9 ms·

50 Years of Travel Tips

295 points by thm 2y ago

ghaff 2y ago
I don't agree with all of this though I do think most of it can be good advice. I did a huge amount of travel, mostly of particular styles, latterly when I was working. Still do a fair bit though I'm trying to spend less time on flights and more on destinations. The main thing I didn't see in there although I may have missed it or it may have been implied is travel light. You can't always go with carry-on pack of some sort if you have varied trips, e.g. smart clothing plus hiking kit. But you can probably go lighter than you think. I know I'm mostly at lightweight travel than I used to be.
- gadilif 2y ago
  +1 on traveling light. The author did mention this, too: " Your enjoyment of a trip will be inversely related to the weight of your luggage. Counterintuitively, the longer your trip, the less stuff you should haul. Travelers still happy on a 6-week trip will only have carry-on luggage."
  - ghaff 2y ago
    Ah. Missed that. It's certainly not always possible if you need real dress clothing or real hiking/camping gear. (I've never gotten to the point where I can do a month-long trip that includes a long distance week-long+ walk along with some fairly formal evening wear in a carry-on.) But you can probably get closer than you think. By myself, if I'm mostly just traveling in cities with "business casual" as dressy as it gets, I can travel almost indefinitely with a 40L travel backpack.
    - kjellsbells 2y ago
      For men, mixed business/pleasure trips to countries with a conservative dress code can be tough (Japan for example). I have found that higher quality suits have better fabrics that are more able to recover from being stuffed in a small space. The problem I have yet to solve is shoes. In the West, not only are suits for meetings becoming rarer, but dress sneakers are acceptable almost everywhere, and they can do double duty for leisure. In Japan I would feel underdressed if I wasnt wearing standard black leather shoes. Maybe it will change with the new generation. Things are certainly lighter than in the early 2000s and 2010s, when there was a distinct echo of the infamous Burleson dress code[0]. (Though the cultural disdain for tattoos still exists.) [0] https://archive.is/Shp8G https://archive.is/Shp8G
      - ghaff 2y ago
        The last couple of trips I took to Japan were for events with essentially a developer/marketing oriented organization and I was able to comfortably get off with pretty much business casual. Maybe I wouldn't have felt as comfortable for a customer event. The last trip I really felt I overpacked for with respect to train/transit was some time in London, followed by a long-distance walk where I really needed everything I had with me, followed by an ocean liner return where I needed jackets and real dress shoes--which, as you suggest, even Rockports aren't really general purpose. You always want more shoes than you can reasonably carry. Wheeled vs. non-wheeled luggage is definitely a tradeoff. I lean towards non-wheeled in general and just maybe take a few more taxis if the luggage is too heavy to schlep around the city a bit.
baal80spam 2y ago
> If you hire a driver, or use a taxi, offer to pay the driver to take you to visit their mother. Uhh, I really can't imagine this one working well in a Western country.
- ghaff 2y ago
  Almost certainly would seem weirder in some places or circumstances than others. One of those things in the list I have certainly never considered.
  - vintagedave 2y ago
    Once in Vietnam, our cab driver asked if he could pause at home on the way. We said yes. So he drove home, his wife gave him lunch, we tried it too, met her and his kids and his friendly half-street-half-pet dogs, and then went back to our hotel. And I still remember it... whereas I cannot remember our other taxi rides!
- eszed 2y ago
  A "weaker" version of this is to ask your driver personal questions. Obviously stop if they make it really clear they don't want to talk at all, but there's a psychology about talking to strangers you know you won't see again that lets many people open up in ways they wouldn't in maybe any other circumstances. I've - Seen more baby and kid-milestone photos than I can count. - Been told a brutal war story by a tow-truck driver in Kentucky ("did you know blood from the liver is almost black?") that - though he didn't say it, explicitly - I don't think he'd ever talked about to anyone. - Heard about someone's life's-work in AIDS prevention. - Learned about the Philippine Civil War from a former airforce Colonel. (Highlight: he and his best friend / roommate in the military academy chose different sides. They privately promised each other that they'd find a way to communicate if their units were ever ordered to attack the other.) - Heard first-hand about the horrifying obstacles the US government placed in the paths of Afghani translators (for the US Army) trying to immigrate to safety in the US. - Met a Singaporean former mercenary, who told me all about doing private security for illegal gold mines in New Guinea. He was very matter of fact (and entirely unrepentant) about having indiscriminately shot local villagers and government forces. Several of his buddies were killed by bow and arrow in an attack during which he cut and ran ("their families are still mad at me"). It was all a madcap adventure, as far as he was concerned, and then he showed me pictures of his boat. Looking at that list, I guess don't do it if you don't want to be trauma-dumped, but I'm quite socially awkward, so you don't have to let that stop you. Most people don't seem to care - they have stories they want to tell, and will tell them, if you'll listen.
melling 2y ago
I spent 9 months traveling from Mexico to Buenos Aires with a backpack eighteen years ago. Spent most nights in hostels in shared rooms for a few dollars a night. It was a great experience. Carried a MacBook Pro and a digital Nikon D70. Actually had the first iPhone but hardly used it. Do have a selfie of myself on a bus somewhere in Central America. These days I’m taking more expensive vacations in cheaper countries. You can go to the Caribbean and stay for $2000 a night or go to places like Morocco or Panama on a luxury vacation for 1/3 the price.
- BrandoElFollito 2y ago
  1/3 of 2000 USD is still 650 USD a night. This is quite a price. I am sure that plenty of people can afford it (I could if I wanted to) but this is rather expensive when you compare to, say a stay in Chamonix (French Alps, a "posh" station) where you can have a 65 m2 appartment next to the slopes in high season for about 250-300€/night.
  - ghaff 2y ago
    I don't keep track of this sort of thing in detail but I usually figure a month-long trip ends up running about $10K. Sometimes probably a bit more, sometimes a bit less. Where that money goes will vary depending on the type of trip. In cities, I usually stay somewhere nice but not top-end which I find doesn't buy me a lot incrementally. Don't usually fly business unless I use miles for part of it. No illusions this is penniless student budgeting but it suits me.
  - navane 2y ago
    OPs numbers are weird. Marocco should get you great accommodation for a tenth, not a third.
  - melling 2y ago
    Instead of $650 there’s always the AirBnB and living on less than $100 a day. When I backpacked I was spending probably $1000 a month. I recommend trying both.
  - notahacker 2y ago
aaron695 2y ago
Wow, that's actually a really good list. I'd add if a journalist has done it, you can do it. Search HN for you location (which also has most of Atlas Obscura in it)
vintagedave 2y ago
This is great advice. On his 'laser out' approach, I often find after travel I am tired and I _really_ don't want to spend hours more getting to where I'm really going, so I usually stop in the city that I landed in. But I have a policy: never go to sleep without going to walk in the city. That is: never land and sleep. _Always_ absorb some of the local environment. Then when your brain knows it's somewhere else, then go to sleep. This has worked to varying degrees. I always wake up with the excitement of being somewhere. But once, on my very first trip overseas, I got lost and spent three confused hours very late at night in a dark 2AM-no-one-around city trying to find my way back... ...but it sure is a good story now. Which is very much the point of this article's advice. It seems to be: optimise for experience and stories.
susam 2y ago
One travel technique that has worked very well for me takes place the day before my trip: using a pre-travel prep-and-packing checklist. I created this checklist about 15 years ago and still refine it occasionally. This list has three sections: A) Preparation tasks: Like printing essential travel documents, saving a backup to my mobile phone, buying foreign currency, activating data roaming, etc. B) Packing list: Mine currently has about 30 or so items, covering everything from the very basics, like toothbrush and toothpaste, to the often-overlooked, like reusable ziplock bags, microfibre cloths, etc. C) Last minute checks: These are final tasks to complete just before leaving home. This includes double-checking that passports are packed, non-essential electrical appliances and lamps are switched off, balcony doors are locked, wet waste has been properly disposed of, etc. By the time I step into a taxi or train to the airport, I can fully focus on the journey ahead rather than worrying about forgotten items. After all, this checklist has served me well for the past 15 years. Every item is checked off before I leave home, so as soon as I get into a taxi or train, I can relax, knowing that nothing has been forgotten.
- ghaff 2y ago
  You do get used to it and I keep a travel pile, but, yeah, checklists are never a bad idea.
- seer 2y ago
  The one thing you _need_ to pack, apart from visa docs required for travel, is a credit/debit card. Anything you’ve missed can be purchased on location. Traveling to rural Vietnam looked daunting and dangerous for people from the EU, but once there me and the friend realized all the worrying and excessive preparation was for naught. We still forgot some things, an hour or two spent at the local shops and the problem was resolved. All you need is an accepted way to pay and you could get out of almost any reasonable situation. Now would it be cost effective? Surprisingly sometimes yes, but even if not it could give you some more stories to tell. Part of the fun of traveling is the stories you tell afterwards, and no good story starts with “everything went according to plan”.
