Travel Hacks/Tips

[russ]

I bought one of these from Officeworks and use it at home and it works just fine for me. It would also be good for travel if you have multiple devices.

Thanks, I just bought one and it seems to be great!

 

[TonyHancock]

Thanks, I just bought one and it seems to be great!

I reckon they are pretty good.

Today I added one of these to my travel thingies. I have seen them as low as AUD$159 online. It seemed a decent idea because of shape, and because it is both a reasonable speaker and a backup battery. (Being stupid/price insensitive and a sucker for a case I bought it from QF Duty Free catalogue.)

As a review the sound is decent, better than the reviews I have read which have suggested the base is poor.

 

[Chicken]

The one and only time that Mrs 2905 took some duct tape with her, it was confiscated at security.

They don't want someone taping someone's mouth, and having domestic on a plane. Security risk

My tip is to keep one set of bank cards and passport in your wallet / carry on for daily use, another set of bank cards and passport in your checked luggage, especially if you leave your luggage at the hotel because you are staying for more than one night. This is how I susvived when I got pickpocketed in Amsterdam 3 weeks ago.

Take public transport, not taxis, so you don't get ripped off or worse.

 

[esseeeayeenn]

They don't want someone taping someone's mouth, and having domestic on a plane. Security risk

My tip is to keep one set of bank cards and passport in your wallet / carry on for daily use, another set of bank cards and passport in your checked luggage, especially if you leave your luggage at the hotel because you are staying for more than one night. This is how I susvived when I got pickpocketed in Amsterdam 3 weeks ago.

Take public transport, not taxis, so you don't get ripped off or worse.

I have a travel wallet in which I keep local currency, one credit card and my driver's license for ID.
Then I have one set of cards in my Australian wallet, and another set in my passport wallet.
The Australian wallet stays in my checked baggage, passport wallet stays on my person during flights (in case of evacuation).
Both go in the hotel room safe for the rest of the trip.

 

[RooFlyer]

Totally agree. We have had mustard yellow, red, navy and I have just bought two purple cases for this trip. And just so they stand out from the rest of the purple cases I have some hot pink ribbon tied to the handles.

I'm another for the hot pink ribbon (miner's flagging tape, to be precise) on my suitcases; been doing it since the late 1980s.

Worked great until one day, at Vancouver I think it was, I picked up a case so marked and was about to walk off with it and a guy behind me said "I think that's mine" (It was).

Turns out we were both 'miners', had the same idea and the same taste in suitcases as well (he was amazed when mine appeared, a few minutes later)! But every other flight, I can spot my bag from 100m off

I really don't understand this. I have always had black or dark grey luggage and I have never had any difficulty identifying it by the tags.
The only time I did have some confusion was when another PAX had an identical combination of QF and VA Platinum tags on an identical case.

For most people I think, its not always the case of the person identifying their own cases, but some-one else mis-identifying theirs, and taking off with it (see above ). And as some-one else has noted, having something bright and/or obvious also helps a lot when a third party has to identify the bag in a sea of otherwise similar looking ones.

 

[RooFlyer]

If you check luggage always take a photo of the cases just in case the airlines "misplace" it. This came in handy when we arrived in Paris and our bags did not appear on the baggage carousel and the "Lost Luggage " attendant wanted a description of our bags.

Yes and also a photo of the inside of the bag after packing so you can see what's been stolen immediately when you open it.

And not just immediately when you open the bags; the one time I have had things thieved out of my checked bag (before I took pics), it took me two goes to remember what was taken - some clothing gifts for instance I had forgotten about.

 

[RB]

I reckon they are pretty good.

Today I added one of these to my travel thingies. I have seen them as low as AUD$159 online. It seemed a decent idea because of shape, and because it is both a reasonable speaker and a backup battery. (Being stupid/price insensitive and a sucker for a case I bought it from QF Duty Free catalogue.)

As a review the sound is decent, better than the reviews I have read which have suggested the base is poor.

We settled for one of these & found that it does an adequate job when travelling-JB Hi-Fi | JBL Clip+ Splashproof Portable Bluetooth Speaker (Grey)

 

[ozbeachbabe]

I really don't understand this. I have always had black or dark grey luggage and I have never had any difficulty identifying it by the tags. The only time I did have some confusion was when another PAX had an identical combination of QF and VA Platinum tags on an identical case.

I flew BNE/BKK in April on TG and on arrival went to collect 'my' black samsonite case off the luggage carousel. I knew was mine because it had a QF brown name and address tag on the top handle and it was after all a Thai flight so of course it's my bag. I always double check the name on the thermal bag tag and I was stunned when it wasn't my name. I still checked the name and address tag as I still needed confirmation it wasn't my bag. Of course the name matched the thermal tag ie not my name so I put the bag back on the carousel and my bag appeared soon after.

