Make Your Next Trip Easier on Yourself by Taking Care of the Basics in Advance: Travel, Lodging, and Getting Around

Whether you are headed to Brazil, Sweden, or anywhere else, planning in advance is important. Any time you head into an unknown area, you want to be sure you don’t get stuck without a place to stay or essential transportation (or, even worse, a ticket out!).

You don’t have to do absolutely everything in advance, of course. A bit of spontaneity is always fun, and you want to leave room for new activities or events that pop up along the way. But taking care of the basics is important. And one of the most essential things is making sure you secure yourself a transfer from the airport. If you land in a huge city like Sao Paulo, get yourself a taxi Sao Paulo that you know will be reliable.

When to secure tickets

There is something of a question as to when it is best to secure plane tickets. Obviously, part of the equation has to do with what your personal plans are and how far in advance of your trip you will know your travel dates. For some people, unfortunately, they don’t get the green light on their vacation until the last minute. Assuming you do get to plan in advance, it is best to go by the following rules:

• Try to plan any transatlantic trips several months in advance (even half a year, if possible). These tickets can be very unpredictable and can easily skyrocket in price even two to three months before a flight.
• Tickets within Europe or Asia can often be more flexible. People that live in these regions frequently have to buy tickets at the last minute, so you likely will be able to, as well. Be sure to check airline quality and visa regulations, though.
• If you are flying to Africa or South America, it depends. Certain routes may fill up quickly, while less popular ones might offer reasonable fares all year. Do your research on the possibilities, and be sure to check airline quality as it can vary widely.

Taking care of accomodation

Securing accommodations involve similar principles to buying air tickets. Many details depend on your budget and personal priorities, but keep some basic points in mind:

• If you are going somewhere popular that is isolated from the rest of society, you should act way in advance. While it is possible that the number of accommodations at Manchu Picchu are growing, it is still a place that is far removed from other parts of Peru and you don’t want to find yourself with a bus ticket and nowhere to stay if you’re late booking.
• Pay close attention to customer ratings, including open-ended comments. Ratings for things like hostels can be very relative in some places. If a city generally offers places that are not heated, of poor quality, or lacking in amenities, a rating of 10 might not mean much.
• Take the time to look around! A lot of places do a great job of advertising themselves and posting fabulous-looking pictures. Before you grab the first place you see, take your time to see what else is available. There may be something much better, in a better neighborhood, etc.

Getting around

Always do your research on local transportation before you arrive in a place. Any number of things could happen that could thwart your plans. While we can’t cover every possible scenario here, we can offer a few tips:

• If you plan on taking local transportation, be sure to check frequency, routes, and reliability before you arrive. Even super “advanced” countries like France can seem to have great transportation options until you find out that some or other public workers go on strike 30% of the time.
• Try to figure out how to get reliable taxis wherever you are going. Taxi swindlers are notorious everywhere, including what you might think to be the least likely countries. In many places, there is one company that is designated by the city to be the official company, and it will offer meters at standard rates.
• Save yourself the headache of getting to and from the airport by securing an airport transfer with GetTransfer. It is the most reliable service there is, and the company works globally so you will never have to remember another name.

Let loose while you’re there

Again, all this is not to suggest that you can’t have any fun while you’re on your trip. This is the whole point of taking a vacation, after all. But taking care of the essentials helps ensure that you have a solid starting point when you arrive at your destination. Once this is done, you can let your hair down and go paint the town red.