  - simonw 2y ago
rwmj 2y ago
> Getting an inside tour is the ultimate travel treat. How about a factory tour, Yes, I'm glad I did some factory tours in Japan, they were really interesting! Link is to archive.org since JETRO seem to have taken down the site during the pandemic and not put it back up again: https://web.archive.org/web/20190407170023/jetro.go.jp/en/ind_tourism/ https://web.archive.org/web/20190407170023/jetro.go.jp/en/in...
- hermitcrab 2y ago
  We did a very interesting tour inside a Swedish iron mine. It is a shame more big factories and industrial sites don't do tours. I'm sure a tour of massive mining quarry would be much more interesting than the standard tourist attractions.
programmertote 2y ago
>Crash a wedding. You are not a nuisance; you are the celebrity guest! ... They will usually feel honored. You can offer the newlyweds a small token gift of cash if you want. You will be obliged to dance. Take photos of them; they will take photos of you. It will make your day and theirs. (I’ve crashed a wedding in most of the countries I have visited.) That will only work if a white tourist wedding crashes in a poor country. That will not work if I (as a brown-colored southeast asian) do it.
- pocketarc 2y ago
  Yeah, a few of these items sound a lot like "white tourist in poor country". Like the one about asking the taxi driver to drive you to his mom, like holy cow that's creepy. Imagine asking an American Uber driver "hey drive me to your mom's" and see how they'd respond.
  - trinix912 2y ago
    It doesn't even have to be the US, that already wouldn't go well in Eastern Europe. Such things can be seen as extremely disrespectful and are a sure way to get a punch in your face in some places. Lots of these tips seem like what you'd hear from someone regularly traveling someplace like Egypt, where the taxi drivers will openly tell you about their life/family/etc.
    - deleted 2y ago
      [deleted]
    - fortran77 2y ago
      Say anything related to a person's mother in Russia and it will be seen as an insult.
  - magneticnorth 2y ago
    Extremely white, somewhat gendered as well. I travel alone as a woman a lot, and while it's not as dangerous as many people fear, I'd never ask a taxi driver to take me to (potentially) his private residence in a random neighborhood in an unfamiliar city.
simonw 2y ago
These are the best travel tips I've seen anywhere - surprising and unconventional and I can see why each of them would work.
hermitcrab 2y ago
Lots of great advice here. But.. >In many parts of the world today motorcycles play the role of cars. That means you can hire a moto-taxi to take you on the back seat, or to summon a moto-taxi with an uber-like app, or to take a motorcycle tour with a guide doing the driving. In areas where motorcycles dominate they will be ten times more efficient than slowly going by car. I would be extremely wary about this. You are so much more vulnerable on a bike. And you won't even be wearing proper protective equipment. Even if they lend you a helmet, it is unlikely to fit properly and don't know how many times it has been dropped or involved in a crash. Also the most common injuries to motorcyclists are to the legs, and I doubt they will be lending you boots or biking trousers. No thanks!
- keyme 2y ago
  2 years ago when backpacking in East Africa, I went from "there is no way I'm ever doing this" to taking nothing but those moto-taxis ("boda bodas") even for 40 minute inter-city rides with a 12KG backpack on my back. No helmets to speak of. Except maybe in Rwanda. Part of the learning experience of such travel, is to see firsthand how the locals of these places perceive the risk. How they manage risk in general, and what is the "value of a human life" for them as compared to our western perceptions.
  - hermitcrab 2y ago
    The combination of poor road safety, lack of protective equipment and lesser health care if anything goes wrong does not make it an attractive option for me. Each to their own, I guess. Context: I used to have a motorbike. I always wore full protective equipment. Full face helmet, leather, gloves and boots. But I realize that is less practical in a hot climate.
  - throwaway290 2y ago
    There is no "the locals" usually. It sounds a bit condescending, like the article. If people look different than you it doesn't mean they are all the same. People have different life situations. Maybe even in your home country too. If you go somewhere on a moto taxi in Bangkok all those taxis and fancy SUVs you see are not silly foreigners who are scared of motobikes, they are also locals who manage risk.
throwaway290 2y ago
Lots to disagree about like > The list of most coveted cities to visit have one striking thing in common—they are pedestrian centric. if your coveted places are mostly in Europe/Japan. Los Angeles, Chiang Mai (or any city in most SEA) etc are the opposite of pedestrian centric. Do you like multi hour walks in heat among pollution and traffic or stray dogs to get to a nice coffeeshop? Yeah. Public transport is broken and literally everybody who lives there uses personal transport. (He then goes to contradict himself and recommend unsafe moto taxi)
- dpb001 2y ago
  It took only one long solo wait at a crosswalk in Chon Buri to convince me that it was worth paying about 3 USD to travel about 6 blocks. Traffic yielding to a single pedestrian is a quaint notion and as you say a lone farang seems to be a soi dog magnet.
  - ghaff 2y ago
    Some SE Asian cities are OK except for the heat/humidity like Singapore, Penang, and Hong Kong. But, yeah, most of the big SE Asian cities are pretty horrible to get around and certainly aren't pedestrian friendly except very locally.
    - throwaway290 2y ago
      Hong Kong is one of the most walkable of them yep. But if it is "lists of coveted cities", idk how coveted it is;)
      - ghaff 2y ago
        I'd say Hong Kong is pretty coveted, albeit expensive.
hermitcrab 2y ago
A couple of tips from my own experience. -Have a checklist, so you don't forget stuff. -Packing cubes make packing a bag much easier. -For long flights with a stopover (e.g. Europe to NZ) you can stay in a transit hotel in the airport terminal. This means you don't have to go through immigration, security etc. So much easier than having to travel out to a hotel. -I have found Airalo to be quite good for local data esims.
- ghaff 2y ago
  >-Packing cubes make packing a bag much easier I agree in general. Underwear and socks are always in one packing cube and I carry a lightweight mesh laundry pag. In addition, I have a few small kits I pretty much always carry in addition to my document folder. Need to replenish (and cull) from time to time but it makes the checklist a whole lot simpler for most trips.
- strangelove026 2y ago
  https://maya.net/ https://maya.net/ is just as reliable and cheaper in my experience
Tinos 2y ago
Great read but I must say I completely disagree with: "the best way to avoid [[getting cheated/swindled]] is to give strangers your trust and treat them well. Being good to them brings out their good. If you are on your best behavior, they will be on their best behavior." As someone who's lived in London for 20 years, if you trust and treat everyone well you will lose all of your money, your watch, and phone. Unfortunately, those looking to cheat you out of something have become extremely common and totally remorseless! I get that the author is probably referring to locals but these days it's impossible to tell who's a local trying to be kind and who's trying to distract you to reach into your bag. Maybe I'm being unnecessarily pessimistic about strangers but i guess that's what London does to you haha
- deleted 2y ago
  [deleted]
rawgabbit 2y ago
I like his list of recommendations for apps and websites. Are there any other recommendations? FlightAware Google Maps and Translate Booking.com Seat61.com
- ghaff 2y ago
  I find TripIt pretty indispensable even if I'd love to give "notes" to the designers Maybe Expedia too though I often make the final reservation directly One of the OSM mapping apps. I use MapOut TripAdvisor and Yelp are "OK." Often better than nothing. Various carrier or hotel chain-related apps depending on your preferences
  - rawgabbit 2y ago
    On a related note in Europe I tend to use their taxi apps instead of Uber. In Paris I used the G7 app because official taxis could use the HOV lane while Uber cannot. In Italy, I use the Freenow app as I found their taxis very affordable.
    - ghaff 2y ago
      Yeah, Uber plus whatever the relevant local transit apps are I should have mentioned. Thanks for the G7 app recommendation as I'll be in Paris in a couple months. Don't normally take taxis much there but good to know.
    - kingkongjaffa 2y ago
      Yeah Freenow/Uber/Lyft tend to vary in popularity and availability across Europe and even US states. ( I feel like I took Ubers in Chicago and Lyfts in Boston ) Usually just looking at that taxi area in arrivals at the airport you can figure out which app is the one most supported.
- ThinkingGuy 2y ago
  I've found Wikivoyage is usually a good source of info, though the quality of the articles varies depending on the location.
orf 2y ago
> Crash a wedding. You are not a nuisance; you are the celebrity guest! Urgh. Really?
danparsonson 2y ago
>... I’ve seen absolutely no correlation between where you eat and whether you have intestinal problems... Add to this one: always make sure your hands are clean before you eat. A little bottle of sanitiser will do wonders for your health in areas with poor sanitation. Otherwise, one tip I would like to add - when in doubt, do as the locals do. Especially useful when you can't read signs.
padiyar83 2y ago
"People in other places are not saints. You might get cheated, swindled, or taken advantage of. Paradoxically, the best way to avoid that is to give strangers your trust and treat them well. Being good to them brings out their good. If you are on your best behavior, they will be on their best behavior. And vice versa. To stay safe, smile. Be humble and minimize your ego. I don’t know why that works everywhere in the world—even places with “bad” reputations—but it does." This just got me! Its so true. That's been my experience too.
- ngneer 2y ago
