What not to do when travelling overseas

No matter how many times you’ve embarked on an overseas adventure, simple mistakes can lead to lost time, financial mishaps and missed opportunities. Experience is often the best teacher and the spontaneous nature of travel offers on-the-spot lessons, but there are ways to avoid tripping over the most common potholes.

Don’t Skip the Fine Print

From expired passports to exorbitant fees for overweight baggage, skipping the fine print is the number one mistake every traveller makes. Get out your magnifying glass or hit zoom, to ensure you understand those tiny words at the end of documents and bookings. 

Let’s take a look at the most crucial ones.

Passports and Visas

Many countries insist that your passport is valid for at least six months after the date you plan to return. Plus, if you happen to find yourself in a situation where flights are cancelled, due to any number of reasons, cutting it too fine means the risk of spending time and money at immigration. As a rule of thumb, never leave home with the threat of passport expiry over your head.

Australians are lucky when it comes to travel without visas, as they’re generally issued upon arrival, if required at all. However, as holidays are often booked solely over the internet without the advice of an agent, it’s easy to overlook the necessity of applying for one in advance for some countries, like India and Russia.

Unforeseen Money Pits 

Extra charges are just what you don’t want, when you’ve spent time making an overseas trip financially viable. Baggage charges are, by far, the sneakiest. If you’re travelling on domestic flights within your destination, make sure the checked baggage allowance accommodates your luggage. 

When you book flights on overseas airlines, you may need to print out your boarding pass before arriving at the airport, or risk paying a high fee to do so once there. Remember that many budget airlines don’t include baggage in their fees at all and paying at the airport, when you have no other option, means a decidedly emptier wallet. 

Don’t Neglect Your Research

While spontaneity is key to successful travel, failing to research at all can result in time wastage, delays and cultural ignorance. For example, it’s important to have knowledge of the local transport system before you arrive and of opening hours and seasonal restraints on tourist attractions you want to see. 

Seemingly small cultural differences can impact your trip, unless you read up on acceptable behaviour. In Singapore, for instance, it’s considered rude to point with your index finger, tap your foot or raise your hand to get someone’s attention. Taking photos of local performers in Phuket, without asking permission or paying, may not be worth the possibility of an angry exchange on the street.

It’s often the little things that make the difference between a life-changing overseas adventure and a slew of annoying, avoidable issues. With research and attention to detail (that barely-there fine print), you’ll leap - rather than trip - over those inevitable potholes.