Travel tips for a smoother trip

Before you go

  • You’ll be as keen as we are to save on the cost of your trip. But did you know that travel sites often track visits and increase the price based on your search history? Avoid the price hike by enabling private browsing when doing research online. And try booking on a Tuesday afternoon — travel data show this is the time when you are most likely to get a cheaper rate.
  • Take the advice of airline cabin crews and roll your clothes when you pack to save space and avoid wrinkles. Other experts’ tips include putting shoes in shower caps to keep the rest of your stuff clean, and popping a dryer sheet in your suitcase to help clothes stay fresh. We’re also big fans of compression bags to instantly shrink down your clothes.
  • Don’t chuck out that packaging! Reuse small plastic containers to keep hairclips in place. Put lotions and other liquids into contact lens cases, and keep your headphones and chargers tangle-free by wrapping them around old gift cards.
  • Mark your bag as “Fragile”. It should mean that it’s handled properly, and is more likely to go to the top of the pile in the plane’s storage compartment. This means it’ll be first onto the luggage belts at the other end.

On the trip

  • Go left. Research shows that right-handed people prefer to turn right, and left-handed people tend to turn left when given the choice1. As 90% of us are right-handed, this means that by consciously going left at security and passport control, you should get a shorter queue and save yourself some time.
  • No matter where in the world you’re travelling to, it doesn’t take much effort to get your clothes washed. If your hotel charges a fortune, use the local launderette or wash them in your bathroom — a peg-less washing line is many frequent travellers’ best friend, as are paper soap sheets.
  • Want to be able to use the map on your phone without those roaming charges adding up? Save an area in Google Maps by typing in ‘OK Map’ in the search bar and view it offline later as you go about your sightseeing.

And of course, if you’re travelling to a malaria hotspot, don’t forget

to visit your local pharmacy beforehand to get the recommended

antimalarial protection.

Safe travels!

 1. Casasanto, D., Chrysikou E.G. (2011) When Left Is “Right”: Motor Fluency Shapes Abstract Concepts. Psychological Science. 22(4) p419-422

Help take malaria off the itinerary