  I have a feeling that male and female travel experiences may differ in this regard. "To stay safe, smile." seems pretty naive to me. Clearly, the author is male. I would proffer "always have an exit", "do not walk into something you cannot walk out of" and "do not stray too far from the crowd".
  - cldellow 2y ago
    Yeah, the author seems to be writing for a white male audience in some regards. My wife and I host bicycle tourers when they pass through our town. One was Thomas Meixner, an East German who started travelling the world on bike when the wall fell. He's visited something like 120 countries and biked 250,000 km. My wife asked him if he thought a solo woman could do what he did in the places he did it. He tactfully changed the subject.
  - notahacker 2y ago
    Even for white males, whilst it might help convince people you're one of the nice backpackers and not the rude backpackers or defuse situations caused by your faux pas, being trusting absolutely doesn't get you any sympathy from who make a living out of scamming or robbing tourists. Sure, escalating probably isn't the best way out either and the minor annoyances that cost you a dollar might be best overlooked, but switching your guard off is a terrible idea in a lot of parts of the world
- mikem170 2y ago
  My rule of thumb while travelling: Most people are good and will help you if go up to them and ask, and most of the people who initiate contact with you want your money. While travelling I've never had a problem walking up to someone pretty much at random and asking for directions or recommendations, etc. Sometimes this turns into more than just a quick conversation, and that's great, meeting locals can be the best part of a trip. Hotel and restaurant staff are a great resource, too - ask questions. However, most of the people who approach you as a tourist, particularly in places with lots of tourists, want your money. The swindlers and cheats aggregate in these places. They don't wait for tourists they want to rip off to approach them, they actively go after their prey, being practiced at taking advantage of their openness, confusing them, etc. There are exceptions. Common sense goes a long way. Be way more careful when partying.
ww520 2y ago
One thing I didn’t see mention is the utilization of airport lounges. It really helps to relax before boarding. Though in recent years lounges are getting overcrowded.
- ghaff 2y ago
  I really appreciated airport lounges when I was flying a lot, especially when there were long connections or delays. I don't have mine any longer given I'm trying to make fewer but longer trips. And, as you say, they've gotten overcrowded in many cases. They don't also really help much for early AM departures which are what I'm doing a lot of the time. These days, $400+ a year is better spent on other travel amenities.
  - mat_epice 2y ago
    What amenities would you recommend around that annual budget? Honest question, I’m finding the lounges to be less helpful these days.
    - ghaff 2y ago
      Nothing specific. Just some more expensive meals, maybe more theater/other entertainment. I'm pretty happy with where I am for hotels (which will chew up additional cash pretty quickly anyway). I don't really have a formal budget for travel as such. I just don't find lounges are a very good value for me these days as they were in the past.
mglz 2y ago
Luggage tipp: Have exactly one, easy to grab main piece at luggage that goes on your back or on wheels. Have at most one tiny extra piece to carry. The second your luggage exceeds three it becomes a massive hassle: You cannot hold on to things, you will lose one piece and your fun trip descends into a disorganized mess. Luggage which clips together like a storage/day backpack combo is very valuable for this: Your backpack might be comically large, but you can haul all your stuff with free hands. At your accomodation, you can leave the large bag and continue on your day pack. Free hands are critical when travelling by train or bus, or if you just wanna get a snack and drink.
- hombre_fatal 2y ago
  Get a 45 liter backpack with one single massive compartment. I love this one https://www.peakdesign.com/products/travel-backpack?Size=45L&Color=Sage https://www.peakdesign.com/products/travel-backpack?Size=45L... And then get a duffle bag carry-on. This lets you maximize storage on the cheap “1x carry-on, 1x personal item” plane tickets. No checked luggage; the 45L backpack just goes under the seat in front of you.
  - ghaff 2y ago
    Osprey also makes a good one. Sometimes I need to check something bigger especially if I have a long walk planned but I usually use an Osprey Porter 40Lish (may be a newer line I haven't tried). Yep. Big compartment and use some organizing cubes/bags.
contingencies 2y ago
Prefer http://web.archive.org/web/20211126054838/https://artoftravel.net/ http://web.archive.org/web/20211126054838/https://artoftrave...
1970-01-01 2y ago
The entire 50 years is showing here. Seems like some of these tips are good, and some are awful because they're outdated. Don't crash random weddings if you're not able to pay your way out of trouble. Sketchy plans do result in kidnappings. Truly professional tour guides are wonderful assets that will 10X both your trip and your knowledge in any city.
- JKCalhoun 2y ago
  True. Had a friend head to Central America to surf (I don't recall which country). The first cab he hailed took him to an alley where others were waiting and he was robbed of his passport, cash. End of trip. Please don't interpret this as my painting the whole of Central America as dangerous. This is anecdotal but perhaps a cautionary tale? I suspect if he had not grabbed a cab but rather found a bus or some other sort of mass transportation his whole trip could have turned out wonderfully.
  - dageshi 2y ago
    That just sounds like terrible luck to be honest. Catching a cab from the airport in a new country after a flight is a pretty common thing to do no matter where you're going. Depending on flight length you might well be too tired to really navigate public transport in a new city in a foreign language. There's not a lot to learn from that.
    - fortran77 2y ago
      In certain countries I will always ask the hotel to get a ride for me from the airport, and I will not hail a random cab.
      - ghaff 2y ago
        Certain countries? Maybe. I have ordered a hotel limo in Bangkok but certainly not the norm and probably a bit extravagant.
deadbabe 2y ago
I noticed their list of travel accomplishments doesn’t seem to include things like “been robbed at gunpoint in South America”, “had passports seized in Southeast Asia”, or “sexually assaulted in an Eastern European hostel”. All of which I’ve experienced. Travel, while fun, can also be very dangerous, especially the further you get from being a wealthy straight white male. Be careful and try to avoid thinking you’re a main character for whom nothing can go wrong.
j7ake 2y ago
With over 50 years of travel, the author still does not recognize the unique privilege he is in, and how inappropriate his tips are for most of the population.
- hombre_fatal 2y ago
  What a sad take-away. All tips you give are rinsed through the lens of your personal experience. We don’t need a bunch of disclaimers every time someone enumerates some tips just to appease the “but did he check his privilege tho?” audience.
  - j7ake 2y ago
    > To stay safe, smile.
    - datameta 2y ago
      Right. This reads like a person who doesn't realize their ethnic visage is plot-armor, or that smiling maybe works for a different reason than they think it does. Doesn't read as friendly in most places (we're talking out of context on the street), it reads as aloof or menacing/unknown factor. Being a white male with confidence takes care of the first assumption and leaves the second.
    - hombre_fatal 2y ago
      You might have to be a traveler who has been in a bind to appreciate that one, because it's absolutely true that being friendly can disarm a bad situation.
  - eldaisfish 2y ago
    telling people to crash random weddings? Telling people that all food is hygienic? Oh please, stop with this victim nonsense. Your personal experience can be personal while also admitting that you come from tremendous privilege. You can REALLY tell that this "list" was written by a white male.
devchix 2y ago
This guy is proud enough of his tips that he's sharing it. God help the person who sits next to him on any of his trips. > If you hire a driver, or use a taxi, offer to pay the driver to take you to visit their mother. They will ordinarily jump at the chance. This is deluded. > They fulfill their filial duty and you will get easy entry into a local’s home, and a very high chance to taste some home cooking. Oh I see, he's probably traveling in a very poor country. > Crash a wedding. What? No. That's rude. > You are not a nuisance; you are the celebrity guest! Oh I see, probably a white person from a rich country traveling in a poor country. > They will usually feel honored. I stopped reading and CTRF-F for primae noctis. Disappointed. He had me going.
mmkos 2y ago
Here are mine - go and do something that excites you, whatever it is. Also, be respectful of the local culture and have common sense, et voila. Whatever you do... > Crash a wedding. You are not a nuisance; you are the celebrity guest! I stopped reading here. PLEASE don't do this. It's extremely disrespectful.
- deleted 2y ago
  [deleted]
antiquark 2y ago
Am I the "odd man out" for not wanting to travel, and not enjoying it when I do?
- ghaff 2y ago
  Almost certainly not. I used to work with someone who had to be practically strong-armed into working down his vacation days because he didn't like traveling and, aside from a couple of local-ish hobbies, got bored sitting around home. I probably got a bit over my travel comfort limit for a while hitting about 160 days/year at peak (including vacation) but I certainly wouldn't criticize anyone for whom that's not their thing.
- refurb 2y ago
  No. Plenty of people don't have any interest in it. It just seems like everyone likes it because it's because the new status symbol now that material consumption is looked down on. It's a way to demonstrate your worldliness and check the boxes of the zeitgeist. But of course plenty of people just like it because it's fun too.
lawgimenez 2y ago
Anyone got tips when traveling with kids?
- datameta 2y ago
