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| #1 |
New luggage restrictions - know which items are permitted and
prohibited - Click HERE
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| #2 |
Take photos of what you pack. In
order to provide any reimbursement for a lost
suitcase, most airlines and insurance companies
require an itemized list of exactly what was inside
it. Unfortunately, remembering everything you
packed after the fact is virtually impossible.
To avoid the headache, take pictures of the items
you're going to put in your suitcase with your digital
camera or cell phone. The photos will make
creating the list a breeze, and, in the event of a
dispute with the airline or insurance agent, you have
some visual evidence of ownership.
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| #3 |
Pack a few hooks. Hotel bathrooms
rarely have enough hangers and hooks for clothes and
wet towels, so I always bring a few snap-lock suction
hooks. (They work better than regular suction
hooks because they're more secure and therefore hold
heavier items.) It's always nice to have a place
to hang a bathrobe.
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| #4 |
Put a copy of your name, address and
phone number inside your luggage, just incase your
luggage tags are lost, along with your luggage.
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| #5 |
When traveling with your spouse, pack
half of his things with half of your things in each
suitcase. If one of the suitcases is lost, you
both will have some of your things.
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| #6 |
Keep travel numbers handy. Enter
the words "hotel", "taxi" and
"airline" on your cell-phone speed
dial. On a trip, change the numbers, but leave
the preprogrammed titles the same-instant access and
no more little slips of paper everywhere.
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| #7 |
Ask a concierge to print out your
boarding pass. Before you head to the airport,
stop by the front desk of your hotel or cruise ship
and see if they'll print your boarding pass for
you. It'll save Internet browsing fees and time
at check-in. In the past, it's worked for me at
several Marriott hotels and on a Celebrity cruise.
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| #8 |
Put your bathing suit in your carry-on.
There's nothing worse than not being able to swim
because you made it to the hotel but your luggage
didn't. If your suit is still damp for the
flight home, again, put it in your carry-on so it
won't get moldy if your bags are delayed. I also
put a set of undergarments in my carry-on when I leave
home in case my luggage gets lost.
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| #9 |
Accidentally reformat your camera's
memory card? As long as you don't overwrite the
disk by taking more photos, those original pictures
are still there. Buy another card to use in the
meantime, and then when you get home, either purchase
a file-recovery software program (about $35) or take
the card to a camera shop and see if they can help.
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| #10 |
Enjoy your coffee anywhere on the cruise
ship. Bring a travel mug for early-morning
coffee fill-ups at the buffet. Your coffee stays
warm, and travels well around the ship-the mug is
specifically designed to stop spillage-and you don't
have to linger in the restaurant after you've finished
eating breakfast. When you return to your room
or your favorite deck chair, you'll have a fresh cup.
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| #11 |
Luggage stickers make terrific lint
removers. I unpacked a pair of black slacks
recently and saw that they were covered with white
fuzz. I didn't have a lint brush handy, so I
used the luggage sticker from my bag-the gummy side
took the lint right off.
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| #12 |
Don't rush off the car-rental lot.
Before driving away-especially in foreign countries
where the controls might be unfamiliar-test the
headlights and brakes, and look for the extra tire and
changing tools. I once had a rental with
malfunctioning brakes in Mexico and caused a minor
accident-one that could have been avoided had I
checked them properly before leaving the lot.
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| #13 |
Buy multiple memory cards for your
digital camera. In one large-capacity memory
card, consider purchasing two smaller ones for the
same price. That way, if your camera is stolen,
you won't lose all your pictures.
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| #14 |
Don't
needlessly display guest room keys in public or
carelessly leave them on restaurant tables, at the
swimming pool, or other places where they can be
easily stolen. |
| #15 |
Check
to see that any sliding glass doors or windows and any
connecting room doors are locked. |
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* Courtesy of Budget
Travel |
