PASSPORT BOOKS VERSUS PASSPORT CARDS You’ll need a passport book to travel internationally. A passport book is just the regular old blue passport you see Americans posting everywhere on social media. This is different from a passport card, which will only allow you to to travel by land or by sea (cruise ships, basically) to…
Category: Tips for New Travelers
If you’re new to international travel, start here.
Hostel, Hotel, or Airbnb?
HOTELS Best for: Solo travelers, groups of two, the mobility-challenged, new travelers Most of us are familiar with hotels and know what to expect when we book one. This makes it the best option for those who aren’t entirely comfortable with traveling yet or need a little extra assistance. With virtually all hotels, you’re guaranteed…
Open Jaws, Nested Flights, and other Airfare tricks
Looking for flight deals? Maybe you go to Orbitz, search for a flight from Chicago to Amsterdam, and then pay whatever is offered. That works fine for some, but there are other ways to book tickets that you should consider. One might save you some time, and another might save you some money. Let’s look…
When to Start Traveling with Kids
When discussing family travel and taking your kids overseas, I constantly hear parents say: “It’s a waste of money to take my kids somewhere they won’t even remember.” By that logic, you also shouldn’t take your kid to see Disney on Ice, or to a sporting event, or to the movies. Birthday parties are probably…
Travel Planning – the Ups and Downs
I haven’t posted in awhile, mostly because I started a new job in May and I get tired easily. It turns out blogging is exhaustive work, there’s all this writing stuff involved and it’s crazy. But with a new job comes new PTO so, although I haven’t been posting lately, I have been constantly thinking…
Safety and the Solo Traveler
I’m a huge fan of solo travel and will sing its praises from every mountaintop. But (there’s always a but, right?) I’ve never felt 100% safe traveling solo. I’ve never been mugged or molested or even propositioned overseas. No one has threatened me or tried to force me into anything (knock on wood like a…