Your health matters

Proper vaccinations and that you have renewed all essential prescriptions. Also, ask you medical insurance provider if your policy applies overseas for emergencies. If it doesn’t, and you want to add extra coverage, consider supplemental insurance.

Passport Copy

If your passport gets stolen or lost you want to be sure that you can still get back into the country, or be able to prove your citizenship.

Register with your embassy

If there’s a problem in the country, this will make it easier for your government to contact you and get you to safety.

Convert money before you travel.  Make sure you do your math before you travel to get a sense of where the conversion rate is at.

Check the functionality of your credit card in the country you are visiting.

Make sure your credit card has the right features for overseas travel.

Just because your credit card works fine in the United States doesn’t mean it’s the best option for traveling abroad. There are several features you should look for in a credit card to take overseas.

Visit a bank or ATM wherever you are travelling to

Ensure you visit a bank and conversion centers especially those in the airport or around the city tend to be huge rip-offs. You won’t get charged as many fees at the ATM or the bank, and the conversion will be exact.

Always have local cash

Not every place takes credit cards. Especially important places like trains or buses.

Call your bank or credit card provider

Sometimes banks think that fraud may be occurring if transactions are suddenly happening in Bali when you’re from Jersey, and they will turn off your card as a security measure.

Check the country’s entrance/exit fees. Some countries require travellers to pay in order to enter or leave the country. These fees are always not included in the price of your airline ticket.

Buy tickets now for places you know you want to visit or see

By buying in advance you’ll be able to skip more lines, and find more deals targeted toward you.

Get guidebooks

Guidebooks usually include maps, keywords or phrases, and give you enough detail on certain sites that you won’t need to purchase the pamphlet at the venue. And download apps before you travel. Avoid downloading charges from your wireless carrier and get your apps before you leave.

Research events going on while you’re there

This will help you make sure that you’re not missing the best events going on in the city — fun things like festivals, ceremonies and natural events. Also be sure to research as a few national dishes to try. You don’t want to leave the country without experiencing what it’s known for.

Bring a charger adapter

Countries have different size plugs and voltage. So if you want to use your iPod, make sure you can charge it.

Check the voltage of your electronics. From my own experience I know that nothing is worse than having an adapter and still not being able to use a blow-dryer or a straightener because the voltage isn’t high enough for that country.

Activate your phone’s global capabilities.

You will incur costs when doing this but this is always much less than the roaming charges you’ll get if you don’t.

Bring snacks.

Bring small snacks that will carry you through until you find that perfect restaurant or food store. Remember, traveling abroad is fun, but eating in a foreign country can sometimes become a headache.