People Are Sharing Their Best Travel Hacks, And These Will Genuinely Save You So Much Time, Money, And Stress
As an anxious traveler, I'm always on the lookout for any way I can relieve stress leading up to or while on a trip. Yes, I'm that friend that insists we get to the airport ridiculously early (better safe than sorry, right?). So, when redditor u/YoungFlackos asked the r/travel community to share their best travel hacks, I was all ears. Here are some that'll save you a ton of time, money, and stress for your next trip.
1."ALWAYS carry on anything you can't afford to lose, both monetarily and sentimentally!"
"I always told this to my wife. We pack our carry-ons accordingly. If our checked bag gets lost, it would suck and be an inconvenience, but we wouldn't be stressing over what was lost."
2."My favorite travel tip is to enjoy the planning process. For me, travel starts the second I sit at the computer and start figuring out how to get there. I truly enjoy deciding between a B&B or a hotel, whether to find a place that serves breakfast or one that has a great sunset view, and maximizing utility per unit currency expended. I bet there is a detectable change in my brain waves, blood pressure, and heart rate when I am in trip-planning mode. I’m already there, mentally, and I can’t wait for my body to catch up. Anyway, I think it enhances the trip and extends it in a way."
3."Have a 'mistakes' fund. Give yourself, say, $100–$500 (depending on the trip) where your mistakes cost will go toward things like a missed train ride, flight change fee, tourist scams, etc. It will help you not let one bad thing ruin the whole trip, especially if you are traveling with a partner or group."
4."Start packing a week before you leave. Just leave your luggage out and start putting stuff in as you think of it. The true benefit of this is that you will find yourself taking STUFF OUT, too. With some time to think, you will decide you actually don't need to take certain things. When packing in a rush, I think people err on the side of 'what if' and pack too much."
5."Travel internet router is a god-tier travel hack. Second best is going to the bathroom as often as you can — if you have ready access to a clean toilet somewhere, use it."
6."When I am going to another country, I enroll in the State Department's STEP program. It's free and notifies the corresponding US Embassy that you will be in that country. That way, if there are emergencies, unrest, etc., they can contact you. You can also put family members in your profile so that they can be contacted as well."
7."I only take a carry-on so I have to pack smart/light. I avoid bringing cotton as it weighs too much and once wet, takes forever to dry, so it's 100% synthetics for me. Also, I wear a hat when flying and use it to hold my pocket stuff when going through security. If you can, take aspirin before a really long flight as it reduces chances for blood clots. Lastly, I use really good noise-canceling headphones. They are priceless if you get stuck next to loud noises (like children crying) during a long flight."
8."Write the name and address of your hotel/hostel on a small piece of paper before you arrive at the airport/station and give it to the taxi driver. This way you don’t have to get your phone out, and you know for sure you’ve given them the right address. Pick up a business card from the hotel once you arrive, and you can do the same while you are out and about."
9."Watch videos of the cities you will visit and follow some food Instagrammers. When you see something interesting, put it into Google Maps under a list named after the city. Make sure to really note why you starred it in the first place. In two weeks, you might forget you added it because of a really obscure little appetizer or something you forgot about."
10."In addition to a travel adapter, bringing a power bar with your native outlet can save you from fighting for outlets in hotel rooms with your travel companions. Also good for airports where plugs are scarce."
11."Compression socks for long-hauls or anywhere I'm stuck in one spot for more than three hours."
12."Never buy your flight through a bucket shop or second vendor. If you have a flight canceled or delayed, you will have to go through them to get a refund, which will never happen. You can look at the schedules and prices online, but always buy directly with the carrier and have no shame about asking for the same price online. Even if it's $50 more, it's worth it."
13."Put an AirTag in your carry-on and two in your checked bag (one in a pocket on the bag and another inside a pocket of clothes or something)."
"They’re amazing. When the airline lost my luggage last month, I was able to tell them immediately where my bag was. They were saying it was in Madrid, but I told them it was actually still at Heathrow. I did get it back after a few days and was able to track where it was at all times. It was a great relief seeing it on the runway at Heathrow, knowing it was finally on its way to me."
14."I’m sure plenty of people know this 'hack,' but I’ve surprised my friends quite a few times with this knowledge. I had a friend who was trying to go to Ireland somewhat short notice, and the flights were crazy expensive. I told him to look into London and then fly to Ireland from there. He saved $300 on the flight to London and a flight to Ireland was £19. This works for a lot of places in Europe as well. I’ve flown into London for trips to Ireland, Spain, Italy, France, etc."
15."Use a prepaid Mastercard! I don’t know if they are available worldwide, but I’m from the UK, and I used a Revolut card while traveling the world. I would load it with £250 at a time on the app so if it got stolen or copied, that was the most I could possibly lose. It isn’t connected to my main bank account so no issues with major cancelations. It also works in almost any currency as a payment card, and you can get money out of ATMs. Plus, the exchange rates are great. It was literally the best when traveling — cannot recommend it enough."
16."Bring a few familiar medicines from home (not full bottles). When you're jet-lagged or have museum feet and just want an ibuprofen, you don't want to have to find a pharmacy and figure out if paracetamol is the same thing or end up trying to translate the local language on the bottle and getting the wrong thing."
17."This is something I always do the day before I leave: Deep clean your apartment, do all chores, wash your bedsheets, and make your bed with fresh sheets. There is absolutely no better feeling than coming home from a great trip to a clean apartment and to sleep in your own bed that is freshly made."
18."If you're traveling in a group, create an email address specifically for the trip, give everyone on the trip access to it, and send (or forward) all your reservations and other trip-specific stuff to it."
19."For longer trips where you may be doing laundry, bring a dry bag and use that as your 'laundry basket.' Then you can roll it up, seal it, and take it wherever you need to go (launderette or back in your case to take home for washing). For longer trips, do actually plan to do laundry if you can. It's better than packing three weeks worth of clothing for a three-week trip. Pack enough for about half the duration and either use a local launderette or the classic tub soak. A portable line and travel detergent really come in handy for those situations!"
20."Print all your paperwork (visas, hotel confirmations, etc.) before you travel. You never know if there will be a Wi-Fi issue and someone requires to see proof. Nine out of ten times, you won’t need it, but that one time will be a huge nightmare if you don’t have it. At minimum, have photos of your documents in your phone."
21."Bring 20% less stuff than you'd like to and assume you can do 20% less than you think you can on the trip."
22."Study stoicism. Sometimes you're going to miss your bus, other times the bus might leave without you due to no fault of your own. Sometimes the restaurant you try will be bad and still expensive. Other times, the one you walked a mile to find won't even be open. Either way, you can get upset or anxious in those situations and ruin your day/week/whole trip, or you can just accept that it's part of the experience and figure out how to proceed from there."
"This became a much easier mindset to have as I got older and less worried about sticking to a budget. There’s a lot of variability to life, so being able to take on an extra 20% in costs over your planned budget is a game-changer."
Are there any travel hacks that you swear by? Let us know in the comments!
Note: Responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.