  I would imagine that is practically a separate category of tips
- mvdtnz 2y ago
  Don't.
- xandrius 2y ago
  From what I learnt from other travelling families: - Be a team - Learn effective communication (verbal and non-verbal) - Be a team And if they are very young (less than 6yo or so), you will need to teach them to be calm in most situations and let you handle it.
Gud 2y ago
I travel 300+ days a year for work. For two years I didn’t have a place to live because I was traveling so much. I’ve been doing this for 7 years now. 1) use uber, unless public transport works well(Nordic countries, Switzerland). 2) lock everything expensive up in the hotel safety box, otherwise eventually your shit will get stolen 3) have multiple methods of payment with you, leave one on the hotel. 4) I travel mostly with my wife who does not travel light. Most of the advice in the linked article is really general lifestyle advice. I have 100 kilos of luggage in my hotel apartment. If there’s a will, there is a way.
- ghaff 2y ago
  >lock everything expensive up in the hotel safety box, otherwise eventually your shit will get stolen Depending upon where I am, I have mixed feelings about this. In many hundreds of days of travel, I guess I've been lucky enough not to have valuables stolen, but then I take some care not to leave them in plain sight. On the other hand, I'm positive I would forget something in a hotel safe as I have in a hotel closet.
- odiroot 2y ago
  In Asia use Grab instead. Uber either won't work or will just be less popular.
  - Gud 2y ago
    Thanks for the info.
yakshaving_jgt 2y ago
I’ve been travelling the world most of my life. I think I can at least partially attribute my survival thus far to never having asked a taxi driver if I can meet his mother.
alistairSH 2y ago
I’d add… - Learn to travel light. You don’t need more than ~4 days of clothes - laundry soap exists. Dragging large rollers around old cities is not fun. - Checklists for prep. I have one for plane travel, one for backpacking, and one for travel by RV. Nothing unexpected on any them, but helps me avoid asking myself “did I pack the phone charger?” Or “do I have sunscreen?” - Give yourself options - I like to list out things to do, maybe 4-5 for a location/day, but only really plan to do 2-3 of them. - The old adage about no bad weather, only bad clothing is true. And the natural light after an evening rain is usually really nice.
- ghaff 2y ago
  Especially for mostly casual city-type stuff, you don't need a lot and it can be washed in a sink or whatever. Stuff getting really muddy on hiking trails gets harder but you can often get laundry done. (My last long distance walk in the UK I had laundry done a couple of times.) Where it gets harder is when you need different type of clothing (especially bulkier clothing) for different legs of a trip.
  - alistairSH 2y ago
    Oh yeah, we did a cycling trip in Italy a while back, with days in Florence and Rome on either side. Hauling bike helmets, shoes, pedals, etc added a lot of bulk. Still made it work all carry-on with no rollers - just max size rucksacks and max size personal bags.
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jeffrallen 2y ago
Tip: your passport does not exist the morning of a trip, even though you packed it the night before. Touch it before leaving the house, and you manifest it into being. This tip is especially important when coupled with another thing I always say: as long ans I have my passport and a credit card, every other forgotten thing is no big deal.
ferngreen 2y ago
Say my good man! Why don't we visit your mother? We can secure a filial obligation for you and an authentic experience for me! By the way, is your sister getting married anytime soon? I have a small cash token to offer in this regard, I think it will be most welcome!
- venturator 2y ago
  No kidding. The undercurrent of colonialism — this exotic world is made for my conquest! - feels pervasive and somewhat nauseating as described here. Western obsession with travel leads to overtourism and a fixation on “novelty”. There’s nothing wrong with a relaxing vacation but we must all learn to be content with our day to day existence to unlock true happiness.
  - titanomachy 2y ago
    My version of his advice would be "if a stranger invites you to a party, don't turn them down." Also, your comment reminds me of this classic SNL skit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TbwlC2B-BIg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TbwlC2B-BIg "If you're sad now, and you get on a plane to Italy, the 'you' in Italy will still be the same sad you from before! Does that make sense?"
    - decimalenough 2y ago
      "People travel to change themselves, but they only change the scenery."
titanomachy 2y ago
> In 53 years of travelling with all kinds of people, I’ve seen absolutely no correlation between where you eat and whether you have intestinal problems, so to maximize the enjoyment of local foods, my rule of thumb is to eat wherever healthy-looking locals eat. An interesting one. Tracks with my experience, although I have far less data. I’ve gotten sick a few times, but not after the sketchy meals that I thought would do it. However, my guide in Nepal warned me not to eat certain things. I always listened to him, and I did not get sick on that trip. He seemed to be speaking from experience guiding other white people.
- ayuhito 2y ago
  To be fair, a lot of this is attributed to your gut microbiome being adapted to the bacteria in your usual diet. Some food may not sit well with you — not necessarily because the food is “bad” but because your system isn’t used to the new bacteria. That’s why locals are fine but tourists aren’t in most cases. On a funny side note, when I was in Nepal we did get some food at a pretty popular restaurant. Everyone had horrific food poisoning later that night, except me since I didn’t touch the cheese!
- crazygringo 2y ago
  > I’ve seen absolutely no correlation between where you eat and whether you have intestinal problems Well of course, that's the wrong correlation to be looking for. It's not where you eat, it's what you eat. Have all the cooked meat and veggies and carbs you want, but raw salads and tap water on the other hand...
Ekaros 2y ago
These are very good tips to do just before or just after your trip. Or why not even following weekend: > If you hire a driver, or use a taxi, offer to pay the driver to take you to visit their mother. > Crash a wedding. You are not a nuisance; you are the celebrity guest! The first one specially is likely good option after you leave the airport on the way home. And the second one is good practise to do when you are not on vacation. Find the wedding venues in your local area and hit them.
gk1 2y ago
Fantastic list. Brings back many memories. Regarding the “recharge” vs “engage” trips: If you’re restless like me then you’ll probably feel most recharged after a trip that fully engaged you. Because you can’t think about work when you’re busy navigating your way through a rural and foreign land, speaking with strangers, and straining to learn just enough of a new language to get around. The “laser-back” tip is 100% on point. I came to know this intuitively but I’ve never seen it put into words. One caveat I’d add there is: if it takes >20 hours to get to your first destination, give yourself time and permission to just chill on the first full day there. Also I want to strongly endorse the “carry-on only” tip. More than that, I suggest backpack only. Your options and opportunities for spontaneity increase significantly when you can just swing a backpack ever your shoulder and go. It also forces you to live with less, at least for a time, which in turn teaches you that actually you don’t need all that much to get by. Then you return home and question why you need a closet full of clothes.
hujun 2y ago
one tip of the list I can't agree more is the www.seat61.com for train ticket, especially if you travel in Europe, where train is the most convenient way to travel between cities/nations but man is it such complex system, there are so many different rail companies and lines, this website gives a clear instruction on options, price and where to buy the ticket
cadamsdotcom 2y ago
So many people got enraged enough about one or two tips to comment on them, to the exclusion of all else. Do yourself a favor. Copy paste the article’s text to somewhere you can edit. Delete the tips you don’t agree with. Read the article without them. Now take note of what you do notice.
werealldevo 2y ago
Plenty of great advice that, in its essence, is: "Be water, my friend."
mvdtnz 2y ago
> If you hire a driver, or use a taxi, offer to pay the driver to take you to visit their mother. They will ordinarily jump at the chance. They fulfill their filial duty and you will get easy entry into a local’s home, and a very high chance to taste some home cooking. Mother, driver, and you leave happy. This trick rarely fails. Wow. What a creep. No thank you. > When visiting a foreign city for the first time, take a street food tour. Depending on the region, the tour will include food carts, food trucks, food courts, or smaller eateries. It will last a few hours, and the cost will include the food. You’ll get some of the best food available, and usually the host will also deliver a great introduction to the culture. Google “street food tour for city X.” No, you will get the mid eateries that pay tour guides to bring tourists. They pay tour guides because the locals know not to go there.
QuiEgo 2y ago
I would add: learn how to say at least “hello,” and “thank you” in the local language, and a few other phrases. Even if you butcher it, the fact that you tried goes a long long way.
vitaflo 2y ago
The “14 days is too many” rings true in my mind. My wife and I did a 2 month road trip several years ago and I distinctly remember around the two week mark we went from having tons of fun to worn out and ready to just go home. The weird part is as we pressed on and got past week 3 I felt like we could be on the road indefinitely and be absolutely happy never returning home. There is def a lull around the end of week 2 for some reason.
- ghaff 2y ago
  3-4 weeks is about where I draw the line. And I've talked to others who have said similar. I don't disagree with your last part though. Never tried it but I can easily imagine that once you get into a "what's this home thing mode?" there's no hard stop necessarily.