So my tips for your luggage when travelling is to have the loudest colour you can find and avoid black at all costs. Also put a name and address tag inside and out and double check the bag tags against your luggage claim so you know 100% they are your bags before you leave the airport.

It's also a good idea to position yourself at the baggage carousel at the point where the bags first appear from the baggage makeup area to minimise chances of someone else grabbing your bag by mistake and not checking the name on the tag.

I have a travel wallet in which I keep local currency, one credit card and my driver's license for ID. Then I have one set of cards in my Australian wallet, and another set in my passport wallet. The Australian wallet stays in my checked baggage, passport wallet stays on my person during flights (in case of evacuation). Both go in the hotel room safe for the rest of the trip.

It's a good idea to have at least two credit cards as hotels and car rentals will put a hold on funds for varying amounts so unless you've got a huge limit on your card you could find your card being declined due to insufficient funds particularly if you are checking in and out of hotels frequently.

Some holds take up to 7 days to be released. Never use a debit card for hold purposes as funds will take even longer to be released. You could use one card for hold purposes then pay with the card you want to earn frequent flyer points with.

It doesn't go astray to use a pre-paid cash card for incidentals such as Qantas Cash Card or Virgin Global Wallet both of whom will allow you to put a hold on transactions if you think the security has been compromised. The Citibank card is great to have for fee free cash withdrawals overseas.

 

[Buzzard]

I have one of these on all our bags. At least if somebody else takes the bag by mistake it is probably a 'friendly "

 

[SeatBackForward]

I have one of these on all our bags. At least if somebody else takes the bag by mistake it is probably a 'friendly "

Ever been asked "you're the one??".. Cue grammar thread.

 

[Buzzard]

Ever been asked "you're the one??".. Cue grammar thread.

Never had a comment or met another AFFer who has spotted the tag.

 

[medhead]

I have one of these on all our bags. At least if somebody else takes the bag by mistake it is probably a 'friendly "

Who are you calling friendly?

 

[yld200]

Great tips!

My 5 cents:

- I like to pack my hand held luggage scale when travelling when I have to worry about luggage weight.
- If you only have a standard travel adaptor, take an aussie double adaptor to double your outlets
- When going through security scans at airports always watch your items go through the x-ray machine, especially for smaller items (sunglasses, phone, wallet etc.) or put it in your carry on bag for screening. In Thailand, the sunglasses that I put in the box with my other things to be x-rayed were different to the ones that came out the other end!

 

[medhead]

- If you only have a standard travel adaptor, take an aussie double adaptor to double your outlets

Or a power board

 

[esseeeayeenn]

I always empty my pockets into my carry-on well before I go through security.
I do not like my personal possessions going through the scanner in a tray, on display and vulnerable to being snatched.
Particularly not at airports where security make you put your passport and boarding pass through the scanner - a practice which I think is both unnecessary and unsafe.

 

[JohnK]

- When going through security scans at airports always watch your items go through the x-ray machine, especially for smaller items (sunglasses, phone, wallet etc.) or put it in your carry on bag for screening. In Thailand, the sunglasses that I put in the box with my other things to be x-rayed were different to the ones that came out the other end!

Very good advice.

I like to put phones/wallet etc in either a carryon bag or jacket pockets.

Another one to remember is belt(s) in BKK, SIN, HKG. Almost always triggers the beep so these come off beforehand.

 

[vetrade]

FWIW we use 2 rainbow coloured TSA straps on each of our black hardcases - one strap goes lengthways and the other around the middle, with each passed through a respective carry handle. Very distinctive on the carousel and I figure that 2 straps would be discouraging for would-be thieves. Cost of the straps roughly equated to the cost of having the cases shrink-wrapped for a single trip through JNB.

 

[Alanslegal]

I carry 2 x shower suction hooks and 1 x 16 peg clothes dryers should I need to DIY laundry.

 

[amaroo]

FWIW we use 2 rainbow coloured TSA straps on each of our black hardcases - one strap goes lengthways and the other around the middle, with each passed through a respective carry handle. Very distinctive on the carousel and I figure that 2 straps would be discouraging for would-be thieves. Cost of the straps roughly equated to the cost of having the cases shrink-wrapped for a single trip through JNB.

+1 Also a good backup if the zipper/lock fails.

 

[erko_adam]

My tips from my few years travelling here and there
1/ Always have some cash
2/ Have some idea in advance of how the taxi/transport system works at the other end if going to a new location, for lots of reasons.
3/ Memorize your passport details
4/ Buy shirts that dont require too much ironing, irons are not always available
5/ Be nice nice to cabin crew, hotel staff, hire car staff - I am surprised at how frequently this act alone comes back to you with some sort of reciprocation
6/ Pack a bottle of red if you are checking luggage. For drinking purposes.