{"id":19176,"date":"2020-12-06T14:54:42","date_gmt":"2020-12-06T12:54:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/travelbucket.co.za\/?p=19176"},"modified":"2021-01-26T11:44:49","modified_gmt":"2021-01-26T09:44:49","slug":"best-travels-tips-taken-from-20-years-of-travel","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/travelbucket.co.za\/best-travels-tips-taken-from-20-years-of-travel\/","title":{"rendered":"BEST TRAVEL TIPS TAKEN FROM 20 YEARS OF TRAVEL"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>About 25 years ago we set out on our first overlanding trip.&nbsp; We were newbies and not a lot of friends was into overlanding and they actually thought we were off our rockers to go and wander beyond the South African borders to explore Africa.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/travelbucket.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Thailand-111.1-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-19178\" width=\"549\" height=\"412\" srcset=\"http:\/\/travelbucket.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Thailand-111.1-1024x768.jpg 1024w, http:\/\/travelbucket.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Thailand-111.1-300x225.jpg 300w, http:\/\/travelbucket.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Thailand-111.1-768x576.jpg 768w, http:\/\/travelbucket.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Thailand-111.1-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, http:\/\/travelbucket.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Thailand-111.1-2048x1536.jpg 2048w, http:\/\/travelbucket.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Thailand-111.1-980x735.jpg 980w, http:\/\/travelbucket.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Thailand-111.1-600x450.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 549px) 100vw, 549px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Looking at those old pictures we were something to look at (I do not want to use the word spectacle, because that sounds a bit like&nbsp; a circus, but over the years we have refined our travel kit and way of travelling that suits us.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So, what did we learn over 20 years?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul><li>Travel with an open mind.&nbsp; First and foremost, do not expect things to be like at home.&nbsp; That is why you travel.&nbsp; To experience different places, cultures and perspectives.&nbsp;<\/li><li>Be flexible.&nbsp; Being flexible can save you some money.&nbsp; It is costly to change pre-booked activities or flights.&nbsp; Costs which can go towards you dream holiday.&nbsp; Pick off-season times to visit popular holiday destinations.<\/li><li><em>Look out for good deals.<\/em>&nbsp; If you are flexible you will also be able to access special holiday deals that can save you some bucks.<\/li><li><em>Use reward programs.<\/em>&nbsp; Be it from the airline or by using your credit card to qualify for free travel insurance.&nbsp;<\/li><li><em>Do self-catering.&nbsp; <\/em>Excellent sites are Air B&amp;B, Bookings.com, Agoda and Skynscanner.&nbsp; Take time to search these sites and you will find good deals.&nbsp; You can even share accommodation with friends to cut the costs.&nbsp; By doing self-catering you can also do your own laundry and save.<\/li><li><em>Try local food.&nbsp; <\/em>Street food is much cheaper that buying dining out.&nbsp; When we visited Thailand we only ate street food!<\/li><li><em>Talk to the locals.<\/em>&nbsp; Why?&nbsp; Because they know the best places in their region.&nbsp; I find reviews on Tripadvisor very helpful, because it is really people that share their experiences \u2013 good or bad.<\/li><li><em>Pack smart when picking your clothes<\/em>.&nbsp; Know what activities you are going to do and pack accordingly.&nbsp; Mix and match colours and styles so that you will have an outfit that is suitable for every occasion during the trip.<\/li><li><em>Wear your heaviest item of clothing on the flight.&nbsp; <\/em>This way you make sure that you will not pay excess charges on an overweight luggage item.<\/li><li><em>Pack a sarong.<\/em>&nbsp; It can double up as a tablecloth, towel, picnic blanket, a privacy screen or provide shade.<\/li><li><em>Get up early.<\/em>&nbsp; By doing this you beat traffic congestion that wastes your holiday time.&nbsp; You can enjoy a breathtaking sunrise at a special place like Angkor Wat in Cambodia without the crowds.<\/li><li><em>Make your money accessible.&nbsp; <\/em>Spread your money across debit and\/or credit cards and between partners.&nbsp; This ensure that you always have access to money should something unforeseen happen like losing a bank card.<\/li><li><em>Notify your bank <\/em>that you will be travelling to another country.&nbsp;&nbsp; If the bank notes some out of the ordinary transactions on your account, they might just block further transactions.&nbsp;<\/li><li><em>Do not spend too much time behind the camera.&nbsp; (<\/em>I am guilty of that!)