Trifter

Make a plan, then tear it up

What this means is: make a rough plan, have things that you definitely want to do and have a vague idea of which direction you’ll take once in the country, but don’t take it too seriously, don’t get upset if your plan doesn’t come off 100%, the important thing is that you have fun. But making that rough plan at the start will ensure you know which way you’re going and you don’t have any regrets when you get home.

Speak the Language

Not exactly the easiest one, but knowing at least a bit of the local language before leaving is a huge plus, it allows a level of interaction and understanding that can’t be reached otherwise. There are a multitude of sites out there offering basic instructions in many different languages, take a good look at them before you head away, you won’t regret it. And expect to learn more when you get there, get a notebook and write down words that you learn as you go, they’ll come in handy again later in the trip. Read my other article How Not to Learn a Language for some tips on learning languages.

Be Careful

While you should not spend every minute of your day worrying about your pocket or your health, basic precautions must be taken anywhere you go. Check before you go about any health risks that exist in the country, or if there’s a high crime rate. While this should not deter you from going, you’re likely to find hints and tips for staying safe once you arrive in the country. Basic precautions can be the difference between having a great trip where nothing went wrong to having your trip ruined because you spent half of it dealing with the consequences of getting robbed.

Don’t be scared

While being careful is important, it’s also very important that you don’t prejudge the locals and constantly assume they’re trying to pickpocket you. A better plan is to relax and let what will happen, happen, after all, something bad could happen in your own country as much as in a foreign one. A word of advice however, each country has its own culture and way of acting, so the locals in a country where you go might have a way of acting that would be suspicious in your country but is normal there. Just make sure that there’s no way the other person could put you in danger, after that, just relax and enjoy yourself.

Smile

So important yet so overlooked, a smile on your face makes a huge difference to how you look. It can be the difference between looking like a snob, who just wants to get home and a friendly adventurer who’s out to explore. When talking to people, a smile always gets a better response, this can be especially useful if something goes wrong, or if you’re looking for a special deal in a shop.

Talk to the locals

Going to a foreign country and being bussed from hotel to tourist site to hotel will only show you a fraction of what a country has to offer. The real essence of a country is its people, they will show you the way people act and think over there. Getting to know people will make you friends, it will liven up to most boring day, it will give you something to if you’ve seen all the sites, it will open up a whole world of opinions, thoughts and feelings that you would never have known if you had stayed at home instead of vacationing. Another maker of great holidays.

Eat the local food

Travelling abroad is all about opening your mind and broadening horizons and what better way to do that than by sticking that strange, slimy glob on the plate into your mouth. You’ll be surprised, it’s probably delicious! You’ld be amazed at the kind of combinations that people make with their food, it may even give you some ideas for recipes once you get back home. But most importantly, it’s a magical experience to see something so common and everyday -  food – being used in such a marvellous and fascinating way.

Take part in the local customs

A sure way to have fun, like eating their food, taking part in the local customs – as long as you don’t offend the natives – is a great way of experiencing something new. Each custom normally has a long history and by taking part and learning about this, you will gain an important insight into the country and its people, you’ll learn about new ways of doing things and of seeing the world and isn’t that what travelling is all about?

Stay as little time as possible in the hotel

Hotels in nearly every part of the world are like your bedroom at home, so, if you want to spend three weeks in your bedroom at home, do that and save on the flight tickets. Most people like to go out, see the site then come back ‘home’ to the hotel, while a natural impulse, it’s no fun. Instead of getting comfortable in front of the TV, get out there and meet some people, go to the local food stalls, talk with the locals, talk a walk around town at night. Whatever you do, it’ll nearly certainly be more fun that watching American TV for the night.

Get around

Make sure you see everything, after all, you might not ever be back. Important to having a great holiday is having great memories and you don’t want to think back to your holiday with the memory that you missed the once thing that you went to see. Neither is it good to spend all your time in the one city, no matter how much fun the locals are, it’s best to get around and see a bit of everything because every place has its charm and its reasons to stay.

Leave your comfort zone

This is possibly your one chance to do what there is to do in this country, are you going to be too afraid to do it? Well, don’t be! Get out there and do what you’re scared to do, it might be your only chance to do it. If you visit a place known for its rum, well, you’re going to try some, right? So if you go to a place known for its sky-diving, well, I hope you try it! Apart from adventure sports like that, some people have a tough time talking to strangers or even attempting to speak the native language with the locals. You must overcome these setbacks and let yourself enjoy the full experience of visiting another country.

Get souveniers

With these tips, your next holiday is going to be the best ever, so make sure you get plenty of things to remember it by. As I mentioned above, an important part of a holiday is the memories, so write a journal, take pictures and buy souveniers, forget about the expenses for a moment (as long as it’s not too much obviously) and buy the $5 rug, when you get it home, it’ll be beautiful and you’ll be glad you got it.