Essential Advice for Stress-Free Travel (A Guest Post)

As any frequent traveller will know, the more stress-free that the whole ordeal is, the better an experience you’ll have. Whether you’re flying solo or as a family, hassle-free holidays are always the best ones – staying organised and on top of your planning will guarantee that your break will be unforgettable, for the right reasons.

• Compare travel insurance quotes to ensure you have the best deal on your holiday insurance. Don’t travel without it, no matter how certain you are that nothing bad will happen to you. You will find people all over the world travelling without valid insurance – don’t be one of them. Holiday insurance by Thomas Cook only costs a few pounds but will mean a huge deal if the worst happens.

• Make sure you’ve checked and double checked your passport and any required visas to ensure that they are all in date and ready to go. It’s too easy to misjudge a passport renewal – if you find that yours is out of date (or won’t be valid for 6 months after your return), the last thing your stress levels need is a mad rush for an emergency appointment at the passport office.
• If you insist on taking wads of cash, make sure you pay for the use of the safe in your room. Ideally, avoid taking paper money and use ATM machines instead. Major resorts have plenty of cash machines and even the minor ones will have one somewhere. Open a bank account that allows you to make foreign purchases without being landed with excessive fees.
• If you’re travelling with family, make sure their hand luggage is full of things to keep them entertained. Colouring books, crayons, handheld games consoles and kindles are perfect to keep the kids happy, whatever their age.

Most off all, take the whole holiday in your stride – make an itinerary but don’t abide by strict time constraints and your holiday will be as stress-free as you make it.