&nbsp; You tend to forget to enjoy the special moment, because you are trying too hard to capture it.&nbsp;<\/li><li><em>Blow the budget.&nbsp; <\/em>Once in a while you need to blow the budget to have an once in a lifetime experience, be it ziplining, a hot air balloon ride , a sunset cruise or whatever your dreams are.<\/li><li><em>Make travel a priority.&nbsp; <\/em>Channel your energy and focus to travel.&nbsp; Sell unnecessary items that became redundant in your home and put the money towards a trip.<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\"><figure class=\"aligncenter size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/travelbucket.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Thailand-1227.1-1024x989.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-19185\" width=\"486\" height=\"470\" srcset=\"http:\/\/travelbucket.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Thailand-1227.1-1024x989.jpg 1024w, http:\/\/travelbucket.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Thailand-1227.1-300x290.jpg 300w, http:\/\/travelbucket.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Thailand-1227.1-768x742.jpg 768w, http:\/\/travelbucket.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Thailand-1227.1-1536x1484.jpg 1536w, http:\/\/travelbucket.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Thailand-1227.1-2048x1978.jpg 2048w, http:\/\/travelbucket.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Thailand-1227.1-980x947.jpg 980w, http:\/\/travelbucket.co.za\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Thailand-1227.1-600x580.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 486px) 100vw, 486px\" \/><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>I hope that this inspired you to explore and travel the world.&nbsp; See you out there!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Also head over to <a href=\"http:\/\/travelbucket.co.za\/10-airport-hacks\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">10 Airport Hacks<\/a>  for some more inspiring travel tips.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-drop-cap has-text-align-center\"><strong><em>*** To be inspired is great \u2026. To inspire other is incredible ***<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<!\u2013\u2013wordoftravel Topics [\"style.relaxing\",\"style.hiking\",\"style.adventure\",\"style.sights\",\"style.overland\"] -->","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>About 25 years ago we set out on our first overlanding trip.&nbsp; We were newbies and not a lot of friends was into overlanding and they actually thought we were off our rockers to go and wander beyond the South African borders to explore Africa.&nbsp;&nbsp; Looking at those old pictures we were something to look at (I do not want to use the word spectacle, because that sounds a bit like&nbsp; a circus, but over the years we have refined our travel kit and way of travelling that suits us.&nbsp;&nbsp; So, what did we learn over 20 years? Travel with an open mind.&nbsp; First and foremost, do not expect things to be like at home.&nbsp; That is why you travel.&nbsp; To experience different places, cultures and perspectives.&nbsp; Be flexible.&nbsp; Being flexible can save you some money.&nbsp; It is costly to change pre-booked activities or flights.&nbsp; Costs which can go towards&#8230; <a class=\"read-more-button\" href=\"http:\/\/travelbucket.co.za\/best-travels-tips-taken-from-20-years-of-travel\/\">Read more &gt;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":19181,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[1685,1554,1418],"geo":null,"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v20.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>BEST TRAVEL TIPS TAKEN FROM 20 YEARS OF TRAVEL - TRAVELBUCKET<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/travelbucket.co.za\/best-travels-tips-taken-from-20-years-of-travel\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"BEST TRAVEL TIPS TAKEN FROM 20 YEARS OF TRAVEL - TRAVELBUCKET\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"About 25 years ago we set out on our first overlanding trip.&nbsp; We were newbies and not a lot of friends was into overlanding and they actually thought we were off our rockers to go and wander beyond the South African borders to explore Africa.&nbsp;&nbsp; Looking at those old pictures we were something to look at (I do not want to use the word spectacle, because that sounds a bit like&nbsp; a circus, but over the years we have refined our travel kit and way of travelling that suits us.&nbsp;&nbsp; So, what did we learn over 20 years? Travel with an open mind.&nbsp; First and foremost, do not expect things to be like at home.&nbsp; That is why you travel.&nbsp; To experience different places, cultures and perspectives.&nbsp; Be flexible.&nbsp; Being flexible can save you some money.&nbsp; It is costly to change pre-booked activities or flights.&nbsp; Costs which can go towards... 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