Tips

Travel planning is a topic that we take very seriously and this does not only include the best flight, the most convenient accommodation or the activities we want to do but also ensure that we take all that we need. When we started traveling, we packed our things with what we remembered and often ended up carrying unnecessary things or missing some essential items. It was then that we decided to build a packing list.

On the first trip, the packing list served the purpose perfectly since it had been made specifically for this trip. However, on the next trip, this was no longer true. Over the years, we have been refining this list, with everything we needed to travel, and tried to make it as generic as possible to serve both a summer trip and a weekend in the snow.

How to get your free Packing List

To get your copy of our packing list, subscribe, below, to our blog and you will receive a copy on your email box.

---

How does this Packing List works

Our packing list is divided into the sections described below. The category of the items is divided by type or whether they should go in carry-on or hold baggage.

Each section contains the list with the respective items arranged in a table, where the first column contains the description and the second the amount that you will need on your trip. The following columns are reserved for checking, a few days before you leave if you already have the articles or not and make sure you will put everything inside the suitcases.

Clothes

In this section, you can find a list of generic articles for both summer and winter travel. In this case, our list is more oriented to men’s clothing but is easily adaptable for women’s clothing.

Toiletries

In this category, you will find all the items of hygiene and first aid that you will need in almost all your trips. With regard to first aid or SOS medicines, you should consult a healthcare professional for advice.

Extras

This section is reserved to place your most personal or specific items for the type of trip you are going to take. Typically we use this zone to place, for example, specific vouchers that need to be printed.

Misc

This was probably the category in which we forgot more things before making this packing list.

Hand Luggage

This zone is reserved for carry-on items. Typically they are the things that you may need during the trip or that have more value. You should always consider the value of the items you are going to ship to the aircraft hold.

In this category, there is also a change of clothes. Sometimes we can have the bad luck of our luggage being lost, and even having the travel insurance of World Nomads or Iati, that reimburse you for the loss, you should take some essential objects that can help you minimize the impact.

---

For us, this packing list helps us a lot optimizing the planning of our trips and when it comes to packing we just follow this list.

You should always validate the luggage limits of the ticket you purchased and you should also see what the payment is if you exceed the limit. When you leave, you must avoid that the weight is close to the limit since you may want to make some purchases in the destination and thus avoid problems in the return.

To get your copy, just subscribe to our blog and you will receive the packing list in your email.

---

---

When it comes to travel planning there are many choices of travel resources such as companies and online travel fare aggregators. For a number of years, we have tried many options, from comparing and booking directly with aviation companies and hotels to using travel fare aggregators for flights and hotels.

There is no perfect choice or recipe, but after this time we noticed that we were increasingly booking our travels with the same travel resources, mainly because of the price differences, but also because of the service they offer or their usability.

The companies below are the ones we use most often for each of the categories.

Flights

Using a flight aggregator has the main advantage of showing all the flights of all the companies available for a specific destination and travel date. In addition, it also allows to search the price of these flights in several agencies and to opt for the cheapest.

Momondo and Skyscanner, in addition to these advantages, give you inspiration for travel. Many times when we have a long weekend we end up researching, a few months before, trips without a specific destination and sometimes we find opportunities to travel in an economic way that we would not otherwise find. The flexible search mode also lets you see if the dates close to the travel days have cheaper options and sometimes we change what we initially thought to save some money.

When we search for a flight, we’re using these aggregators because sometimes the prices are slightly different and we can opt for the cheaper one.

Accomodation

Searching for accommodation is not always easy as there are more and more options for all tastes and wallets. Using a platform with a large selection makes the search process easier, without having to resort to multiple sites.

In order to book accommodation we always use Booking which, in addition to having lots of options it also has tools to search, filter and view the selections on the map. For frequent customers, there is still the Genius status that allows access to exclusive advantages and more competitive prices.

Booking.com

Revolut

For many years, Revolut has been a trusty travel companion for us. When we travel, bank fees, exchange fees, and international bank commissions are always something we don’t want to deal with.

Revolut is a prepaid card and app that deals with this problem and make our travels cheaper as we save a lot in rubbish fees. Having a Revolut account is free. They also have some paid plans but we think the standard plan is enough for most people when traveling. Order your Revolut card here.

The app is great and Revolut supports apple pay so, apart from traveling, we also use it in our daily life.

Travel Insurance

When planning your trip it is very important that you include travel insurance, especially for those more adventurous trips. Some credit cards already have insurance included when travel is fully or partially purchased with them, however, coverages are widespread for all users and may not serve your needs. You should always check with your credit card issuer for clarification.

For a more comprehensive travel insurance that you can buy online, even when you’re already on the road, World Nomads and Iati Seguros are the best options for us. If you want to know more, check out our post about travel insurance.

You can simulate your Iati insurance here and by using this link you always get a 5% exclusive discount on your insurance. So the price is better than if you buy it directly from the Iati website.

Iati seguros

You can also do a World Nomads insurance simulation here:

Rent a car

Nowadays, we always try to have our own transportation when visiting a new country, especially when public transportation doesn’t take us to every place we would like to know.

The best way to do this is to use a fare aggregator like Rentalcars. This way you can check all the options and find the best price among all the most common car rental companies.

Travel Packages

When we book a longer trip, we typically do some research on Logitravel, because they have access to differentiated fares for multi-city destinations or make combinations for circuits on regular flights with hotels of your choice, most often allowing a more competitive price than making the booking independently.

Claim flight delays and cancellations

When you book your flights you expect for the airlines to comply with the schedules, however many times this does not happen. Air traffic disturbances, technical problems, and staff strikes are just a few of the reasons that can delay your flight. However, current legislation defines that companies must compensate passengers for delays or cancellations on flights.

Usually, the claim process is time-consuming and a lot of people end up not doing it. It is estimated that more than 5 billion euros in compensation have not been claimed in the last year, so there are companies that handle the whole process for you, and one of them is Compensair.

Compensair promises to claim from the airline that was late on your flight, compensation up to € 600. See below how much your compensation may be for late or cancellation of your flight.

---

Feel free to use these travel resources when planning your travels. Using these travel resources has no extra cost to you. However, it is a great help to support our project.

---