295 points by thm 2y ago

I don't agree with all of this though I do think most of it can be good advice. I did a huge amount of travel, mostly of particular styles, latterly when I was working. Still do a fair bit though I'm trying to spend less time on flights and more on destinations. The main thing I didn't see in there although I may have missed it or it may have been implied is travel light. You can't always go with carry-on pack of some sort if you have varied trips, e.g. smart clothing plus hiking kit. But you can probably go lighter than you think. I know I'm mostly at lightweight travel than I used to be.

gadilif 2y ago
+1 on traveling light. The author did mention this, too: " Your enjoyment of a trip will be inversely related to the weight of your luggage. Counterintuitively, the longer your trip, the less stuff you should haul. Travelers still happy on a 6-week trip will only have carry-on luggage."
- ghaff 2y ago
  Ah. Missed that. It's certainly not always possible if you need real dress clothing or real hiking/camping gear. (I've never gotten to the point where I can do a month-long trip that includes a long distance week-long+ walk along with some fairly formal evening wear in a carry-on.) But you can probably get closer than you think. By myself, if I'm mostly just traveling in cities with "business casual" as dressy as it gets, I can travel almost indefinitely with a 40L travel backpack.
  - kjellsbells 2y ago
    For men, mixed business/pleasure trips to countries with a conservative dress code can be tough (Japan for example). I have found that higher quality suits have better fabrics that are more able to recover from being stuffed in a small space. The problem I have yet to solve is shoes. In the West, not only are suits for meetings becoming rarer, but dress sneakers are acceptable almost everywhere, and they can do double duty for leisure. In Japan I would feel underdressed if I wasnt wearing standard black leather shoes. Maybe it will change with the new generation. Things are certainly lighter than in the early 2000s and 2010s, when there was a distinct echo of the infamous Burleson dress code[0]. (Though the cultural disdain for tattoos still exists.) [0] https://archive.is/Shp8G https://archive.is/Shp8G
    - ghaff 2y ago
      The last couple of trips I took to Japan were for events with essentially a developer/marketing oriented organization and I was able to comfortably get off with pretty much business casual. Maybe I wouldn't have felt as comfortable for a customer event. The last trip I really felt I overpacked for with respect to train/transit was some time in London, followed by a long-distance walk where I really needed everything I had with me, followed by an ocean liner return where I needed jackets and real dress shoes--which, as you suggest, even Rockports aren't really general purpose. You always want more shoes than you can reasonably carry. Wheeled vs. non-wheeled luggage is definitely a tradeoff. I lean towards non-wheeled in general and just maybe take a few more taxis if the luggage is too heavy to schlep around the city a bit.

baal80spam 2y ago

> If you hire a driver, or use a taxi, offer to pay the driver to take you to visit their mother. Uhh, I really can't imagine this one working well in a Western country.

ghaff 2y ago
Almost certainly would seem weirder in some places or circumstances than others. One of those things in the list I have certainly never considered.
- vintagedave 2y ago
  Once in Vietnam, our cab driver asked if he could pause at home on the way. We said yes. So he drove home, his wife gave him lunch, we tried it too, met her and his kids and his friendly half-street-half-pet dogs, and then went back to our hotel. And I still remember it... whereas I cannot remember our other taxi rides!
eszed 2y ago
A "weaker" version of this is to ask your driver personal questions. Obviously stop if they make it really clear they don't want to talk at all, but there's a psychology about talking to strangers you know you won't see again that lets many people open up in ways they wouldn't in maybe any other circumstances. I've - Seen more baby and kid-milestone photos than I can count. - Been told a brutal war story by a tow-truck driver in Kentucky ("did you know blood from the liver is almost black?") that - though he didn't say it, explicitly - I don't think he'd ever talked about to anyone. - Heard about someone's life's-work in AIDS prevention. - Learned about the Philippine Civil War from a former airforce Colonel. (Highlight: he and his best friend / roommate in the military academy chose different sides. They privately promised each other that they'd find a way to communicate if their units were ever ordered to attack the other.) - Heard first-hand about the horrifying obstacles the US government placed in the paths of Afghani translators (for the US Army) trying to immigrate to safety in the US. - Met a Singaporean former mercenary, who told me all about doing private security for illegal gold mines in New Guinea. He was very matter of fact (and entirely unrepentant) about having indiscriminately shot local villagers and government forces. Several of his buddies were killed by bow and arrow in an attack during which he cut and ran ("their families are still mad at me"). It was all a madcap adventure, as far as he was concerned, and then he showed me pictures of his boat. Looking at that list, I guess don't do it if you don't want to be trauma-dumped, but I'm quite socially awkward, so you don't have to let that stop you. Most people don't seem to care - they have stories they want to tell, and will tell them, if you'll listen.

melling 2y ago

I spent 9 months traveling from Mexico to Buenos Aires with a backpack eighteen years ago. Spent most nights in hostels in shared rooms for a few dollars a night. It was a great experience. Carried a MacBook Pro and a digital Nikon D70. Actually had the first iPhone but hardly used it. Do have a selfie of myself on a bus somewhere in Central America. These days I’m taking more expensive vacations in cheaper countries. You can go to the Caribbean and stay for $2000 a night or go to places like Morocco or Panama on a luxury vacation for 1/3 the price.

BrandoElFollito 2y ago
1/3 of 2000 USD is still 650 USD a night. This is quite a price. I am sure that plenty of people can afford it (I could if I wanted to) but this is rather expensive when you compare to, say a stay in Chamonix (French Alps, a "posh" station) where you can have a 65 m2 appartment next to the slopes in high season for about 250-300€/night.
- ghaff 2y ago
  I don't keep track of this sort of thing in detail but I usually figure a month-long trip ends up running about $10K. Sometimes probably a bit more, sometimes a bit less. Where that money goes will vary depending on the type of trip. In cities, I usually stay somewhere nice but not top-end which I find doesn't buy me a lot incrementally. Don't usually fly business unless I use miles for part of it. No illusions this is penniless student budgeting but it suits me.
- navane 2y ago
  OPs numbers are weird. Marocco should get you great accommodation for a tenth, not a third.
- melling 2y ago
  Instead of $650 there’s always the AirBnB and living on less than $100 a day. When I backpacked I was spending probably $1000 a month. I recommend trying both.
- notahacker 2y ago

aaron695 2y ago

Wow, that's actually a really good list. I'd add if a journalist has done it, you can do it. Search HN for you location (which also has most of Atlas Obscura in it)

vintagedave 2y ago

This is great advice. On his 'laser out' approach, I often find after travel I am tired and I _really_ don't want to spend hours more getting to where I'm really going, so I usually stop in the city that I landed in. But I have a policy: never go to sleep without going to walk in the city. That is: never land and sleep. _Always_ absorb some of the local environment. Then when your brain knows it's somewhere else, then go to sleep. This has worked to varying degrees. I always wake up with the excitement of being somewhere. But once, on my very first trip overseas, I got lost and spent three confused hours very late at night in a dark 2AM-no-one-around city trying to find my way back... ...but it sure is a good story now. Which is very much the point of this article's advice. It seems to be: optimise for experience and stories.

susam 2y ago

One travel technique that has worked very well for me takes place the day before my trip: using a pre-travel prep-and-packing checklist. I created this checklist about 15 years ago and still refine it occasionally. This list has three sections: A) Preparation tasks: Like printing essential travel documents, saving a backup to my mobile phone, buying foreign currency, activating data roaming, etc. B) Packing list: Mine currently has about 30 or so items, covering everything from the very basics, like toothbrush and toothpaste, to the often-overlooked, like reusable ziplock bags, microfibre cloths, etc. C) Last minute checks: These are final tasks to complete just before leaving home. This includes double-checking that passports are packed, non-essential electrical appliances and lamps are switched off, balcony doors are locked, wet waste has been properly disposed of, etc. By the time I step into a taxi or train to the airport, I can fully focus on the journey ahead rather than worrying about forgotten items. After all, this checklist has served me well for the past 15 years. Every item is checked off before I leave home, so as soon as I get into a taxi or train, I can relax, knowing that nothing has been forgotten.

