My Pre-Travel Ritual

I absolutely hate the travel process; from customs to immigration to security to baggage check-in to baggage claim and everything else in between. I just want to get to my destination as quickly and stress-free as possible.

If you are anything like me, your travel anxiety increases as your departure date draws closer. It really is a mix of excitement and dread for the process. Here are some of the things I do before I finally board the airplane to my destination.

Buy the ticket and get accommodation

If in your head you didn’t say *duh* then you are such a sweet person. Lol. But yes, of course, I buy the ticket after scouting for days, or even months, for the most affordable one because, girl, the way this economy is set up and I am not about to finish all my money in a foreign country.

Read how I get the best deals on airplane tickets here

Research on the country I am traveling to

I am a researcher at heart so you already know I will do my fair bit of digging on wherever I am going to. I generally do not like to rely on Internet information because we all know some of that stems from bias and inaccuracy but that is a good start, at the very least. I don’t know about you, but I find it a bit odd when people ask questions that can be found on Google, there’s even a sarcastic remark called LMGTFY (Let me google that for you.) In this age of the internet, you can’t afford to go to a new country totally clueless. At least research their culture, food, president, rules, etc and all that basic information. It will not only save you some cost, it will keep you from danger.

Draw up a to-do list

I always draw up a very a detailed plan on what to do, places to go, etc before my trip. Tripadvisor is a very good resource for that. For example, when I went to Belgium, I wrote something along the lines of “Get the Leonidas Chocolate from Rue au Beurre in Brussels.” Yes, that is how detailed and specific I can get. The worst thing to happen to any traveler is to run out of activities when in a foreign place. One thing to keep in mind though, do not be stuck on your own plans, things change and to make a good travel experience, you have to be very flexible. If you’re wondering, I didn’t end up getting the Leonidas chocolate because when I got there, it was super packed, I had to settle for a smaller chocolate shop nearby. Case in point.

Take medication

This might come as a surprise, but wanderlust can do things to your body that you wouldn’t expect. Apart from the usual Jetlag which I am blessed to have never experienced, you might react to a change in weather conditions. For example, going from Canada, a country with extreme humid conditions to a temperate country like The Bahamas, your body might react negatively. In this case, I take medication about 3-4 days before hand because no matter how enthusiastic you can be about your trip, your body should also be put into consideration. Insert R-Kelly’s *My mind’s telling me yessss but my body, my body’s telling me nooooo.* Okay, I may have interchanged it. Sorry.

Clean the house

Nothing worse than getting home to an untidy apartment after a long day of traveling. It is the actual worst thing you can do to yourself. Not to say your house shouldn’t be clean at all time but we all know life sometimes happens and we forget to put some things in place. I always make sure that the house or my personal space is sparkling clean before I travel so that when I get back, I can catch some sleep on my clean, familiar bed.

Pray

According to this online statistic, the odds of being killed in a single airline flight is 1 in 29.4 million which is great news for travel lovers but as a christian, I firmly believe it is only God that keeps us and so before I travel, I pray to God for a safe flight, safe arrival, safe location and safe return. It is only right, I think.

So that is a summary of the things I do before I travel. I have not included packing because that is a department I am still trying to improve on.

Your turn, what are the things you typically do before you travel? I’d like to hear from you.

Till next time.

Love,

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