Travel tips
Wake up early to beat the crowds
If you wonder how people take great travel photos with no one else in the background, it’s the art of getting up early. Most people often think “oh it’s just Photoshopped”, not always true. If you’re one of the first people to arrive at a destination, then you’ll easily beat the crowds! It’s really nice having a spot to yourself before others arrive, it gives you a sense of peacefulness and excitement. You’ll really have the chance to appreciate your surroundings.
Don’t be afraid to see the generic tourist attractions
There seems to be some sort of stigma when it comes to sightseeing certain attractions. So you’ll often see bloggers and travellers stating things about getting off the beaten track, and “alternative things to do in, such and such”. Well, that’s great, but it’s also completely fine to see the generic popular sights of a city or country. They are popular for a reason. I wasn’t disappointed by a single sight when we visited Rome, but they were all very touristy. Who cares! It’s your trip, see and do whatever makes you happy.
Don’t overplan every detail (learn to go with the flow)
I LOVE to plan, but sometimes that’s actually a downfall. Sometimes when you overplan everything, you become rigid and restricted in what you can and want to do. This means if something doesn’t go to plan, you’ll be disappointed or frustrated. Well, things will not go to plan all the time, so it’s important to learn to go with the flow. Some of our best travel adventures and memories were completely unexpected.
Use a packing list to help you pack
Packing lists are a really useful way to visually see and check off everything you need to bring with you on a trip. You can either create your own, or use an online list and combine it with yours to make sure you’ve covered all angles. We’ve actually created some pretty cool packing lists for certain destinations that you can check out below.
- Sri Lanka Packing List
- Thailand Packing List
- Bali Packing List
- India Packing List
- Ultimate Travel Packing List
Bring toilet roll tissues with you
In a lot of countries, toilet roll is a luxury, and if you’re doing some serious travelling you will find yourself going to the bathroom in a hole in the ground where there is no form of toilet paper. Just the classic bucket of water situation. I always suggest you carry a roll of toilet paper, or if on day-trips then a packet of tissues that you can use when necessary.
Carry a small bag within your backpack for dirty laundry
Keeping your clean and dirty clothes separate is not only great for your sanity but for obvious cleanliness reasons too. Just bring a small extra bag that you can pop your dirty clothes in, then this is the bag you can send to the laundry room when washing clothes! Bradley and I share the same bag to save space.
Test the weight of your backpack and make sure you can actually carry it
This goes hand-in-hand with your overpacking. But whilst avoiding overpacking is important, it’s also important to consider the weight of what you are packing. Remember, you’re going to be carrying your backpack around with you. And if you’re on a real low budget, then you’ll probably be walking from train stations to your accommodation. It’s therefore important to test the weight against what you can actually carry. Pop your backpack on and go for a 10 minute walk, you’ll soon find out whether it’s too heavy or not.
Bring a light jacket
Always bring a light jacket when travelling. Not only do they class up an outfit (when needed), but even if you’re visiting the hottest of countries, it tends to get chilly in the evenings. You’ll also notice that when your body starts adapting to the heat, you’ll feel colder at temperatures you never thought you could! They’ll also keep you warm on the plane and bus journeys that are typically cold from air conditioning.
Bring extra memory cards
Travel is all about creating memories and most people don’t travel with a laptop like Bradley and I do. So you’ll not have a way to back up your photos and delete them to create space on your memory card. So rather than having to delete precious photos, I suggest you bring extra memory cards with you. This means you never have to miss out on an epic photo. Here’s the memory cards we use (oh, and be sure to grab a hard case as well so as to keep them all safe and organised!)
Pack your backpack, then remove a third
Overpacking a backpack is so easy to do. I mentioned above that a week’s worth of clothes is enough, but naturally when you start packing, you’ll do more than that- trust me. So I suggest you pack your backpack with everything you think you need, then you get rid of a third of it. You will thank me later when your back isn’t killing you and you realize having an extra 3 dress, or shorts is unnecessary.