This is just a list of things that are so obvious once you’ve been on even one solo trip but are not necessarily so obvious before that. This will be an ongoing list as I hear more and more from people.
This is not at all comprehensive; it is mainly anecdotal aka many of these are simply things I myself messed up on and figured I can’t be the only one
- Big cities have more than one airport
- I was in my hostel in London and asked how long it took to get to “the” airport; imagine my shock when he said “which airport?” I was like the fuck do you mean and obviously I was flying out of the worst one out of like FIVE airports so be warned
- Public transport is on a completely different schedule at night
- If you google maps your route ahead of time at 12pm and it says it’ll take 45 min to get somewhere, it will not work and still be the same 45 min route at 2am yes I did that and almost missed my flight
- Party hostels in Europe ≠ party hostels in Southeast Asia
- A chill hostel in Europe is boring. A party hostel in Europe is amazing. A chill hostel in Thailand is a party hostel in Europe. A party hostel in Thailand is madness and chaos and you will never sleep but you will have a wild time
- It is important to have lots of options for how to pay for stuff bc money really helps when trying to get out of a sketch situation (ubers, better accommodation, replacement transportation, there is no food to be found, etc)
- Sometimes a mastercard credit card will work, most times a visa credit card will work, sometimes a debit card is the only thing that’ll work, sometimes you just have to have cash
- Once I was starving to death on a plane from Vietnam to Indo and I needed food but it was a budget airline with no food. They were selling some, but wouldn’t take my card. I had run out of VND and had no IDR yet obviously. They wouldn’t take my USD bc it was too wrinkled. But luckily I had some Thai baht on me and they somehow accepted that. Backups
- Sometimes it is worth just paying for the stupid taxi to the airport
- A taxi is more expensive than a bus but a new flight is more expensive than a taxi
- If you plan to take public transport to and from airplanes then DO NOT take a rolling suitcase, make sure to have a backpack I promise
- CHECK FOR VISA REQUIREMENTS AND THEN CHECK AGAIN
- Ex. in Vietnam, visa on arrival does not mean you can get it on arrival, it means you have to do a whole online process ahead of time. Also make sure to include the letter at the start of the passport number or they will turn you away at the border
- Same with Korea, from a lot of countries you need to do an online form. Soon for Europe as well, Brazil now too I think. Either way the point is that you should be checking and checking and checking official sources and not reading it here
- Cities with rivers and mountains are easiest to navigate
- If your phone dies, just find the river, and then walk along it until you find the bridge nearest to your place, and work back from there
- To decide where to stay in a city, google Nomad List “xyz city” neighborhood map and it will give you a pretty useful map
- $$$ conversions are way better at ATMs than official money changing places (except Cuba)
- Always keep one or two days worth of clean clothes and pajamas in your carry on luggage in case the checked bag gets lost
- Check in and check out times
- Most of the time you can’t check in before 3. Make sure you have a plan for all your stuff if you land way before then.
- Same with checkout around 11, know what you’re gonna do when you have all your stuff if your flight isn’t until 10 pm!
- Hotels and hostels make this easy, bc they will store stuff. Airbnbs you’ll have to find a new solution lol
- Also make sure you know if there is 24 hour reception or not. Trying to check in at 10 when reception closed at 9 is a true nightmare
- Carry a pen and a paper copy of your passport
- For an overnight flight, bring a toothbrush and pajamas so you can do a night routine and hopefully sleep better
- Check if things that are not illegal in your country are illegal elswhere
- Ex. in Indonesia and the Philippines, even the tiniest bit of weed can get you life in prison or worse
I hope this helps! For more of the ultimate info, check out this trip prep guide 🙂