Tips for Smart RTW Travel

1. Couchsurf! If you are planning to travel for an extended amount of time, join couchsurfing.com now! It will do so much more than save you money; it will certainly enhance your traveling experience. You will meet people who are genuinely interested in you (not your money), and take pride in showing you around their cities. You can google any touristy item, but to truly experience life as a local, and immerse yourself in the native culture, you need couchsurfing! We’ve met some of our closest friends through this site, and they’ve provided us with unforgettable experiences around the world!
2. When you travel on a limited budget, you will find yourself in hostels with less then ideal sleeping arrangements. We use our t-shirts as emergency pillow cases and carry bed liners, when bargain bedding feels a bit too dodgy.
3. Carry ear plugs for those long nights in common hostel rooms, alongside chainsaw snoring travelers. Besides these occasional annoying roommates, we also had other memorable nights of earplug necessity. We were tent ‘camping’ in the middle of Rome, with car horns honking through the night. A drunk couple noisily staggered home around dawn, and proceeded to argue in Italian. We were also in a hostel next to a buddhist monastery, on Buddha’s birthday, in Maymyo, Burma. Monks chanted from dusk till dawn, for three days straight. It was magical for the first two hours…
4. Bring sleeping masks, for those nights you end up in curtain-less rooms with a great view of flashing neon signs. Coupled with earplugs, they will deliver you to blissful slumber. A decent sleep is pivotal for you to enjoy your adventures come next morning!
5. Hide emergency cash (at least $20/ person) in a money belt that actually looks like a belt (we like Eagle Creek’s All Terrain Money Belt), or under your hiking boots’ removable inserts, and keep it there for true emergencies (not when you need to replenish your beer fund)!
6. Pack a shock and water resistant backup camera. We recommend those from the Olympus Stylus Tough line. We were afraid to take our expensive DSLR to shoot the Burmese water festival, but our little point-and-shoot bailed us out with some great shots, and decent video!
7. You won’t have quick access to a washing machine, so pack garments made from busy prints and dark colors. They’ll look cleaner longer. I could spill a cup of coffee on my American Eagle patchwork cargo shorts, and no one would be the wiser.
8. Learn some key words or phrases in the native tongue of the place you are traveling through. It will pay off when you need to ask for directions from non-english speakers. We find locals are more willing to help, if you try to communicate with them, in their tongue, then starting off with English. Some useful words/ phrases to learn are: “please”, “excuse me”, “help me”, “where is”, “police”, “doctor”, “ambulance”, and always remember to say, “thank-you”.
9. Don’t be shy to act out what you are trying to communicate to a non-english-speaking native.
10. Never leave unused napkins behind after dining out! Stock up on extra napkins and carry them in your pocket. Most third-world bathrooms don’t supply free toilet paper. You’ll forget this little fact until you’ve finished, and you’ll be thankful for your emergency wad in your pocket!
11. Carry anti-diarrhea medication in your daypack where you can quickly get to it in case of emergency, especially if you are on a long bus or train ride.
12. Take motion sickness medicine if you get dizzy on buses or boats. Ginger chew candies from The Ginger People also work for us. If you are in South America chew on dried cocoa leaves for motion sickness. Bus and taxi drivers sometimes carry them, but you can also buy them very cheaply at the local markets.
13. Ask your travel doctor what medications they recommend for you and write it out . Pharmacies overseas will get you what you need even without a prescription and for very cheap. Pharmacists have met many sick travelers that don’t speak their language, so just act out your illness, and they maybe able to help you.
14. Pack old t-shirts that are destined to be donated , wear them out, and give them away to someone. Bring old underwear destined for the garbage, wear them till dirty then throw them away. It makes you get rid of old clothes and frees up some space to buy something on your trip.
15. Use giant Ziploc bags to compress and store your dirty clothes. They will seal the stink away from your clean clothes.
16. Use leak proof bottles in sealed ziplock bags for packing liquids in your checked luggage. Plane cargo areas are often not fully pressurized, and liquids will leak out if they are not properly sealed.
17. Pack a dark colored pashmina (a long, light cashmere shawl) to use as a blanket, belt, scarf, sarong, or even a hijab (in Islamic countries). Pashminas are very versatile and quickly add a touch of class to your wardrobe. Wrap a pashmina over your hiking shorts to gain entrance into that amazing cathedral you happen-in on!
18. Carry a quad-band unlocked cell. If you have an old quad-band cell phone, that is no longer activated, you can use it overseas by ‘unlocking’ or setting it free from the past service provider’s lock. Buy an unlock code for your phone on ebay, for $5-10, unlock it, then buy a sim card plus air time in any country you visit, and you instantly have a local number!
19. Use your cellphone as a travel alarm clock, an instant flashlight, and to hold a memo reminding you of your hostel room number.
20. I always carry an extra small Moleskine Cahier Plain Pocket Journal and X-Mark Fisher Space Pen in my wallet, to quickly jot down random notes, travel inspirations, and contact numbers.
21. If you have limited packing space, opt for the Alice Work Crocs, instead of flip-flops. They’re light, easy to clean, and very versatile; they serve as flip-flops in grimy hostel showers, but also make a nice dress shoe.

***This is a growing list! When we learn more, we’ll post more, so check back from time to time! Feel free to add some of your experiences and suggestions to our list, in the comment box below. ***