20 Life Hacks for International Travel Newbs

zachnading Published 01/23/2023 in ftw

Thanks to AskReddit, we've collected some of the most useful travel tips for those who aren't used to traveling overseas. We hope you find these helpful.

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1. Never eat where you see other tourists eating. Look for a place jammed with locals. -substantial-freud
2. Don't convert your cash. Just use your debit/credit or withdraw money from an ATM when you get there. -camboprincess99
3. If your plans change and you need to cancel your hotel reservation against the hotel's cancellation policy, don't call and cancel. I've tried to barter with hotels many times, but truthfully unless you have a good relationship with the hotel, they have no reason to refund you.

Instead, call the hotel and move your reservation to next week. Even if it is against the cancellation policy, most hotels will allow you to alter a reservation without issue. Then (usually a few hour later to guarantee you talk to a different hotel rep) call and cancel your "new" reservation. -NellieJaycee
4. When flights get canceled, don’t stand in line to talk to an agent. Call the airline. -PebbleBeach1919
5. For photo equipment or all kind of expensive stuff: put some duct tape on it. If it looks broken, nobody wants to steal it. -SensitiveDolphin55
6. Try searching for flights in a air company’s original language. I once saved $700 booking tickets in Peru by using Spanish rather than English. -Huge-Recognition-366
7. Bring an orange. If someone you are sitting next to smells bad you can open the orange up as a natural deodorizer. -daveescaped
8. Have a (distinct) hat. Meeting up with strangers/couchsurfers/tour group? You're the person in the hat. When talking with officials, the act of taking off a hat shows obedience to authority and will make the interaction just that much smoother.

When you're tucking in for the night, putting keys, coins, that new bus pass, &c. in the (upside-down) hat so they don't get misplaced in a new place. -SimonPennon
9. Learn basic words/phrases of the country's language you are traveling to. This will help you more than you think. -camboprincess99
10. Stupid and Cheerful. A cop stops you in a foreign country? Stupid and cheerful. Never be belligerent. A border guard says your papers aren’t in order? Stupid and cheerful. The airline says you are too late to board? Stupid and cheerful. -daveescaped
11. Remember the guy who travels to countries right after natural disasters and terrorist attacks? -LifeSenseiBrayan
12. Go to any hardware store and pick up a 3 port, 6ft extension cord. They are usually like $5 and pretty light. This will turn 1 outlet into 3 and move it in a more convenient position. You can now charge all your devices. -nowhereman136
13. Roll everything, fold nothing. -ThegatiX
14. Never let anyone “take” you anywhere. This applies especially to taxi drivers and random strangers. -substantial-freud
15. Let your family back home know your travel itinerary. -DuckFlat
16. Poop before you leave, pooping on the road stinks. -TheRealOcsiban
17. Keep a small toiletry bag in your carry on luggage. You never know when your checked luggage will disappear. -polywha
18. It’s better to spend more time in a few places than a little time in a bunch of places. -shveddy
19. Who you go with is way more important than where you go. -AliJoof
20. Nobody wakes up early. Like you can wake up before dawn and get fantastic golden hour pics when the city is empty then go back for breakfast and a nap before heading out for lunch.

Like the best city for this is Rome. No one is around and you can get wide shots that would never happen during the day and the lighting is better. -ActualWhiterabbit

1. Never eat where you see other tourists eating. Look for a place jammed with locals. -substantial-freud
2. Don't convert your cash. Just use your debit/credit or withdraw money from an ATM when you get there. -camboprincess99
3. If your plans change and you need to cancel your hotel reservation against the hotel's cancellation policy, don't call and cancel. I've tried to barter with hotels many times, but truthfully unless you have a good relationship with the hotel, they have no reason to refund you.

Instead, call the hotel and move your reservation to next week. Even if it is against the cancellation policy, most hotels will allow you to alter a reservation without issue. Then (usually a few hour later to guarantee you talk to a different hotel rep) call and cancel your "new" reservation. -NellieJaycee
4. When flights get canceled, don’t stand in line to talk to an agent. Call the airline. -PebbleBeach1919
5. For photo equipment or all kind of expensive stuff: put some duct tape on it. If it looks broken, nobody wants to steal it. -SensitiveDolphin55
6. Try searching for flights in a air company’s original language. I once saved $700 booking tickets in Peru by using Spanish rather than English. -Huge-Recognition-366
7. Bring an orange. If someone you are sitting next to smells bad you can open the orange up as a natural deodorizer. -daveescaped
8. Have a (distinct) hat. Meeting up with strangers/couchsurfers/tour group? You're the person in the hat. When talking with officials, the act of taking off a hat shows obedience to authority and will make the interaction just that much smoother.

When you're tucking in for the night, putting keys, coins, that new bus pass, &c. in the (upside-down) hat so they don't get misplaced in a new place. -SimonPennon
9. Learn basic words/phrases of the country's language you are traveling to. This will help you more than you think. -camboprincess99
10. Stupid and Cheerful. A cop stops you in a foreign country? Stupid and cheerful. Never be belligerent. A border guard says your papers aren’t in order? Stupid and cheerful. The airline says you are too late to board? Stupid and cheerful. -daveescaped
11. Remember the guy who travels to countries right after natural disasters and terrorist attacks? -LifeSenseiBrayan
12. Go to any hardware store and pick up a 3 port, 6ft extension cord. They are usually like $5 and pretty light. This will turn 1 outlet into 3 and move it in a more convenient position. You can now charge all your devices. -nowhereman136
13. Roll everything, fold nothing. -ThegatiX
14. Never let anyone “take” you anywhere. This applies especially to taxi drivers and random strangers. -substantial-freud
15. Let your family back home know your travel itinerary. -DuckFlat
16. Poop before you leave, pooping on the road stinks. -TheRealOcsiban
17. Keep a small toiletry bag in your carry on luggage. You never know when your checked luggage will disappear. -polywha
18. It’s better to spend more time in a few places than a little time in a bunch of places. -shveddy
19. Who you go with is way more important than where you go. -AliJoof
20. Nobody wakes up early. Like you can wake up before dawn and get fantastic golden hour pics when the city is empty then go back for breakfast and a nap before heading out for lunch.

Like the best city for this is Rome. No one is around and you can get wide shots that would never happen during the day and the lighting is better. -ActualWhiterabbit