My top 15 Travel Tips

 1. Be flexible on dates

If you are not tight to travel on fixed dates then you can book your flight using the flexible date search engines most website provides you. This will allow you to retrieve prices around the certain period you wish to travel. Surprisingly enough, I have saved 100 EUROS to travel a day later.

2. Always read reviews before booking or visiting

When planning for a trip, before I book anything I do a small research and read what others have to say. Believe it or not, you might change your plans based on other people’s reviews. Trip Advisor is one of the best sites where you can find reviews about hotels, restaurants, bars, places etc by others. I’m also a reviewer here, trying to describe my good or bad experience somewhere I’ve been to. For most of the big cities I download the relevant Trip Advisor app on my Android phone e.g. Athens Trip advisor. By having the app installed on your phone you have all the data there and you can access it offline. Even if I’m not travelling abroad I still do this.

3. Ask your friends who have been there

What’s better than a friend’s advice? If you know anyone who has been to a place you are planning to go just ask then to provide you more information on what to eat, what to see, how to go around.

4. Pack light

How many times have you gone on a trip and packed things that you didn’t even used? In order to avoid this and travel lighter, try to mix and match your clothes by making outfits. Planning ahead what to wear during your trip sounds funny, but it will save you space and also you’ll have the ability to buy something else whilst abroad.

5. Pack your pills

Packing your pills, vitamins and supplements is very important. Take them with you to avoid the worse.

6. Take an extra phone battery

Since using the various apps and GPS to find my location it drains my battery so I always make sure to have an extra battery for my phone with me.If you are one of those people using their phone a lot consider to have an extra battery with you.

7. Check the weather

Always check the weather – make sure to take an umbrella, your winter accessories or your sun-cream – depending on where you are heading to. Also a weather app on your smartphone will be very useful.

8. Select your flight seat

With SeatGuru you can find your flight and view the plane seating map so you can see where exactly you wish to sit and select your seat.

9. Take your things on board

I always make sure to have some snacks with me on board in order to avoid purchasing expensive things, especially when travelling with low cost airlines. So taking your own snacks will save you some money. Also take a jumper since you might get cold and of course your own entertainment, e.g. tablet to watch a movie or have some music on your smartphone.

10. Pin it on the Map

I use the ‘Maps with me’ application. I download the country map depending on where I’m going and pin the places I wish to go to. I pin my hotel, the central station, the must see places etc In order to plan my trip. And you don’t need an internet connection to use the map, just use your GPS.

11. Take the City Sightseeing bus

If you are short on time, the hop-on – hop-off red bus is amazing. You can buy a ticket and go through all the main attractions of a city. They provide you with a leaflet and a map of the city along with the timetable of each route.  I’ve used this in many cities I’ve been to such as Budapest, Lisbon, Rome, Stockholm etc. If it’s sunny take a seat upstairs and enjoy the ride while the bus is passing by the city’s attractions.

12. Walk around

You’ll get to see many things if you walk around the city rather than taking the bus or the taxi to go somewhere.

13. Ask locals

If you feel you are lost, ask a local to help you. I’ve found that very useful and I’ve noticed that people are willing to help tourists.

14. Try to eat healthy

Yes, you’ve been to a place you haven’t been before and you’ll have the chance to taste different foods but you don’t have to overdo it. I’ve found myself a few times eating a lot whilst on holiday and regretting it when coming back. Eating anything you wish for on holidays is just an excuse to eat. So try to eat healthy.

15. Take Photos

Take a lot of photos. You’re probably going somewhere that you won’t be going again and see places once in your lifetime. I’m the kind of person who takes a lot of photos of the places I ago so I can refresh my memory when I look back to my travel experiences. But don’t overdo it with the number. Take your photos and then enjoy the scenes without your lens.

I hope you’ve found most of my travel tips useful and I wish you a safe and nice trip!