Do you need to pre-order any items when traveling overseas?
Traveling abroad is exciting – if you are prepared! If you are not yet living in the age of electronics and technology, it is time you get on board.
I have a few friends who have recently taken their very first trip abroad and they asked to pick my brain on things they should or should not be doing for their first trip.
One of the things they all mentioned to me was “should I
preorder this or that before going?”
Consider What You Should You Preorder
Honestly, there are only a select few things that I would consider pre-ordering before a long journey.
Every time I have placed orders in advance for activities or entries, I have been pinched to make the times work. Delays occur whether it is a flight, a train, or traffic I have been at risk of losing hundreds of dollars in prepaid fees because I can’t make it to the venue on time.
Let’s take London for example. If you are traveling there and you know that you want to tour the Tower of London or ride the London Eye, check online before you go and see what their recommendations are for obtaining tickets. Typically, a website will list if there are pre-orders necessary.
In this time of COVID, lead times have increased quite a bit as space inside venues is extremely limited. The lockdowns are opening, so many places are starting to allow more visitors once again.
Always double check if there are restrictions in place and be sure to adapt before arriving at your destination. A number of places open again, but only on two or three days of the week to allow for cleaning.
Thoughts On Transportation
Upon landing into a foreign country such as France, Belgium, or England, the first thing you will need is transportation to get from the airport or train station to your place of residence. You can get those right at the airport or the train station without needing an advance ticket. In fact, it is better to wait on your purchase in the event your flight has delays or gets cancelled.
Europe is extremely advanced with technology and as Americans we are pretty far behind that continent
We always think in America we do things faster, better, and quicker than other places, but we absolutely do not when it comes to transportation.
Train stations are quite easy to navigate and even in the airports – after clearing immigration and customs – you will find a number of methods to get into the center of the cities. Before you travel to a foreign destination, educate yourself on the common forms of public transport.
If you are in France, you will probably take the metro quite a bit. The French underground system is one of the easiest I have ever had to navigate.
While you can buy tickets at kiosks, you can also do so online through their apps. Just be sure to download your app ahead of time and make sure you have access to the internet in a foreign country.
Planning Your Cell Phone Service When Traveling Abroad
Check with your cell phone provider to be sure they have towers in the country you are going to.
In America T-Mobile has towers available in England which make it easy to use your own cell phone and data while traveling abroad. If you have Verizon or AT&T it is a little more challenging because there are no towers.
However, there are vending machines available at train stations and at airports to buy a local SIM card and you can get those with or without data depending on your anticipated travel.
Do be aware however, if you change your SIM card that any websites or apps that you use that require two factor authorization, they will not be able to send a text to your American phone number if you are on a different SIM card.
Stay Secure With An Authenticator App
Another tip for you is downloading an authenticator app for your two-factor author to that app will work no matter what your phone number is and will allow you access to all your websites when you are in a foreign country.
Traveling abroad is easier and easier nowadays. I think back to my first trip over 20 years ago and it is astonishing how much easier it is now.
