International travels can be ridiculously painful especially when you choose or can only afford to travel in coach. Traveling internationally can be overwhelming since there are more necessities such as passports, visas and health requirements. So hopefully my tips help you with prepping for an International Flight.
Prepping for an International Flight
Documents
1. First and foremost, make sure you have all the correct travel documents, whether it is a passport for short-term travel or the correct visa for long time travel or work. If you are looking into getting a visa, please check with the country’s embassy prior to booking your flight and leaving the country.
To check visa requirements, visit the US government website at https://travel.state.gov/.
2. Be sure to take photos and scan all of your important documents, but don’t rely on just your phone in case you lose it or it gets damaged. Make sure you back up your digital copies, in a personal email or even on the cloud service, such as google drive. Include information of your passport and visa so that you have something to present to the embassy if your passport or visa gets lost or stolen. Place these items in a secure location in your carry on items (i.e. purse, passport necklace wallet, etc.). Additionally, be sure to leave a copy of your passport with a family member or someone that you trust in case your digital copies are lost or inaccessible.
Flights
3. If you haven’t booked your flight, you should probably do that. Book your flights at least 6 months in advance. When booking international flights try to make sure you have an aisle or window seat. The best seats in coach would be near the emergency exits or the front row. If you can request the seat, attempt to do this and you will have the best leg room and easy access to getting up and walking around the plane. During this time also check the airline’s regulations to make sure you are following all of the rules prior to getting to the airport.
RELATED: How to plan and budget for a trip
4. Make sure you have all your itineraries and identification: flights, hotel reservations, passports, etc. Don’t forget your cash and credit cards. Most places no longer take traveler’s checks due to counterfeit. Additionally, most credit cards have no foreign transactions fees which make spending overseas easier, double check with your bank for verification. Be sure to notify your bank of your travel plans.
Health
5. Check in with your Doctor and see what requirements are needed for your next destination. Some countries require certain vaccinations prior to visiting them. You can find out what the country’s requirements are by visiting the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Packing
PRO TIP: Be sure to pack and an extra set of clothes in your carry on in case your bag needs to be checked. I highly suggest you pack extra underwear as well. If your bag gets lost, at least you will have some extra clothes. The underwear helps if you feel unfresh during a layover as well.
RELATED: How to Organize your Carry On
7. I use the packing list below for all of my trips. You can download in the Download’s Library for free subscribing below.
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8. Next, make sure your carry on only has TSA approved liquids or items. This is a very important step in prepping for an international flight. Depending on the airport you will be required to throw out your TSA liquids if not placed in a clear bag. One of my favorite bags to place my liquids in are made by truffle co.
RELATED: Carry-On Essentials
Before Travel
9. Be sure to get all of your entertainment ready to go before the flight. Most international flights do have entertainment on board, however, you do not want to rely on that. There are times where entertainment you need to pay for in advance. I suggest you load your phones and tablets download with books, movies and more. You can now download movies and shows from Netflix and Amazon Prime. With iTunes music and Spotify premium, you can also download your favorite music before the flight as well.
10. Check the country you are traveling to for entrance and exit fees. Some countries require a fee when entering or exiting. For example, in the Philippines, they require an exit fee for the airport tax. This fee is required before entering through the security checkpoint. Additionally, they only accept cash. You will need to make sure you have the appropriate amount on hand.
Traveling
11. Make sure you arrive at the international airport at least 3 hours prior to your flight. You can choose to pay an expensive fee for a park and ride. If that is too expensive, see if a family member or friend can drop you off at the airport. Don’t forget to have them pick you up when you return!
Make sure you leave early especially if your airport happens to be a distance away from your home. All your plans could be ruined if your flight has left without you. Not only is this bad, if you have connecting flights that have a small amount of wiggle room to transfer, you could miss that flight as well causing delays in your actual vacation or business time.
12. Check with your airlines to see if your flight has been delayed or on time. Try not to spend too much time in the shops or restaurants, unless you know for sure you have some time to kill. Make sure you know what gate your flight is at and be sure to find a map to know which direction to go.
13. Finally, try to board the plane early. You want to make sure your luggage is stored close to you in the overhead bins.
PRO TIP: On international flights, most of the time they let people who are seated at the back of the plane to get on first after First class, Business Class, Families and Handicap or Elderly. This helps with loading the plane fast and efficiently.
If you happen to be late, they may move your luggage to a bin that is not full at a different part of the cabin or worse have to check them, which if you are carrying items that are expensive (ie. a camera), would be unpleasant.
If this is your first international travel, then you will have to make sure you have all the carry-on essentials to survive this flight.
What are some of the things you do to in Prepping for an International Flight? Leave your comments below! Pin this post below.
DISCLAIMER: Oftentimes you will find that I’ve included links to certain hotels/tours/products/services. If you purchase anything through these links, I’ll receive a commission. It won’t cost you anything extra, but it will help keep this blog up and running.
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