3 Problematic Factors to Consider Before You Travel

There are some things that could completely ruin your trip. For instance, a surprise expense could empty your wallet, a stomach bug could have you stuck in your hotel room, or a language barrier could leave you completely lost. However, you may wish to consider these tips to find out how you can prepare for three common travel problems.

Language Barriers

If you're traveling to a destination where you don't know the local language and you will need to communicate with anyone beyond a hired tour guide during your vacation, there are a few things that you can do before going on the trip. Try to learn basic words and phrases ahead of time like Thank you, How much does this cost? and Where is the bathroom? If this information just isn't sticking in your head, take notes and bring them with you. You can also download language translating apps before you leave. Get an app that can translate voice recordings and written text for you. That way, you can have simple conversations with locals, read street signs, decipher restaurant menus, and more. You've just eliminated a major stressor during your vacation.

Surprise Expenses

Your vacation can come with plenty of expensive surprises. Maybe you lose your luggage, maybe you miss an important flight and need to buy a new ticket, or maybe your hotel plans fall through forcing you to book a room somewhere else. You can you prepare for this, however, by making an emergency fund. You can use this to cover any emergency expenses that go beyond your basic vacation budget. It can also come in handy if you underestimate your budget and realize that you have run out of standard funds. Building up an emergency fund in a short amount of time can be a challenge, but you can look at six money saving tips to help you collect enough savings in a hurry. If that's still not enough, you might want to get a personal line of credit which can come in handy when you don't have a substantial emergency fund.

Getting Sick

You don't want to spend the majority of your vacation time lying in bed—or worse, lying on the bathroom floor. It's not uncommon for travelers to get sick with a stomach bug or sudden cold. If you want to avoid this disaster, you should prepare ahead of time by making a personalized sick kit and storing it in your suitcase. You will want to fill it with items like painkillers, cold medicine, anti-nausea medication, an anti-inflammatory, antihistamines, antacids, or similar. Do your research to see what medical preparations you need to make in the weeks or months leading up to your trip, and talk to your doctor to get help covering these essentials and providing any other prescriptions that you might need. For instance, if you often suffer from traveler's tummy, they can prescribe you an antibiotic. If you're traveling far and have a long flight, jet lag might hit you once you step off the plane, but you can prepare by bringing sleep aids like neck pillows, eye masks, and earplugs so that you can get your rest.

Your vacation might not feel like much of a vacation when something goes wrong; but when you're prepared for the worst, you can more easily enjoy the trip from beginning to end.