Jetlag – it can hit you hard whether your a travel hardened frequent flyer business man or a first time overseas tourist. Here are a few tips that may help you to deal with jetlag on your travels.

1.Get a good sleep/ rest before you head away. Travel can be a tiring ordeal at the best of times, and that is without the unforseen dalays etc. So at least start your journey well rested.

2.When on the plane, consider yourself already in your destinations time zone. By adjusting the time you sleep you can more quickly adopt on the time zone to where you are traveling. So adjust watch to the destination and work on that time.

3.There is much advice out there to drink a lot of water during the flight as it will help you stay hydrated, throughout out the trip. However for an adult…… as long as you don’t abuse things, the medicinal glass of red or whatever suits you can work wonders in relieving stress and maybe help you doze off.

4.During waking hours, take the opportunity to get up and stretch your legs. Just a little exercise will work wonders and also assist your body avoid DVT and such.

5.Don’t drink coffee and alcohol during the flight. I know I said otherwise in paragraph 3, but the point is don’t drink tea, coffee or alchohol to excess. They tend to dehydrate you and so make you more tired. So keep up the fluids ie water and soft drinks.

An important point – airlines have a much stricter ‘responsibility to serving alcohol policy’ these days as alchohol related incidents are on the rise.

6.Enjoy the trip. You on the plane for hours so relax, sit back and enjoy the time. Watch a movie, have a sleep. Leave your troubles behind.

7.When you arrive, even if feeling a little worse for wear, adjust your sleep schedule to the new time zone. By this I don’t mean forcing yourself to stay awake all day if you are shattered. But for example if you arrive in the morning, sure get your head down for a couple of hours to take the edge off. Hen get up and see the rest of the day out and go to bed at a similar time to what you do at home.

And finally ….. have a great holiday!

I almost fell out of my seat today when I read that the Australian airline Qantas are now going to charge extra for passengers who request crossover or emergency exit rows! Aiming at overweight or tall people they expect to pick up another $2500 or so on each flight by doing so.

Well as age advances, in my case so has the weight. And I love to travel - but we are getting stung more and more. So here it is - lose weight and get shorter. As I am yet to have the private jet I guess losing a few pounds/ kilos is the way to go…… better for the health as well.

This might help you out…..
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Many problems encountered overseas can be avoided with a bit of common sense and by taking some simple precautions.

We all have our own way of doing things, but over the next few weeks I plan to pass on a few tips and ideas that have held me in good stead over the years. So here we go…..

1. Take out travel insurance to cover hospital treatment, medical evacuation and any activities, like adventure sports, in which you plan to participate. Many years ago, I was caught out when a tooth blew up on me when traveling in Japan. Being young, invincible, I never gave insurance a second thought. So although it was a minor (but very painful) medical condition it cost me a couple of weeks travel budget! Far worse can happen and so insurance for me is now a must….especially when traveling with family.

2. Check the latest travel advice for your destination from your governments travel website. They are usually kept very up to date and may have some information that you didn’t hear about on the news.

3. At the risk of stating the obvious - obey the law of the country you’re visiting. Don’t expect to be treated any better or differently to the locals. Your in their culture so respect it and the people around you, its their home. If you have an issue with this then remind yourself how you feel when you may have seen tourists act badly in your home town.

4. Make copies of your important documentation. ie passport, insurance policy, travellers’ cheques, visas and credit card etc. If traveling alone then carry a copy in a separate place to the originals, if paired up carry a back-up for each other but again separate from the originals. Its also a good idea to leave a copy at home so you have another back-up. Along with that ensure you have the right visas for the countries you are visiting or transiting.

5. Check with your doctor for recommended vaccinations and the necessary health precautions to take. Remember also that certain medicines may not be allowed in some countries - so check.

6. Even if you don’t stay in close contact with friends and family, at least give someone a copy of your itinerary so they know where you are. This may not be so much of an issue if you are on a tour, but if back-packing the jungles of South America etc then its a good move.

