Happy Tripper

Tripper Tips: How to Prepare for a Travel Emergency

Posted by ordnacin

I’ve been lucky enough to have worked for a multinational company which has allowed me to experience the joys of traveling. Over the past years I’ve encountered problems and emergencies during different trips, though most of these are out of our control we can prepare ourselves so that when they do happen we are ready for the consequences, minimize the impact and more importantly remain a Happy Tripper.

Tripper Tip #1: Make a copy of important ID’s

You never know when you might lose your bag or wallet and along with it your ID’s. Worse still you could get robbed or get your wallet picked. Being stranded in a foreign country without any means of identification is definitely no fun.

I usually bring with me photocopies of my passport, visa, license, credit cards, company ID, business card and even my birth certificate. I place them in a separate location from where I keep my ID’s usually at the hotel safe. I suggest you also scan them and keep a copy online, Flickr and Picasa are good options as they offer free accounts with generous storage allocation.

Tripper Tip #2: Keep an extra set of clothes with your carry in luggage

They say in life two things are certain, death and taxes. Well in travel it’s delayed flights and lost luggage.

Make sure you have a spare set of clothes and toiletries with your carry in luggage. Or if your bag is too bulky already at least have a complete set of underwear and a fresh shirt. That way if your luggage is late/lost or if your flight is delayed by a significant amount of time you still have fresh clothes you can wear for one more day. This is becomes more important if you have a meeting right after your flight in. Looking haggard and wearing crumpled clothes isn’t the best way to make an impression during a meeting.

One time during a trip to New Zealand our luggage didn’t make it to our connecting flight so they had to ship it in the succeeding flight. Ironically enough we were rooting for our luggage to be late for at least 12 hours as we found out that Qantas had a policy wherein they would give you money to buy clothes if the delivery of your luggage was late by 12 hours.

Tripper Tip #3: Make a list of important contact numbers

My HSBC Visa card has a nice though often irritating security feature. If someone were to use it abroad the card is disabled to safeguard against fraudulent transactions, unfortunately that someone is almost always me. The first time this happened was when I was about to checkout at a hotel. Imagine my surprise (and embarassment) when I was told my transaction got rejected. I had to make an international call to the Philippines just to clear up the problem. Needless to say I was pissed when my phone bill came in.

To avoid similar situations in the future I list down all the important contact numbers I might need - Hotlines for ATM & Credit Cards, travel agent, the consulate or embassy and the hotel I’m staying at.

More importantly get their toll free numbers or local numbers so that you won’t have to spend much just to call them - if it’s an ATM or Credit Card issue keep the copies you made (Tripper Tip #1) on hand as there is information there that the call agents will ask for to verify your identity.

Once, an office mate of mine lost her credit cards abroad, she had to wait to get back to the Philippines to have them canceled. In that short span of time thieves could have easily cleaned up her account. Being able to call up these hotlines could be the difference between an enjoyable trip and a very very expensive one.

Tripper Tip #4: Bring extra money

A few years ago my wife and I went to Hong Kong together with my brother-in-law and his family - this was the time when the SARS scare was at it’s highest. On the day that we were supposed to go home my wife’s nephew caught fever, unfortunately he got screened at the airport and the doctor there didn’t allow him to go home. We decided that we will all stay at Hongkong until the fever cleared up, the bad news was we didn’t have a lot of money left. Fortunately for us my wife’s mother had a business associate in Hongkong and we were able to source some funds from her.

There are a lot of things that can go wrong that may force us to stay longer than we originally planned - health problems, bad weather, missed connections, etc so it’s important that we bring a little more money that we expect to spend. At least enough to last one or two more days abroad. One other thing I do is that I overpay my credit card before I leave (even if they are not due), that way if you have to rely on your credit card for emergency spending you can easily go over your credit limit.

Tripper Tip #5: Protect your health

Probably one of the worst things that can happen when you travel is having a major illness or getting into an accident. Hospitalization and health care can be very very expensive especially if you’re coming from a third world country like the Philippines.

Though the chances of it happening is remote it is still important that you be at least aware of what your coverage is. If you’re on a business trip then check with your company, most big companies usually have coverage for their employees when traveling. You may need to find out though whether you are covered for the whole trip or only when you are on official business functions.

If you’re on a vacation then check your health insurance, some credit cards also provide insurance coverage if you purchase your ticket thru their card. If not then you might want to consider purchasing short term coverage which some travel agencies offer - especially if you’re vacationing for an extended period of time.

If you have prescription medicine bring your prescription in case you run out (or better yet bring more than enough to last you the trip). Have a short note with your medical history with you at all time, especially if you have special conditions or have medicine that you are allergic to. For more exotic locations you may also consider getting vaccinations to whatever diseases are common in those areas.

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