ghaff 2y ago
You do get used to it and I keep a travel pile, but, yeah, checklists are never a bad idea.
seer 2y ago
The one thing you _need_ to pack, apart from visa docs required for travel, is a credit/debit card. Anything you’ve missed can be purchased on location. Traveling to rural Vietnam looked daunting and dangerous for people from the EU, but once there me and the friend realized all the worrying and excessive preparation was for naught. We still forgot some things, an hour or two spent at the local shops and the problem was resolved. All you need is an accepted way to pay and you could get out of almost any reasonable situation. Now would it be cost effective? Surprisingly sometimes yes, but even if not it could give you some more stories to tell. Part of the fun of traveling is the stories you tell afterwards, and no good story starts with “everything went according to plan”.
- simonw 2y ago

rwmj 2y ago

> Getting an inside tour is the ultimate travel treat. How about a factory tour, Yes, I'm glad I did some factory tours in Japan, they were really interesting! Link is to archive.org since JETRO seem to have taken down the site during the pandemic and not put it back up again: https://web.archive.org/web/20190407170023/jetro.go.jp/en/ind_tourism/ https://web.archive.org/web/20190407170023/jetro.go.jp/en/in...

hermitcrab 2y ago
We did a very interesting tour inside a Swedish iron mine. It is a shame more big factories and industrial sites don't do tours. I'm sure a tour of massive mining quarry would be much more interesting than the standard tourist attractions.

programmertote 2y ago

>Crash a wedding. You are not a nuisance; you are the celebrity guest! ... They will usually feel honored. You can offer the newlyweds a small token gift of cash if you want. You will be obliged to dance. Take photos of them; they will take photos of you. It will make your day and theirs. (I’ve crashed a wedding in most of the countries I have visited.) That will only work if a white tourist wedding crashes in a poor country. That will not work if I (as a brown-colored southeast asian) do it.

pocketarc 2y ago
Yeah, a few of these items sound a lot like "white tourist in poor country". Like the one about asking the taxi driver to drive you to his mom, like holy cow that's creepy. Imagine asking an American Uber driver "hey drive me to your mom's" and see how they'd respond.
- trinix912 2y ago
  It doesn't even have to be the US, that already wouldn't go well in Eastern Europe. Such things can be seen as extremely disrespectful and are a sure way to get a punch in your face in some places. Lots of these tips seem like what you'd hear from someone regularly traveling someplace like Egypt, where the taxi drivers will openly tell you about their life/family/etc.
  - deleted 2y ago
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  - fortran77 2y ago
    Say anything related to a person's mother in Russia and it will be seen as an insult.
- magneticnorth 2y ago
  Extremely white, somewhat gendered as well. I travel alone as a woman a lot, and while it's not as dangerous as many people fear, I'd never ask a taxi driver to take me to (potentially) his private residence in a random neighborhood in an unfamiliar city.

simonw 2y ago

These are the best travel tips I've seen anywhere - surprising and unconventional and I can see why each of them would work.

hermitcrab 2y ago

Lots of great advice here. But.. >In many parts of the world today motorcycles play the role of cars. That means you can hire a moto-taxi to take you on the back seat, or to summon a moto-taxi with an uber-like app, or to take a motorcycle tour with a guide doing the driving. In areas where motorcycles dominate they will be ten times more efficient than slowly going by car. I would be extremely wary about this. You are so much more vulnerable on a bike. And you won't even be wearing proper protective equipment. Even if they lend you a helmet, it is unlikely to fit properly and don't know how many times it has been dropped or involved in a crash. Also the most common injuries to motorcyclists are to the legs, and I doubt they will be lending you boots or biking trousers. No thanks!

keyme 2y ago
2 years ago when backpacking in East Africa, I went from "there is no way I'm ever doing this" to taking nothing but those moto-taxis ("boda bodas") even for 40 minute inter-city rides with a 12KG backpack on my back. No helmets to speak of. Except maybe in Rwanda. Part of the learning experience of such travel, is to see firsthand how the locals of these places perceive the risk. How they manage risk in general, and what is the "value of a human life" for them as compared to our western perceptions.
- hermitcrab 2y ago
  The combination of poor road safety, lack of protective equipment and lesser health care if anything goes wrong does not make it an attractive option for me. Each to their own, I guess. Context: I used to have a motorbike. I always wore full protective equipment. Full face helmet, leather, gloves and boots. But I realize that is less practical in a hot climate.
- throwaway290 2y ago
  There is no "the locals" usually. It sounds a bit condescending, like the article. If people look different than you it doesn't mean they are all the same. People have different life situations. Maybe even in your home country too. If you go somewhere on a moto taxi in Bangkok all those taxis and fancy SUVs you see are not silly foreigners who are scared of motobikes, they are also locals who manage risk.

throwaway290 2y ago

Lots to disagree about like > The list of most coveted cities to visit have one striking thing in common—they are pedestrian centric. if your coveted places are mostly in Europe/Japan. Los Angeles, Chiang Mai (or any city in most SEA) etc are the opposite of pedestrian centric. Do you like multi hour walks in heat among pollution and traffic or stray dogs to get to a nice coffeeshop? Yeah. Public transport is broken and literally everybody who lives there uses personal transport. (He then goes to contradict himself and recommend unsafe moto taxi)

dpb001 2y ago
It took only one long solo wait at a crosswalk in Chon Buri to convince me that it was worth paying about 3 USD to travel about 6 blocks. Traffic yielding to a single pedestrian is a quaint notion and as you say a lone farang seems to be a soi dog magnet.
- ghaff 2y ago
  Some SE Asian cities are OK except for the heat/humidity like Singapore, Penang, and Hong Kong. But, yeah, most of the big SE Asian cities are pretty horrible to get around and certainly aren't pedestrian friendly except very locally.
  - throwaway290 2y ago
    Hong Kong is one of the most walkable of them yep. But if it is "lists of coveted cities", idk how coveted it is;)
    - ghaff 2y ago
      I'd say Hong Kong is pretty coveted, albeit expensive.

hermitcrab 2y ago

A couple of tips from my own experience. -Have a checklist, so you don't forget stuff. -Packing cubes make packing a bag much easier. -For long flights with a stopover (e.g. Europe to NZ) you can stay in a transit hotel in the airport terminal. This means you don't have to go through immigration, security etc. So much easier than having to travel out to a hotel. -I have found Airalo to be quite good for local data esims.

ghaff 2y ago
>-Packing cubes make packing a bag much easier I agree in general. Underwear and socks are always in one packing cube and I carry a lightweight mesh laundry pag. In addition, I have a few small kits I pretty much always carry in addition to my document folder. Need to replenish (and cull) from time to time but it makes the checklist a whole lot simpler for most trips.
strangelove026 2y ago
https://maya.net/ https://maya.net/ is just as reliable and cheaper in my experience

Tinos 2y ago

Great read but I must say I completely disagree with: "the best way to avoid [[getting cheated/swindled]] is to give strangers your trust and treat them well. Being good to them brings out their good. If you are on your best behavior, they will be on their best behavior." As someone who's lived in London for 20 years, if you trust and treat everyone well you will lose all of your money, your watch, and phone. Unfortunately, those looking to cheat you out of something have become extremely common and totally remorseless! I get that the author is probably referring to locals but these days it's impossible to tell who's a local trying to be kind and who's trying to distract you to reach into your bag. Maybe I'm being unnecessarily pessimistic about strangers but i guess that's what London does to you haha

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rawgabbit 2y ago

I like his list of recommendations for apps and websites. Are there any other recommendations? FlightAware Google Maps and Translate Booking.com Seat61.com

ghaff 2y ago
I find TripIt pretty indispensable even if I'd love to give "notes" to the designers Maybe Expedia too though I often make the final reservation directly One of the OSM mapping apps. I use MapOut TripAdvisor and Yelp are "OK." Often better than nothing. Various carrier or hotel chain-related apps depending on your preferences
- rawgabbit 2y ago
  On a related note in Europe I tend to use their taxi apps instead of Uber. In Paris I used the G7 app because official taxis could use the HOV lane while Uber cannot. In Italy, I use the Freenow app as I found their taxis very affordable.
  - ghaff 2y ago
    Yeah, Uber plus whatever the relevant local transit apps are I should have mentioned. Thanks for the G7 app recommendation as I'll be in Paris in a couple months. Don't normally take taxis much there but good to know.
  - kingkongjaffa 2y ago
    Yeah Freenow/Uber/Lyft tend to vary in popularity and availability across Europe and even US states. ( I feel like I took Ubers in Chicago and Lyfts in Boston ) Usually just looking at that taxi area in arrivals at the airport you can figure out which app is the one most supported.
ThinkingGuy 2y ago
I've found Wikivoyage is usually a good source of info, though the quality of the articles varies depending on the location.

orf 2y ago

> Crash a wedding. You are not a nuisance; you are the celebrity guest! Urgh. Really?

danparsonson 2y ago

>... I’ve seen absolutely no correlation between where you eat and whether you have intestinal problems... Add to this one: always make sure your hands are clean before you eat. A little bottle of sanitiser will do wonders for your health in areas with poor sanitation. Otherwise, one tip I would like to add - when in doubt, do as the locals do. Especially useful when you can't read signs.

