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Travel Tips & Resources

If you are going to travel on your own terms, you are going to need some help getting yourself organized. This list of resources is designed to help you plan, pack and travel efficiently.

(some of these links are sponsored content. If you click on one of the affiliate links (like from Amazon) and purchase, it won’t cost you any extra but I will get a small commission.)

Packing Lists & Gear
Trip Planning
Travel Booking
Protecting Your Travel Investment
Data Privacy & Protection
Useful Sites for Travel Tips

Camino De Santiago Packing List for Women
Packing List UK Hiking

Packing Lists & Gear

Trip Planning

  • Use Trip Advisor for researching and booking activities. The forums for great for asking specific questions.
  • Even though I’ve disobeyed Rick Steves all over Europe, his guides are useful for travel planning. As are the Lonely Planet guides the rest of the world.

Booking

  • Google’s ITA Matrix is great for searching a wide selection of fares and finding deals.
  • For booking hotels in the US you should price shop using an site like Hotels.com but also check the hotel’s website as they sometimes offer unadvertised discounts or packages.
  • Use Booking.com when booking into Europe, South America or as a price comparison to Hotels.com.
  • My sweetspot is smaller guesthouses and B&Bs. But they often don’t list on the big sites. You can find them through Trip Advisor and then book there, or link through to the inn’s website.

 Protecting Your Travel Investment

  • Travel insurance is a good investment if you are going non-refundable, want some extra medical coverage or want some peace of mind in case your itinerary goes sideways. Because I travel a lot, I have an annual plan, but you can also insure trip-by-trip.

Data Protection and Privacy

  • Bypass prying censorship (in some countries) and potential data theft (anywhere) by using a VPN (virtual private network). Learn more about them here.

Sites with Useful Travel Tips

  • Too Many Adapters will give you great advice on travel tech, SIM cards and accessories.
  • Women Who Travel is an active Facebook group where you can ask questions and get inspired to explore new destinations.
  • Boarding Area is a compilation of blogs that will give you advice on how to leverage credit cards and mileage awards to stretch your travel dollar.