It is not until you actually travel internationally that you really appreciate the different types of cultures around the world. You do not need not be rich to engage in traveling this way; a well-planned itinerary is as close as your computer keyboard plus you can find a good airfare if you plan ahead and travel in the of peak seasons, generally in fall and spring. You will be hard pushed to find more pleasant European destinations in the winter than Greece, Italy, the South of France and Spain especially when they do not have the colder temperatures of their Northern European cousins. When carrying out your online research, look for people that rent out their own apartments and homes perhaps for a shorter time which may mean it will be less expensive than through other specialist organizations.

Most properties on the continent have modern facilities so your laundry cooking and internet will still be available. There is nothing like having a breakfast when you are on vacation especially when you prepare it yourself and it gives you a chance to use fresh produce from a foreign country. The idea is that you save yourself time and money by using the facilities so you will be able to launder your clothes and sent greetings cards via email which will save time looking around stores and buying stamps, leaving you more time to explore. It is always exciting visiting a new country, to get a chance to explore and absorb new cultures and see how people live their normal daily lives, which on the whole aren’t that different from people everywhere.

Unfortunately Americans have fallen into the habit of often eating on the move or just rushing and don’t make it the family affair that they do in many European countries which it must be said is a more pleasurable experience. Try new things; walk around your neighborhood and discover the bookstore, grocer, hardware, night club or restaurant and neighborhood businesses reflect the tempo of life in your chosen destination. A true international traveler will want to experience the local food and traditional dishes like French Pistou and Spanish Paella instead of the plastic versions you can get elsewhere. Part of the experience of international travel is getting around, so become adventurous as large cities, such as Paris, have inexpensive and ultra-efficient transport systems making it easy to go anywhere you want.

However, if this is how you like to travel then restricting how much you carry with you is paramount and being able to fit everything you need into hand luggage can save a great deal of time at the airport. This of course means that to do this efficiently, it is good idea to carry everything you need for the trip in a carry on, which will make things simpler; no lost luggage or waiting around the luggage carousel at the airport. You may not think this is possible but it is; you just need to remember that many of the essentials of traveling like toiletries will be available almost everywhere you travel too. Many seasoned travelers will recommend this as a way of visiting new places with less hassle and it can all be done online if you know where to look.

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It is almost a certainty that it is when you are traveling or on vacation that things will go wrong. These things can often ruin a vacation and leave a bad taste in the mouth for a particular location; they can even be expensive! At the extreme end you may have to spend time at the local Police station giving statements and filling out reports. It is easy to drop your guard when you are on vacation and enjoying yourself but this is when you are most vulnerable so traveling safely relies on your common sense to guide you.

If you ever get that distinct feeling that something is wrong, which often happens on vacation, that is your instinct giving you a warning that you should take notice of. A big mistake made by many tourists is they take everything of value with them which makes it very easy for thieves and pickpockets to steal their whole identity in one go. You know that when you go out for the day or evening there are only certain things you need, so just take those and leave the rest behind in the safe or security deposit box. One suggestion that can help reduce the risk of losing everything is placing cash and credit cards in different locations like pockets, wallets and bags; a pickpocket who is trying to steal from you will only get a small amount, leaving you with means to get back to the hotel.

It is also never a good idea for a couple to use the same credit card, when to travel safely it just is a simple matter to take a second card from a completely different account; as a replacement should one be mislaid or taken. For some time now, thieves have been perfecting the art of snatching handbags and cameras on straps over the shoulder; but by placing the strap over the head and laying it across the chest, this is much harder to do without cutting the strap. If you are the person carrying the camera or bag, then walk away fro the edge of the road where it is easy for motorcycle thieves to grab something and make a quick getaway. There are many ways to scam tourists and you are vulnerable when you are on vacation so it is an easy task as these people are very good at what they do.

We can become complacent believing it will not happen or we are cleverer than them but this is how they make their living and in many cases the way that they feed their family every day. For instance, when carrying small bags (rucksacks for example), it is not a difficult job to place a small combination lock on it to put thieves off; remember they are always looking for the easy victim! To prevent keys being lost or stolen try attaching them to a climber’s D-shackle that you can place on your belt or pack of some sort, this should help stop anyone trying to snatch them quickly from you. Probably the most common theft is that of a guy’s wallet from his back pocket so try placing it somewhere else on your body that will be hard to find and steal from. Many of the problems outlined above happen only when people let their guard down; traveling safely does not mean you have to be paranoid, just prepared and use common sense and you will have an enjoyable vacation.

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