padiyar83 2y ago

"People in other places are not saints. You might get cheated, swindled, or taken advantage of. Paradoxically, the best way to avoid that is to give strangers your trust and treat them well. Being good to them brings out their good. If you are on your best behavior, they will be on their best behavior. And vice versa. To stay safe, smile. Be humble and minimize your ego. I don’t know why that works everywhere in the world—even places with “bad” reputations—but it does." This just got me! Its so true. That's been my experience too.

ngneer 2y ago
I have a feeling that male and female travel experiences may differ in this regard. "To stay safe, smile." seems pretty naive to me. Clearly, the author is male. I would proffer "always have an exit", "do not walk into something you cannot walk out of" and "do not stray too far from the crowd".
- cldellow 2y ago
  Yeah, the author seems to be writing for a white male audience in some regards. My wife and I host bicycle tourers when they pass through our town. One was Thomas Meixner, an East German who started travelling the world on bike when the wall fell. He's visited something like 120 countries and biked 250,000 km. My wife asked him if he thought a solo woman could do what he did in the places he did it. He tactfully changed the subject.
- notahacker 2y ago
  Even for white males, whilst it might help convince people you're one of the nice backpackers and not the rude backpackers or defuse situations caused by your faux pas, being trusting absolutely doesn't get you any sympathy from who make a living out of scamming or robbing tourists. Sure, escalating probably isn't the best way out either and the minor annoyances that cost you a dollar might be best overlooked, but switching your guard off is a terrible idea in a lot of parts of the world
mikem170 2y ago
My rule of thumb while travelling: Most people are good and will help you if go up to them and ask, and most of the people who initiate contact with you want your money. While travelling I've never had a problem walking up to someone pretty much at random and asking for directions or recommendations, etc. Sometimes this turns into more than just a quick conversation, and that's great, meeting locals can be the best part of a trip. Hotel and restaurant staff are a great resource, too - ask questions. However, most of the people who approach you as a tourist, particularly in places with lots of tourists, want your money. The swindlers and cheats aggregate in these places. They don't wait for tourists they want to rip off to approach them, they actively go after their prey, being practiced at taking advantage of their openness, confusing them, etc. There are exceptions. Common sense goes a long way. Be way more careful when partying.

ww520 2y ago

One thing I didn’t see mention is the utilization of airport lounges. It really helps to relax before boarding. Though in recent years lounges are getting overcrowded.

ghaff 2y ago
I really appreciated airport lounges when I was flying a lot, especially when there were long connections or delays. I don't have mine any longer given I'm trying to make fewer but longer trips. And, as you say, they've gotten overcrowded in many cases. They don't also really help much for early AM departures which are what I'm doing a lot of the time. These days, $400+ a year is better spent on other travel amenities.
- mat_epice 2y ago
  What amenities would you recommend around that annual budget? Honest question, I’m finding the lounges to be less helpful these days.
  - ghaff 2y ago
    Nothing specific. Just some more expensive meals, maybe more theater/other entertainment. I'm pretty happy with where I am for hotels (which will chew up additional cash pretty quickly anyway). I don't really have a formal budget for travel as such. I just don't find lounges are a very good value for me these days as they were in the past.

mglz 2y ago

Luggage tipp: Have exactly one, easy to grab main piece at luggage that goes on your back or on wheels. Have at most one tiny extra piece to carry. The second your luggage exceeds three it becomes a massive hassle: You cannot hold on to things, you will lose one piece and your fun trip descends into a disorganized mess. Luggage which clips together like a storage/day backpack combo is very valuable for this: Your backpack might be comically large, but you can haul all your stuff with free hands. At your accomodation, you can leave the large bag and continue on your day pack. Free hands are critical when travelling by train or bus, or if you just wanna get a snack and drink.

hombre_fatal 2y ago
Get a 45 liter backpack with one single massive compartment. I love this one https://www.peakdesign.com/products/travel-backpack?Size=45L&Color=Sage https://www.peakdesign.com/products/travel-backpack?Size=45L... And then get a duffle bag carry-on. This lets you maximize storage on the cheap “1x carry-on, 1x personal item” plane tickets. No checked luggage; the 45L backpack just goes under the seat in front of you.
- ghaff 2y ago
  Osprey also makes a good one. Sometimes I need to check something bigger especially if I have a long walk planned but I usually use an Osprey Porter 40Lish (may be a newer line I haven't tried). Yep. Big compartment and use some organizing cubes/bags.

contingencies 2y ago

Prefer http://web.archive.org/web/20211126054838/https://artoftravel.net/ http://web.archive.org/web/20211126054838/https://artoftrave...

1970-01-01 2y ago

The entire 50 years is showing here. Seems like some of these tips are good, and some are awful because they're outdated. Don't crash random weddings if you're not able to pay your way out of trouble. Sketchy plans do result in kidnappings. Truly professional tour guides are wonderful assets that will 10X both your trip and your knowledge in any city.

JKCalhoun 2y ago
True. Had a friend head to Central America to surf (I don't recall which country). The first cab he hailed took him to an alley where others were waiting and he was robbed of his passport, cash. End of trip. Please don't interpret this as my painting the whole of Central America as dangerous. This is anecdotal but perhaps a cautionary tale? I suspect if he had not grabbed a cab but rather found a bus or some other sort of mass transportation his whole trip could have turned out wonderfully.
- dageshi 2y ago
  That just sounds like terrible luck to be honest. Catching a cab from the airport in a new country after a flight is a pretty common thing to do no matter where you're going. Depending on flight length you might well be too tired to really navigate public transport in a new city in a foreign language. There's not a lot to learn from that.
  - fortran77 2y ago
    In certain countries I will always ask the hotel to get a ride for me from the airport, and I will not hail a random cab.
    - ghaff 2y ago
      Certain countries? Maybe. I have ordered a hotel limo in Bangkok but certainly not the norm and probably a bit extravagant.

deadbabe 2y ago

I noticed their list of travel accomplishments doesn’t seem to include things like “been robbed at gunpoint in South America”, “had passports seized in Southeast Asia”, or “sexually assaulted in an Eastern European hostel”. All of which I’ve experienced. Travel, while fun, can also be very dangerous, especially the further you get from being a wealthy straight white male. Be careful and try to avoid thinking you’re a main character for whom nothing can go wrong.

j7ake 2y ago

With over 50 years of travel, the author still does not recognize the unique privilege he is in, and how inappropriate his tips are for most of the population.

hombre_fatal 2y ago
What a sad take-away. All tips you give are rinsed through the lens of your personal experience. We don’t need a bunch of disclaimers every time someone enumerates some tips just to appease the “but did he check his privilege tho?” audience.
- j7ake 2y ago
  > To stay safe, smile.
  - datameta 2y ago
    Right. This reads like a person who doesn't realize their ethnic visage is plot-armor, or that smiling maybe works for a different reason than they think it does. Doesn't read as friendly in most places (we're talking out of context on the street), it reads as aloof or menacing/unknown factor. Being a white male with confidence takes care of the first assumption and leaves the second.
  - hombre_fatal 2y ago
    You might have to be a traveler who has been in a bind to appreciate that one, because it's absolutely true that being friendly can disarm a bad situation.
- eldaisfish 2y ago
  telling people to crash random weddings? Telling people that all food is hygienic? Oh please, stop with this victim nonsense. Your personal experience can be personal while also admitting that you come from tremendous privilege. You can REALLY tell that this "list" was written by a white male.

devchix 2y ago

This guy is proud enough of his tips that he's sharing it. God help the person who sits next to him on any of his trips. > If you hire a driver, or use a taxi, offer to pay the driver to take you to visit their mother. They will ordinarily jump at the chance. This is deluded. > They fulfill their filial duty and you will get easy entry into a local’s home, and a very high chance to taste some home cooking. Oh I see, he's probably traveling in a very poor country. > Crash a wedding. What? No. That's rude. > You are not a nuisance; you are the celebrity guest! Oh I see, probably a white person from a rich country traveling in a poor country. > They will usually feel honored. I stopped reading and CTRF-F for primae noctis. Disappointed. He had me going.

mmkos 2y ago

Here are mine - go and do something that excites you, whatever it is. Also, be respectful of the local culture and have common sense, et voila. Whatever you do... > Crash a wedding. You are not a nuisance; you are the celebrity guest! I stopped reading here. PLEASE don't do this. It's extremely disrespectful.

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antiquark 2y ago

Am I the "odd man out" for not wanting to travel, and not enjoying it when I do?

ghaff 2y ago
Almost certainly not. I used to work with someone who had to be practically strong-armed into working down his vacation days because he didn't like traveling and, aside from a couple of local-ish hobbies, got bored sitting around home. I probably got a bit over my travel comfort limit for a while hitting about 160 days/year at peak (including vacation) but I certainly wouldn't criticize anyone for whom that's not their thing.
refurb 2y ago
No. Plenty of people don't have any interest in it. It just seems like everyone likes it because it's because the new status symbol now that material consumption is looked down on. It's a way to demonstrate your worldliness and check the boxes of the zeitgeist. But of course plenty of people just like it because it's fun too.

lawgimenez 2y ago

Anyone got tips when traveling with kids?

datameta 2y ago
I would imagine that is practically a separate category of tips
mvdtnz 2y ago
Don't.
xandrius 2y ago
From what I learnt from other travelling families: - Be a team - Learn effective communication (verbal and non-verbal) - Be a team And if they are very young (less than 6yo or so), you will need to teach them to be calm in most situations and let you handle it.

