Florida is always a hot tourist destination in the United States because of its white sandy beaches, hot clubs and Disney World. If you are planning to visit this wonderful city this year, make sure to make the necessary preparations. The One Stop shares with you this awesome travel guide, so you are up to date with everything you need to know.
- Book your accommodations first before the flight
The number one rule of travelling is booking accommodation first before you buy a trip ticket. This is because you need to be sure that you have a place to stay, so you will not worry about it later. Aside from that, flight tickets can be cancelled and rebooked on another day while accommodations are always final. In a way, you would save more money if you do this rule first.
Another thing you have to consider about your accommodations is that they should be within an accessible area. This means that there should be nearby convenience stores, train stations and post offices. With these establishments nearby, you can easily move to different places and have everything you need.
- Be wary of your AirBnb and hotel rooms
Lately, there has been news spreading around that some hotels and AirBnb rooms have cameras inside the bedrooms or bathrooms. This is a breach of your privacy, and it can be dangerous since an accomplice of this can steal all your items while you are away. To prevent that from happening, make sure that you only book accommodations at trusted and well-reviewed places. These often have the best security systems, and you can rest easy without worrying about privacy breaching.
- Make a list of all the things you want to bring before packing
Before you pack for your trip, try listing down all the things you plan to bring. This will make you organised and prevent you from forgetting anything else. On top of that, making a list can show you the essentials and non-essential items. From there, remove anything that can be considered dead weight in your luggage.
After packing, have a weighing scale ready so that you will know how much your bag weighs. This is also a good way to check if you are beyond your luggage limit based on your flight details. If you find that your bags are heavier than what is required, check if you can still add more weight to your booking. Otherwise, remove anything unnecessary to bring.
- Create an itinerary before leaving
The itinerary is the document that lists all the activities you plan on doing for the duration of your trip. With this in hand, you have full control of your time for each activity. This, in turn, can make your trip organised and more fun! With that said, you should create an itinerary before you leave your home. Here are some tips on itinerary planning, so you can have a wonderful experience:
- Research about the different places you can visit – The internet will help you show all the great things you should see at your destination. This also shows you the ratings of each place, which helps you decide whether or not that attraction is worth your time.
- Find out the travelling routes to each attraction – While the attractions seem fun, you need to figure out how you can get there. So, make use of your phone map applications and see what the different routes you can take. In some countries, apps like Google will tell you what train stations or buses you should take just to arrive at your destination.
- See if you need to make a reservation beforehand – Some tourist destinations now require reservations, so the flow of visitors is controlled. Check if all the places in your itinerary have this rule, so your plans will not be soiled upon your arrival. If reservations are needed, make sure to select the date that best suits your schedule.
- Buy tickets in advance to save more – Advanced tickets are cheaper compared to gate prices. This is because there are a lot of promos present online that you can use. On top of that, you can get an all-pass ticket for less if you book in advance!
- Make sure to bring pocket WiFi wherever you go
Believe it or not, it is quite difficult to live in a technological world without an internet connection. This is because every piece of information you need is online, and all communication is done there as well. With travelling, it would be extremely difficult to navigate your way around your destination without the internet. That is why you should opt for a pocket WifI and make sure it stays with you wherever you go.
- Charge all your electronic devices before leaving
Before you leave for your trip, make sure to fully charge all your devices. This will keep you connected to the internet and have everything with you at the tap of a button. At the same time, it would be extremely inconvenient for you to travel with a dead phone or camera. This is because you will not be able to capture the moment of your trip!
- Keep your bags locked and sealed while travelling
Unfortunately, there are a lot of types of modus, and these can happen to you any time during your trip. The most common method is bullet planting, which frequently occurs in airports. While you do not have attention to your bag, someone can easily plant a bullet inside by quietly opening the zippers. This will put you into trouble upon having it checked under the x-ray scan.
As a solution to this problem, make sure to lock your bags with padlocks that require a special combination only you can do. Aside from that, make sure to place a unique tag on your luggage so that no other person can mistake it for theirs.
- Always travel in groups
If you are travelling with your friends, make sure all of you are travelling in groups. This is so that no one will get lost while everyone is wandering around. If some of you plan to split from the main group, make sure to impose a buddy system so that no one is alone. Additionally, decide on a meet-up place to confirm that everyone is safe.
- Study the different tourist scams in Florida
Scammers get smarter each day, and this leaves you more prone to encountering them any time. That is why you should be wary and learn the different kinds of scams that can happen. If you are planning to travel to Florida, United States, here is a list of the common tourist scams that can happen:
- Fake travel club scams
Some people prefer to have their trips managed by travel clubs to avoid all the hassle and inconvenience of doing so. With this in mind, some travel clubs out there are purposefully created to scam people for money. These would often ask for a huge sum of money without providing legit confirmation about your trip. To prevent this from happening, make sure that the travel club you are consulting with is trusted and well-reviewed.
- Fake bell boys
Unfortunately, some hotels in Florida have encountered cases where their bell boys are stealing the belongings of the hotel guests. The worst part is that these bell boys are not even registered as employees of the hotel. This goes to show that some hotels have poor security, which makes this kind of scam possible to happen.
- Distraction thieves
When you are travelling alone, you may encounter someone that asks you a question. This keeps your attention distracted, and one of their accomplices can snatch your bag or phone away from you. This happens to a lot of people, and more often than not, they do not notice that they are already being robbed!
To prevent this from happening, lessen the use of your phone while walking. Those who keep their phones out are the common targets for robbery. Aside from that, pay attention to your belongings at all times and keep them close to you as much as possible.
- Avoid bringing too much cash with you
Cash is a great and convenient payment method because all you have to do is give them to the merchant. However, this makes you at risk of losing them all when your bag is stolen. It would be heartbreaking to bring all your allowance money with you just to have them stolen during your trip.
With that said, avoid bringing too much cash and use your card more often. This will make you travel light, and if your card gets stolen, you can easily just have your bank cut the transactions for you.