Traveling is a wonderful and fulfilling aspect of the human experience. Everyone wishes nothing more than to see as much of the world as possible. That being said, everyone needs to keep their wits about them when traveling.
Traveling often involves the movement of large amounts of personal possessions or shopping, and you may find yourself overwhelming the Axle load meter on your personal transportation. If you happen to have purchased a lot of large and fragile items that require professional transportation, then you will indeed need to contact the best in the business.
Being Flexible is Key
Anyone that has travelled a lot will tell you that things often do not go as planned. From mixed up hotel bookings, to radical weather changes ending helicopter trips, you need to be ready for plans not going the way you had hoped.
When what you had hoped to enjoy changes, you need to make sure that you are able to replace plans with something else that is suitable for you and your travel friends or family members. This can be greatly achieved with our next point:
Know the Country you Plan on Visiting
Obviously there is only so much that you can learn about a country from reading books and websites, but having a fair understanding of the location, people, and culture really is essential for you to have the best time possible in a foreign country.
When things do not go your way, if you know of other incredible activities in the area, it really makes the difference when it comes to formulating a Plan B. Not only will you be able to navigate the land far better if you understand it, but the local people will react to you better if you can respect their culture.
Accommodating the Local Culture and Etiquette
Nothing makes people cringe worse than a tourist trampling all over their codes of conduct and manners. You really do need to make sure that you understand what is acceptable, and what is deemed disrespectful before you inject yourself into another culture.
For example, restaurant etiquette is one of the main things that you need to understand with regards to a country. Cutlery placement, meal orders, and waitron tipping are all different in different countries.
While it is considered a decent expectation to tip a waiter a certain percentage of the bill in Arizona, USA, in Tokyo, Japan, such an act is considered highly disrespectful. While finishing your plate is considered a sign of respect to a Chef in Lourdes, France, doing so is a sign that you were dissatisfied with the portion in Beijing, China.
Learn some Phrases
You do not need to become fluent in a language of a country that you plan on visiting, but learning some common phrases is essential for getting about and getting things done. From standard greetings and courtesies, to requests and indications, the more you can say and understand, the easier traveling in a foreign country becomes.
You should always strive to learn new languages if you consider yourself to be a hardcore traveler.