is recommended to book flights through the airline. This will allow you to work directly with the airline should anything with your flights go wrong like a delay or cancellation.

In order to save money, consider using a travel credit card like Chase Sapphire Reserve to gain points that can be used towards flights. There are always new promos running, so research to see which credit card might offer you the most bang for your buck before committing to one.

Hot Tip: For international trips, especially if they are for a one-time big vacation, always invest in travel insurance. Especially in post COVID days, this will help ensure you don’t lose your money should something unexpected come up.

6. Accommodations

When searching for accommodations, there are many factors to consider. It is best to think about what type of trip you want to have. Are you looking for a quiet romantic getaway or someplace fun with a lot of activities for your kids? Do you want to stay in a place that is close to shops and dining or if you want to be in a more remote location? The place where you choose to stay will greatly influence how your vacation will go.

This is where reaching out to a travel agent might be best to help you with your search because there are so many options! Hotels have the advantage of often including breakfast and housekeeping, but offer little in terms of a unique experience. Hostels are great for cheap European travel but don’t offer that much privacy. All-inclusive resorts can be amazing for a no-fuss vacation filled with plenty of activities. If you want to have a little more independence, consider using websites like VRBO or AirBnb, which offer houses often managed by private entities.

Take the time to do your research and find the accommodations that will work best for you. Just be sure to consider the following items in making your choice:

• Cost
• Location
• What is included? (Meals, activities, etc.)

7. Ground Transportation / Rental Car

Remember to arrange for any sort of ground transportation to get you from the airport to wherever you are staying. For many, this might mean booking a rental car whereas others can rely on hotel shuttles. When booking accommodations, consider how you will want to get around town. I personally love staying in places where I don’t need the added expense of a rental car and can walk around. Others, however, love the additional freedom that having a rental car can bring them.

Whichever mode of transportation you decide to go with, plan ahead to figure out the best way to get to your destination. If you have read my Thailand itinerary review, we made the mistake of using a shared taxi service which saved us money, but cost us valuable time we could have spent relaxing instead. I recommend that you have a plan in place before you step off the plane.

8. Book Excursions

I find when taking vacations there are two types of people: those who like to wing it and those who like to plan everything. My husband and I are of course the complete opposite of each other, me being the obvious overplanner. As a way to balance being spontaneous and having preplanned things to do, we found that booking excursions every other day was helpful for us.

You can use websites like Expedia or AirBnb to find prepaid excursions with a tour guide. I like to book excursions that give me an experience unique to wherever I am visiting. When I was in Turkey, I did a sunrise hot air balloon tour in Cappadocia. My favorite in Thailand was a food tour and hanging out with elephants. Look for experiences that would benefit from having an expert. General sightseeing you can typically do on your own without a guide.

This is honestly the fun part of planning a trip abroad so don’t be afraid to try something out of your comfort zone!

9. Learn the Language

Make your life a little easier when traveling internationally by learning some basic phrases in the native language. Apps like Google Translate can be helpful in translating on the spot, but locals appreciate you making the effort to speak their own language especially since not everyone will speak your language. These are the basic phrases I have found to be most helpful while abroad:

• Hello / Goodbye
• Please / Thank you
• How are you?
• Where is the bathroom?
• How much?

Hot Tip: Use the easy-to-use app DuoLingo to learn basic words. It is similar to an interactive game where you can level up as you learn more.

10. Make Home Arrangements

Before you leave for your trip abroad, you need to do a few things to prepare your home while you are away. If you don’t have someone housesitting for you, it is a good idea to at least have someone available to check in to make sure there were no major issues like a power outage or leak. The last thing you want to be doing is coming home from vacation to a massive homeowner problem. Additionally, make arrangements for someone to take care of your pets!

If you happen to have kids, check out my other post on how to prepare for vacation without kids.

11. Pause Mail & Alert Credit Card Companies

While you are away, also be sure to pause your mail delivery by requesting a hold online. Nowadays, most credits cards don’t need to be alerted that you are traveling out of the country, but make sure to double check. Always carry some cash on you just in case you run into issues with your credit card while abroad.

12. Foreign Currency & SIM Card

When preparing for international travel, always know what currency they use in that country. Knowing the conversion rate before you go will help give you a general sense of what you are paying. When we were in Thailand, I knew that $1 was roughly equal to 30 baht. This helped me do some quick math in my head to determine what were fair prices and make sure I wasn’t getting taken advantage of.

Hot Tip: You can exchange cash at the airport when you land. You can also use an ATM but you will have to pay a transaction fee.

When you land, also look into getting a SIM card for your phone. There will likely be various levels offered, but I found the cheapest to be enough to get the job done. This allows you to have a local phone number and connect to the internet without WiFi. Having a SIM card is most helpful when booking excursions that require you to include your contact information.

13. Make Copies of All Documents

Be sure to always carry copies of all your important documents such as your passport or other travel documents. I recommend carrying a folder with all of your printed flight and hotel information. When you are struggling to communicate with people in a foreign country, it is easier to have the information available to show. Additionally, a lot of hotels offer safes which you should definitely utilize. In the event something happens to your passport though, you want to have a copy that you can take with you to the Embassy to make things go more smoothly.

14. Make a General Itinerary

Even if you are the type of person to be more spontaneous on your trip, it is still a good idea to have a general itinerary written down. I recently learned about the app TripIt, which is a great free way to organize all your travel logistics and information in one place. It allows you to upload your travel documents and even automatically alerts you to changes in your itinerary. It keeps all your travel information at your fingertips.

15. Packing

With everything planned, there is just one thing left: to pack and enjoy your trip! If you need help knowing what to pack, head over to my ultimate packing list post. Are you traveling on an extended flight and want to make sure you are extremely comfortable? Check out my post on how to survive a long flight as well!

Where are you traveling to or where have you been? Let me know in the comments below!