Gud 2y ago

I travel 300+ days a year for work. For two years I didn’t have a place to live because I was traveling so much. I’ve been doing this for 7 years now. 1) use uber, unless public transport works well(Nordic countries, Switzerland). 2) lock everything expensive up in the hotel safety box, otherwise eventually your shit will get stolen 3) have multiple methods of payment with you, leave one on the hotel. 4) I travel mostly with my wife who does not travel light. Most of the advice in the linked article is really general lifestyle advice. I have 100 kilos of luggage in my hotel apartment. If there’s a will, there is a way.

ghaff 2y ago
>lock everything expensive up in the hotel safety box, otherwise eventually your shit will get stolen Depending upon where I am, I have mixed feelings about this. In many hundreds of days of travel, I guess I've been lucky enough not to have valuables stolen, but then I take some care not to leave them in plain sight. On the other hand, I'm positive I would forget something in a hotel safe as I have in a hotel closet.
odiroot 2y ago
In Asia use Grab instead. Uber either won't work or will just be less popular.
- Gud 2y ago
  Thanks for the info.

yakshaving_jgt 2y ago

I’ve been travelling the world most of my life. I think I can at least partially attribute my survival thus far to never having asked a taxi driver if I can meet his mother.

alistairSH 2y ago

I’d add… - Learn to travel light. You don’t need more than ~4 days of clothes - laundry soap exists. Dragging large rollers around old cities is not fun. - Checklists for prep. I have one for plane travel, one for backpacking, and one for travel by RV. Nothing unexpected on any them, but helps me avoid asking myself “did I pack the phone charger?” Or “do I have sunscreen?” - Give yourself options - I like to list out things to do, maybe 4-5 for a location/day, but only really plan to do 2-3 of them. - The old adage about no bad weather, only bad clothing is true. And the natural light after an evening rain is usually really nice.

ghaff 2y ago
Especially for mostly casual city-type stuff, you don't need a lot and it can be washed in a sink or whatever. Stuff getting really muddy on hiking trails gets harder but you can often get laundry done. (My last long distance walk in the UK I had laundry done a couple of times.) Where it gets harder is when you need different type of clothing (especially bulkier clothing) for different legs of a trip.
- alistairSH 2y ago
  Oh yeah, we did a cycling trip in Italy a while back, with days in Florence and Rome on either side. Hauling bike helmets, shoes, pedals, etc added a lot of bulk. Still made it work all carry-on with no rollers - just max size rucksacks and max size personal bags.

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jeffrallen 2y ago

Tip: your passport does not exist the morning of a trip, even though you packed it the night before. Touch it before leaving the house, and you manifest it into being. This tip is especially important when coupled with another thing I always say: as long ans I have my passport and a credit card, every other forgotten thing is no big deal.

ferngreen 2y ago

Say my good man! Why don't we visit your mother? We can secure a filial obligation for you and an authentic experience for me! By the way, is your sister getting married anytime soon? I have a small cash token to offer in this regard, I think it will be most welcome!

venturator 2y ago
No kidding. The undercurrent of colonialism — this exotic world is made for my conquest! - feels pervasive and somewhat nauseating as described here. Western obsession with travel leads to overtourism and a fixation on “novelty”. There’s nothing wrong with a relaxing vacation but we must all learn to be content with our day to day existence to unlock true happiness.
- titanomachy 2y ago
  My version of his advice would be "if a stranger invites you to a party, don't turn them down." Also, your comment reminds me of this classic SNL skit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TbwlC2B-BIg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TbwlC2B-BIg "If you're sad now, and you get on a plane to Italy, the 'you' in Italy will still be the same sad you from before! Does that make sense?"
  - decimalenough 2y ago
    "People travel to change themselves, but they only change the scenery."

titanomachy 2y ago

> In 53 years of travelling with all kinds of people, I’ve seen absolutely no correlation between where you eat and whether you have intestinal problems, so to maximize the enjoyment of local foods, my rule of thumb is to eat wherever healthy-looking locals eat. An interesting one. Tracks with my experience, although I have far less data. I’ve gotten sick a few times, but not after the sketchy meals that I thought would do it. However, my guide in Nepal warned me not to eat certain things. I always listened to him, and I did not get sick on that trip. He seemed to be speaking from experience guiding other white people.

ayuhito 2y ago
To be fair, a lot of this is attributed to your gut microbiome being adapted to the bacteria in your usual diet. Some food may not sit well with you — not necessarily because the food is “bad” but because your system isn’t used to the new bacteria. That’s why locals are fine but tourists aren’t in most cases. On a funny side note, when I was in Nepal we did get some food at a pretty popular restaurant. Everyone had horrific food poisoning later that night, except me since I didn’t touch the cheese!
crazygringo 2y ago
> I’ve seen absolutely no correlation between where you eat and whether you have intestinal problems Well of course, that's the wrong correlation to be looking for. It's not where you eat, it's what you eat. Have all the cooked meat and veggies and carbs you want, but raw salads and tap water on the other hand...

Ekaros 2y ago

These are very good tips to do just before or just after your trip. Or why not even following weekend: > If you hire a driver, or use a taxi, offer to pay the driver to take you to visit their mother. > Crash a wedding. You are not a nuisance; you are the celebrity guest! The first one specially is likely good option after you leave the airport on the way home. And the second one is good practise to do when you are not on vacation. Find the wedding venues in your local area and hit them.

gk1 2y ago

Fantastic list. Brings back many memories. Regarding the “recharge” vs “engage” trips: If you’re restless like me then you’ll probably feel most recharged after a trip that fully engaged you. Because you can’t think about work when you’re busy navigating your way through a rural and foreign land, speaking with strangers, and straining to learn just enough of a new language to get around. The “laser-back” tip is 100% on point. I came to know this intuitively but I’ve never seen it put into words. One caveat I’d add there is: if it takes >20 hours to get to your first destination, give yourself time and permission to just chill on the first full day there. Also I want to strongly endorse the “carry-on only” tip. More than that, I suggest backpack only. Your options and opportunities for spontaneity increase significantly when you can just swing a backpack ever your shoulder and go. It also forces you to live with less, at least for a time, which in turn teaches you that actually you don’t need all that much to get by. Then you return home and question why you need a closet full of clothes.

hujun 2y ago

one tip of the list I can't agree more is the www.seat61.com for train ticket, especially if you travel in Europe, where train is the most convenient way to travel between cities/nations but man is it such complex system, there are so many different rail companies and lines, this website gives a clear instruction on options, price and where to buy the ticket

cadamsdotcom 2y ago

So many people got enraged enough about one or two tips to comment on them, to the exclusion of all else. Do yourself a favor. Copy paste the article’s text to somewhere you can edit. Delete the tips you don’t agree with. Read the article without them. Now take note of what you do notice.

werealldevo 2y ago

Plenty of great advice that, in its essence, is: "Be water, my friend."

mvdtnz 2y ago

> If you hire a driver, or use a taxi, offer to pay the driver to take you to visit their mother. They will ordinarily jump at the chance. They fulfill their filial duty and you will get easy entry into a local’s home, and a very high chance to taste some home cooking. Mother, driver, and you leave happy. This trick rarely fails. Wow. What a creep. No thank you. > When visiting a foreign city for the first time, take a street food tour. Depending on the region, the tour will include food carts, food trucks, food courts, or smaller eateries. It will last a few hours, and the cost will include the food. You’ll get some of the best food available, and usually the host will also deliver a great introduction to the culture. Google “street food tour for city X.” No, you will get the mid eateries that pay tour guides to bring tourists. They pay tour guides because the locals know not to go there.

QuiEgo 2y ago

I would add: learn how to say at least “hello,” and “thank you” in the local language, and a few other phrases. Even if you butcher it, the fact that you tried goes a long long way.

vitaflo 2y ago

The “14 days is too many” rings true in my mind. My wife and I did a 2 month road trip several years ago and I distinctly remember around the two week mark we went from having tons of fun to worn out and ready to just go home. The weird part is as we pressed on and got past week 3 I felt like we could be on the road indefinitely and be absolutely happy never returning home. There is def a lull around the end of week 2 for some reason.

ghaff 2y ago
3-4 weeks is about where I draw the line. And I've talked to others who have said similar. I don't disagree with your last part though. Never tried it but I can easily imagine that once you get into a "what's this home thing mode?" there's no hard stop necessarily.