6 Common Mistakes Travellers Make

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Making plans to travel, whether for vacationing or short visits, can be tedious. From acquiring visas and flight tickets to settling accommodation and then planning activities, it is very natural to have a few slip-ups here and there in your plans. Although these mistakes are common with first-time travellers, anyone (first-time or not) can make mistakes.

Not to worry. I have taken the liberty to compile the common errors that travellers make during their travels. Along with these errors are ways to avoid making such mistakes to ensure smooth travels.

Onward then, here are 6 common mistakes travellers make.

Forgetting to Change to Local Currency

Most countries have their own local currencies, and it is rare for regular vendors to accept payment in the currency of another country. With all the planning involved in travelling, it is easy to forget to convert the cash you have at hand to the currency of the locality you intend to visit.

Know that you need cash on you to pay for cab fares or other expenses that may come up when you arrive in the new country. If you do not convert your money to the local currency, this might pose a problem for you. Ensure that you go to a bank and change it before it skips your mind.

Lack of Research

Some people do not see the importance of doing research on the country they intend to visit. This is a big mistake. It is not wise for you to enter a new country and be completely clueless of their norms, values, rules, what they accept and what they don’t.

You also need to be armed with other kinds of information like the weather condition, the visa requirements, security status, and availability of accommodation or activities. This will ease your planning and, in some way, avoid any unforeseen events that could cause problems during your stay in that country.

To solve this problem, do some research on the Internet to discover key travel info about the country you intend to visit.

Spending Above Your Budget

It is easy to get carried away when having fun in another country. If the money you are spending is in a currency that you are not familiar with, it’s even easier to start spending more than you planned to. So, do not let yourself forget that you are far away from home and any overspending will likely leave you stranded.

Spending above what you budgeted will leave you high and dry when all the fun is over. It may be tempting to get things you didn’t plan to, so exercise self-control and caution.

Having No Sense of Direction

Going to a new country is exactly that – new. As such, you would know little or nothing about the layout of the area. Of course, this situation has mostly been made easier by ride-hailing applications as you can just type in the address of where you are headed and the cab will take you there.

However, not all countries have that service, and for those who do, you might not be able to use such services in every part of the country.

A big mistake you can make while travelling is knowing that you have no idea what the streets and geography are like and doing nothing about it.

Many people prefer to have a tour guide, use Google maps, or buy a local map to direct them to the right location. Some others learn a few phrases for asking for directions in the local language.

Not Considering the Different Time Zone

9:00 p.m. in China is not 9:00 p.m. in the United States. Different countries run on different time zones. Before you pick the time for your flight, you need to make some time calculations such as the time of your departure, the duration of the flight and the time you will land.

You should calculate these different times with the time zone of the country you are heading to before you make arrangements for when you land.

Making plans without considering the time zone is a big mistake that can spoil your mood before your vacation even begins.

Having Too Many Plans

If your plan is to tour the whole of Paris in 2 days, you have made a mistake you will probably regret. Your plans need to be realistic. It is great to want to visit as many places as possible during your visit but having an overambitious itinerary will only make you feel suffocated and take the fun out of everything. You need to set time aside to eat, rest and recuperate and all these should be in your actual plans – alongside your plan of places you want to visit.

These mistakes are common to many people and sometimes they make them without knowing. Now that you know, I hope you won’t be making such errors during your travels.