What else to bring other than the usual?
Visiting a foreign country opens up a world of possibilities and interesting experiences for you as a tourist. It feeds your curiosity and fuels your sense of adventure.
To ensure a fun and safe trip with less risk of physical, emotional, or financial hassle along the way, make a checklist of all your travel essentials so you don’t forget anything.
Health Items
It is expected that medical supplies, vitamin supplements, and snacks already fill up a space on your traveling checklist. So what else to add?
Generally, you have two options in getting drinks inside the airport. If you’re willing to pay a hefty price for your drinking water or any form of refreshment for that matter, you should have no problem. However, if you want the more practical route of filling up your own drinking bottle using the airport’s drinking fountain and you have a very sensitive tummy, be on the safer side and avoid jeopardizing your trip by using either a water filter or water treatment tablets. Both options are also ideal when camping or hiking. Some drinking bottle products have built-in filters that help purify water from various sources.
Safety and Security Items
It is often a question whether to bring your passport and other travel documents with you all the time or you’re better off leaving them in the hotel. While there is no absolute answer to this, it is usually better to have ready access to them as you roam around a foreign country. You may never know when you would suddenly need them, especially for identification and immigration purposes. At times, you may even need them to get tax refund from your shopping spree. However, bringing them wherever you are raises a concern — the risk of losing them while you have the time of your life outdoors.
This is where a zipper wristband, ankle wallet, secret pocket, money belt, stash footwear, pickpocket-proof clothes or bag, or anything similar to such undoubtedly becomes a necessity. Aside from travel documents, these items also become a good barrier of defense when taking cash, credit cards, and other valuables with you outside.
If you have security worries in a hotel room, which hampers you from getting a good night’s sleep, a travel door alarm placed around the doorknob can help allay your fears. The emergency alarm will alert you or even a hotel staff when your door gets opened in the middle of the night.
You are most likely familiar with TSA locks already, particularly the common ones using keys or lock combinations. But if you’re the type who finds it annoying to keep keys and remember lock combinations, another option for you is a TSA lock that locks and opens using a credit card-like material. You can simply put it inside your wallet or add it as part of your keychain for easy access.
Gadgets and Gizmos
Bringing a mobile phone with roaming service, buying a local prepaid SIM or phone, or renting a local line is almost always a given when traveling overseas. So goes with bringing a camera, a laptop, or at least, a tablet for your various digital works and communication needs. Additional gadgets to include in your carry-on bag would clearly depend on your more specific taste and preferences.
Having a digital storage device like a keychain thumb drive, an aluminum credit card-sized portable USB storage, and flash wristbands and necklaces makes it easy to bring important files to you anywhere. They can also keep you connected, productive, organized, and entertained throughout the duration of your trip. It’s also worth noting that whatever storage device or gizmo you have with you, it’s always good to have soft copies of your important files, in case of emergency.
Bluetooth devices such as a headset to ease on the burden of bringing cords, a laser or portfolio-style keyboard for your tablet or even smartphone, or a waterproof and/or shock-proof speaker that can also be used as a speakerphone for regular and VoIP calls are all useful gadgets worth bringing. So goes with a GPS unit to minimize the need for app-related Internet connection to get directions and local information. You won’t have the guarantee of getting WiFi connection, but a pocket WiFi device may prove useful in desperate measures of getting practical Internet access using a local carrier. If you are traveling for a few days or even weeks for either business or leisure or both, a pocket projector can be both helpful and fun as well — whether using it for personal or social endeavors.
