The life-saver countdown cultural travel checklist (Part 2)

Last week we started our countdown cultural travel checklist as far as five years before you actually hop on a plane or take a train to go somewhere.

This week we’ll finish our countdown to the more practical side of the implications of leaving home for a few weeks or even months. If you haven’t read Part 1, I encourage you to do so!

Remember, this countdown travel checklist assumes you will be coming back home soon.

Here’s how to leave in a state of peace knowing that you took care of everything before your amazing adventure.

1 month to go

• Get a full medical and dental checkup. I once had a tooth filling pop out during vacation and it was miserable!

• Make sure your pet has all vaccinations.

• Purchase any new clothes you might need. Get sturdy comfortable shoes and start wearing them so that they’re completely broken in for your trip.

• Buy any travel gear or tech gadgets you might need for your trip. Make sure the batteries and camera SD cards are working properly. Check chargers, converters and plugs.

• Review your travel insurance policy; see if it’s enough and if it covers what you need. You can also check if your health insurance company covers you if you’re traveling abroad.

• Let your family know about your trip and check to whom you can forward your mail. I personally don’t like to tell that many people I’m away, just really close family members or friends

That way I avoid potential burglars at home.

• Notify friends or family abroad that you will be visiting. Purchase gifts for them.

• Find out if your phone will work abroad and if not, how to activate it while on your trip.

2 weeks to go

• Entrust somebody with a house key and the duty of mowing the lawn and watering the plants.

• Get prescriptions refilled and review your emergency kit for your trip. Get rid of expired medicine and replenish with new supplies.

• Start packing. :-O Yes, I know, it may be a bit early, but I personally don’t like to be rushed, I like to take my time and do it properly and effectively.

• Buy foreign currency for your trip. Research where you can get the best rates.

• Scan your travel documents and ID and email them to yourself, so that they’ll be accessible for you anywhere. Leave a copy with family, as well as a copy of your itinerary and contact information abroad.

• Gather important phone numbers like:

• the travel insurance company number
• hotel number
• friends and family’s numbers abroad
• credit card company number
• your country’s embassy at your destination number

… in case you need them and store them in your phone or iPad.

• If something important is going to happen during your trip, like an important payment you need to make, arrange for someone to take care of it for you.

• Depending on how long your trip will be, cancel, suspend or redirect services like the internet or subscriptions to magazines.

1 week to go

• Confirm hotel reservations. If there’s a problem you’ll have enough time to solve it. If they messed up your reservation, ask them to help you find another hotel.

• If you can, get and set up timers for the lights at home, so that there’s an impression that there’s somebody home.

• Arrange transportation to the airport and review/update your luggage tags.

• Choose reading materials and entertainment to bring in your phone, iPod or tablet for the waiting periods at the airport.

• Train your house sitter in everything he/she needs to do and write it down for him/her.

3 days to go

• Get your travel pouch ready with all your travel documents, passport, flight tickets, etc.

• Check the weather at your destination, to edit the clothing items you had already packed or that you may need.

• Pay up any pending bills.

• Place valuables like jewelry or money in a safe, safe deposit box or leave with a trustworthy person.

• Clean and tidy up your house, that way when you come back tired from your amazing journey, you’ll find a nice place waiting for you!

1 day to go

• Purge your wallet of unnecessary cards.

• Set your email autoreply message including the date when you’ll be back, inform if you will be checking email while you’re away and inform the contact email of the person who’s replacing you.

• Walk around the house and check if windows and doors are properly closed, if there’s no food lying around and if there are no dirty clothes that need washing.

• Charge every electronic device you have, iPod, iPhone, iPad, camera, laptop, e-book reader, the works!

• Spend a bit of time with your loved ones.

Go!

• Take care of the last minute items: Check that there is no perishable food in the fridge, take out the trash, cut the natural gas line, water the plants, do the dishes and finish cleaning the house.

• Check online if the flights are on time, pack your last minute items like deodorant, toothbrush and even passport!

• Turn on electronic timers for the lights of the house and the thermostat (55°F/13°C) to save energy.

• Make sure every electric device is unplugged: iron, oven, curling/straightening irons, etc. Walk around bathrooms and kitchen and make sure all faucets are closed.

• Be sure that you have plane tickets, passports, money, credit cards, medications, driver’s license, frequent flyer cards, maps, travel guides and phone numbers with you.

• Check your luggage one more time to see if there’s anything you can leave at home.

And most important of all have an awesome cultural trip!

Countdown cultural travel checklist

As promised, here’s the concise checklist for you to download and print!

I hope this article has been useful for you.
Did I miss something? Should something else be included?
Or is this a total waste of time?

Share your comments in the field below or join the conversation in Facebook!

Tags: organization, packing, planning, tips, tools